To Tboung Khmum

This morning we went to the student dormitory church and shared in a lovely time of worship. We are always made to feel so welcome there. After the service which lasted about two hours we ate with them.

Once Chaya our translator arrived we set off for the boards with Vietnam. Tboung Khmum is on the boarder between Cambodia and Vietnam. Journeys in Cambodia vary enormously in how long they take according to how much traffic is on the roads at the same time as us. Today's journey was very easy and we arrived here in just less than three hours.

We have had a teachers meeting going through the six sessions we will teach over the next two days.

Early start tomorrow, we need to be out of the guest house before 7am.

The temperature today has been 35 degrees with occasional rain showers. The air humidity is the most challenging, today it has been 86%.

Phnom Pehn day 1

We arrived safely just after 9am and although none of us had slept well on the overnight flight we didn't want to waste the only free day we have by sleeping. First we went to look around the Russian Market. It is an indoor market that has to be experienced, it sells everything you can imagine and even things you never would imagine! Shopping was done and gifts bought as well as an experience for life for Tom Kenneth and Rivo who have not been there before. Here are some pictures to help you imagine but it is such a shame that pictures don't come with smell files because the smell of the place is beyond description.

Being an electrician Tom Kenneth was 

interested to see how electrical work is

carried out here.

We ate lunch at Daughters, for more information about the fantastic work they do see their website:  http://daughtersofcambodia.org/

This will be the last bread for a week as we will be eating rice for breakfast lunch and dinner.





The traffic in the city is appears as chaotic as ever yet everyone seems to get to where they are going. I have on occasion chosen to close my eyes! Vehicle safety is not always taken too seriously either!

The genocide under the Khmer Rouge in the mid and late 1970's is part of this country's history which continues its influence today. Since two of the five of us had not been to Tuol Sleng genocide museum we went in. It is a haunting place with a gruesome history.

A room used for torture.

 

After that we headed back to the guest house for a nap before going over to have dinner with Sithuon and his wife Lysom. They are Normisjons local employees and corordinate much of the church development work Normisjon does. Normisjons social development is done through ICC. If you want to know more there is a website in English here: http://www.icc.org.kh/

Almost there

Well, we have made it safely and uneventfully to Bangkok in Thailand. The pilot strike was cancelled at the last minute so no problem and the security personnel strike at Oslo airport also came to nothing. Thank you if you prayed about this.

The flight overnight was a bit turbulent and bumpy but not really a problem. We are now waiting for our connecting flight to Phnom Penh and some of us are grabbing a quick doze.

Here we go again

Tomorrow the 10th of June Anne Kate, Tom Kenneth and I are heading to Cambodia again. If we get there of course! Let me explain, the tickets take us with SAS airlines from Stavanger airport to Oslo airport then on to Bangkok with Thai airlines. This is presenting us with two potential problems, firstly there is the strong likelihood that SAS pilots will be taken out on strike at some point in the next 24 hours leaving us stranded at home unless we drive to Oslo. The second problem is at Oslo airport where the security staff will be taken out on strike tomorrow if they can't come to an agreement with their employers. The result of that will be to paralyze the whole airport.

I did think I was very organized for this trip but elements beyond my control may yet thwart me! If you pray then please pray for us!

The weather there at this time of year will be demanding too, it is normal for there to be 30-35 degrees centigrade and 80-90% humidity. It is the humidity which is the biggest problem as I am sure yhttps://www.google.no/maps/place/Chhuk,+Cambodia/@10.8355397,104.4462489,15z/data=!3m1!4b1!4m5!3m4!1s0x3109afec784f9669:0xda906e061fb57dda!8m2!3d10.8359733!4d104.4577732?hl=enou can imagine! 

