A City Visit

The reason I am in Cambodia this year is because of my experience teaching at a small, rural, picturesque orphanage located on Highway 51 in Kampong Speu province. It’s littered with undersized children who keep themselves plenty busy by hunting for beetles, swimming in the eerie brown pond amongst frogs and fish, and thrashing low-flying bat-like birds with bamboo branches just for the pleasure of making the kill and seeing how small the birds’ brains are.  The older students take no part in these activities, though, as their responsibilities consist of studying, cleaning, and cooking.

It was my six months with these older students that had me interested in returning.

They’re village kids. They frequent the city once or twice a year for a day at a time and the word ‘store’ isn’t in their vocabulary, ‘man’ or ‘woman’ is. Bicycle Man, Coffee Lady, Fruit Girl, and Copy Lady are the local village market go-tos for the necessities. The older students are pros at maneuvering through the rickety, thatched-roof market between stalls of flailing fish, fresh cut cow parts, and fruits and vegetables of every imaginable color. They aren’t shy when it comes to negotiating on prices nor do they hide their astonishment when they get quoted a ridiculous rate for a bundle of bananas.

For now, their home is the orphanage and the thought of leaving is as daunting as running out of rice.

And this is where EGBOK Mission comes in. From the students who have taken the 3 month Introduction to Hospitality course (over 150 students to date) taught by EGBOK Mission volunteers, dozens of them have decided to pursue their studies within the hospitality realm (around 50 students so far). These students apply, prepare, interview, and hope to be accepted into one of the hospitality training schools in Cambodia. It sounds like the normal college entrance procedure that we’re used to, but it’s not. This is Cambodia, after all.

Leaving home is difficult for anyone who moves away. For some of the students who are about to begin their academic journey in Siem Reap, this means moving nearly halfway across the country. EGBOK Mission has prepared the housing, provides the living necessities, and supports all of the students who make this move.

For the students coming from the rural orphanages, it’ll take them days, weeks – maybe months to get used to living in a house that’s in a neighborhood of paved streets, domesticated dogs, and stop signs. For the students coming from the much bigger city of Phnom Penh, it’ll take them the same amount of time to get acquainted to this quieter, more foreigner-filled town. Regardless of what site they come from, few students will be used to the academic workload they’re about to begin. The training schools that will be preparing them for jobs in the Front Office, Restaurant, Cooking, Tourism, and Bakery & Pastry fields consist of much more strenuous and lengthened coursework than the typical Khmer government school half-day schedule. They’ll be taught by Khmer, French, and Australian teachers who become role models to the students because of how dedicated they are in helping each student understand a concept, perfect their pronunciation, and show true interest in the career opportunities that emerge from their year-long training.

For the students coming from the rural sites, their exposure to the cities (both Phnom Penh and Siem Reap) has been greatly increased because of the EGBOK Mission course, which includes hotel visits in Siem Reap and Phnom Penh, a day-long cooking class, and tourism trips to the museums, markets, and attractions that foreigners come to visit.

 In one of the most recent trips to Phnom Penh, the particular group of students I had taught English to for 6 months last year ventured with their EGBOK Mission volunteer teacher into the capital to tour hotels and restaurants. From the small boutique chain of Boddhi Tree Guesthouses to the larger, more upscale Sofitel, the students were in shock the entire day. The staff of the hotels were patient in answering the students’ questions about room rates, nationality of guests, and employment procedures. At Boddhi Tree, our guide was Chakreya. Chakreya was the very first EGBOK Mission student I met back in April when I came with other volunteers to visit her at her first place of employment. I remember at the time she was comfortable, chatty, and excited to be working at Boddhi Tree. Four months later, and I’m standing in front of her with a group of 17 students who come from a similarly rural site as her. She shows them each of the rooms, explains how the shower works, describes check-in procedures, and probes the students to assess what their interests are. All in all, she seems to be helping run the show at Boddhi Tree, and the students walked away amazed at her wealth of knowledge.

As the day’s itinerary sped along, the group was welcomed into Rumdeng Restaurant’s kitchen to see the different elements and learn about cooking temperatures. They were shown about the importance of using coasters under water glasses (a very foreign concept) and talked with the staff about their positions as waiters and waitresses. Everything from the bright art hanging on the walls to the cash register was new to them.

When the day was finished the students were looking forward to getting back to their village. As the sprinkles started to let loose from the black clouds, all 17 climbed into the van and happily took their seats, chatting about the size of the oven, cleanliness of the swimming pool, and diversity of guests from their long day. Will all 17 of them make a decision based on this trip that studying hospitality is right for them? No. Maybe 2 of them? Who knows. And that’s not the goal. The goal is to provide them with the exposure, brief experience, and a basic introduction to this idea that there are more rewarding and enjoyable career options available to them than becoming the Coffee Lady or Bicycle Man – if they are truly interested, hard working, and passionate about using their hospitality skills to help them achieve independence as young adults.

The new school year starts in two weeks. Nearly 30 EGBOK Mission students will be studying in Siem Reap, which means before their arrival the volunteers will scope out the local markets for the best deals on backpacks, socks, belts, rice cookers, pillows, shampoo, and dozens of other necessities that are provided to the students. We don’t have a Target here, but it’s Cambodia, and that means whatever you need CAN be found at the market. It’s just behind the flailing fish, in a stall next to the cow parts, or hidden in a market’s far corner past the pajamas, fake iPhones, and 20 kilo bags of MSG.