So here is a summary of our itinerary:
Sat  Arrive, check into guest house and either fall asleep or go sight seeing.
Sun  Team meeting with us pluss Steve the international leader for Agenda 1, the translator and Rivo who will be joining us as an observer. In the afternoon we drive to Tboung Khmom which is on the boarder with Vietnam. Follow the link below for a map and some information:
https://www.google.no/maps/place/Tbong+Khmum,+Cambodia/@11.9597697,105.3814933,9z/data=!3m1!4b1!4m5!3m4!1s0x310c728a36aeb3ad:0x22401b5bf292b69f!8m2!3d11.8891023!4d105.876004?hl=en

Mon and Tue we will be teaching in a rural church where church leaders will be gathered from all over the provinse, here is a picture from last time. There is no air condition there, not in the guest house or the church. It is much too far off the tourist track to have such luxuries. If we are lucky there may be a fan or two.

Tuesday eveing after teaching during the day we will be back in the minibus and down to Chhuk which is south of Phnom Penh, the journey took 6 hours last time we did it.
Wed and Thur we will be teaching the mostly the same material in Chhuk before heading to the airport and our return journey to Norway. Below is a link to a map and some information about Chhuk.
https://www.google.no/maps/place/Chhuk,+Cambodia/@10.8355397,104.4462489,15z/data=!3m1!4b1!4m5!3m4!1s0x3109afec784f9669:0xda906e061fb57dda!8m2!3d10.8359733!4d104.4577732?hl=en

I will blog as often as I have internet so do follow us on our adventure if you are able to.

Taster

Today has been a taster day for churches wanting to know more aboout what Agenda 1 is. We spent the night in a very comfortable guest house and were up and out by 7 am as usual. I dropped the cold shower this morning. There is no hot water in guest house rooms. There was however an unusual problem, somone had completely blocked our minibus in. This is how the men in our team solved the problem; by pushing the offending vehicle out of the way, moving the bus and then returning the other vehicle to its place.

 

The hotel carpark, spot the white minibus blocked in.





The street outside the guest house



Off to the street cafe for breakfast, I had marinated pork with rice and a cup of tea in a dinty handleless asian cup

 

The taster day wasn't really a day, it was from 8am - 2pm. Steve, Tom Kenneth and I shared the teaching. Both Anne Kate and I were cold today yet the temperature was 28 degrees (feels like 40 says the app) with 88% humidity! That does not bode well for us when we get back to Stavanger in November brrrrrr!



 



Feedback from groupwork.

One church group prays for another.

 

 

 

Once were finished here we headded back to Phnom Penh where we checked into another comfortable guest house before heading out into the city. We started by going to the memorial of the reign of terror and the genocide by the Khmer Rouge, this is a hugely moving place and not as painful to visit as it could be. There is a kind of quiet peace there despite all the violence comitted to thousands of innocent people. If you wore glasses, a sign of being able to read and therefore educated then you were executed with the rest of your family "just to be sure there were no survivors able to point the finger." If you has "soft hands" then you were not a maual labourer and therefore a threat to the Khmer Rouge and you were executed, most people were tortured first. Executions were with any heavy or sharp object rather than guns since bullets were expensive. This was done during the night while loud speakers played very loud propoganda music to drown out the victim's screams. Even small children and babies were executed.

 

Babies and children were executed against this tree by being held by the feet and swung at speed towards the trunk where their skulls were shattered. Their bodies were thrown into the nearest mass grave.

You cannot help but be moved when you og to a place like this but it is important both not to forget what happened and to better understand the Khmer people today.

 

We have been travelling around the city this afternoon by tuctuc. On heading back to the city centre we got caught up in a terrible gridlock which meant we had to drop any ideas of going either to Daughters of Cambodia (see previous posts) or the Russian Market.

 

 

We went straight to a favourite restraunt of mine the Khmer Surin and had a lovely meal before headding for our beds.



Mango cooler.



Tobung Khmum day 2

After a full eight hours of sleep we felt refreshed and ready to meet whatever the day may bring. Thank you to the 37 people on the prayer list who prayed for a good nights sleep for us. Out again by 7am and after a very tasty breakfast of marinated pork with rice and a rather strong chili sauce we headded to the church.

The atmosphere was expectant, we started as a had started day two in Chhuk with teaching and ministry on the topic of how much our Heavenly Father loves us. It was very moving for many people and we hope and pray that many experienced a deep sense of His love either again or for the first time.

There was a break then and snacks for everyone, fruit and/or rice cakes steamed in palm leaves.



Trying a rice snack

Tom Kenneth after biting into  a sour local fruit yesterday

After snack time the churches divided into their groups for the last time and made plans for the coming 6 months.

Ten church groups working together.
 

The groups then chose a group member to come forward and present their pland to the rest of the people. For some this was a huge step out of their comfort zone, especially the women who may have never said anything in a meeting before. After each team presentation, the whole team from each church were prayed for.

I noticed that the children who were there could not get enough prayer ministry and were joining in for more and more - what a joy! I suggested we pray for them all together as well as with their church groups. In this picture it looks like they have been forced up against the wall, that's not really how it happened! We then prayed for the teenagers a second time praying for their future and the role they will have in shaping their country.

Please note all left the wall with their lives intact!

 After lunch, a leader review and some socializing we drove back to Phnom Penh along the border with Vietnam which in places was only 100 metres away. We say lots and lots of rice fields, a rubber plantation and loads of other interesting things to look at including the Mekong river which we crossed by bridge.

Rice not yet ready to harvest

Rubber trees

In Phnom Penh we changed some of the local team members before going out to a pizzaria for a meal and to celebrate Tom Kenneth's birthday.

The birthday cake was bright and colourful with "Happy birthday, may God bless you" written on. At lunch time we had made an improvized cake from green beans and other vegetables. We sang happy birthday to him three times in all today, once when we got up in the morning, once with the vegetable cake and once with the proper cake!

After we'd eaten we carried on to near where we are going to have an Agenda 1 taster day for churches in a province just an hour south of the capital. Agenda 1 involves a big committment on their part as it is twice a year for 2-4 years with follow up during the intervening 6 months. This is something the local churches has asked for and want. They will be expected to put the plans they make into action during the interveening 6 months then to feed back to the other churches how they have got on with it. It will, I'm sure, be an interesting day tomorrow. 

Tbung Khmum

Out of the guest house at 7am and the temperature was already 33 degrees with 57% humidity! We were in for a long and rather hot day. We eventually found the church where the meetings today and tomorrow will be held. The people have already gathered and are waiting. There were two fans for about 80 people, clearly not enough. We started With worship led by musicians on traditional Khmer instruments.

Worship leaders



playing traditional instruments



but I have no idea what they are!

The teaching, discussion groups and presentations got under way.

Group work



Tracy teaching

Steve, Tom Kenneth and I shared the teaching and Chakraya translated for the people. We had two students to translate for us when necessary.



Tom Kenneth teaching



Everyone focussed on what's being said.

By 11am I was struggling, everyone was struggling, even the locals! Thankfully there is pleanty of bottled water, we needed it. Lunchtime came and we had rice and a stew of intestines and vegetables. I think most of us westerners avoided the intestines and ate the rice and the veg.

Large intestine of some unfortunate animal with sauce and other delicacies.

 

We were not long into the afternoon before a tropical storm broke overhead. I have heard about these but never before experienced one.

 

 

As it rained we felt the temperature plummet from 43 degrees to a more manageable level. I cannot tell you what it was as we didn’t measure it after the storm. The day ended with another evaluation and meal of rice and mung bean and meat. There were other things to have with the rice but I chose not to.

One of the people in charge of food preparation by his preparatin area.

 

A meal for over 80 people

lots of pots bubbling merrily




in pots using a wood fire under each for heat

 

The team finished today with a couple of hours of prayer ministry then back in our rather hot bedroom we hope to sleep.