Final days in S'pore

When we arrived in S'pore Jaymie and Bryn took the hotel shuttle to their Orchard Rd. hotel and I went back to Guilin View Condos. J and B joined us to see the family and their cool apartment. We went out to dinner at a local Chinese shop and walked around the guilin. All agreed Halia was the Cutest Baby.

On Tuesday after a final swim in the fabulous pool, Isaac and I ventured to the new waterfront park Marina Barage. Amazing structure of gates/dams between the river water and the sea. People were flying kites and having picnics as we ambled around the cool structures. Andrea and I then some shopping/touring in Chinatown while Isaac went to his last INSEAD class. We met up for cocktails at Graze, a very upscale oasis for a final mango daiquiri - it's important to keep up the fruit intake ya know. A final pack and baby squeeze before my departure at 9:15 for a 12 p.m. flight. We were on different carriers for the first leg of the journey to Frankfort and met up in the airport for the final trip from Europe to JFK. Michael picked us up in dreary rain. The contrast between the weather and beauty of Singapore with JFK was jarring. But proceeding home from rain to snow was kind of cool. Home now, uploading pics, unloading suitcases and savoring my trip of a lifetime. Unbelievable sights and experiences, incredible hosts in Singapore and Cambodia, congenial, fun, organized and thoughtful traveling companions - Bryn, Jaymie and Leonora, my loveable family in S'pore - Halia, Isaac and Andrea, great drivers - Andre, Toro and Michael. It couldn't have been better.

Our last days in PP

One of my readers requested a clarification on the magic 9 number in Jaymie's birthday. She is definitely not 69. not even close... the digits add up to 9...5+4, 3+6 etc. You can figure it out.

Saturday was shopping at the Russian market. Crowded, interesting and fun. We were delighted to be invited to the home of Roladet, the chief adminstrative assistant at DDD. Her mother and friend were there as well as we feasted on fruits and coca cola. Mangostines and a bunch of other fruits that we dont have at home. Afterwards we went to the Olympic Stadium for aerobic dancing. This scene is impossible to describe. Around the stadium people are playing soccer, basketball and walking. Hundreds of people were on the top ring of the stadium doing aerobics to hip-hop music. There is a leader in the front, barely distinguishable from the rest. Pretty much in the dark by 6:30. Everyone else knew all the moves but we tried to follow along. I'm pretty sure we were the senior members of the ensemble. It was completely thrilling and hilarious. Afterwards we had dinner at a Chinese noodle shop where the guys in the front were making the noodles. Like throwing pizza dough. Amazing, delicious and cheap. Dinner for 4 was $7.

On Sunday we had a leisurely day of visiting with friends of Bryn's - they came to our guest house with their adorable baby. Interesting to hear how this ex-pat and his Cambodian wife are living in PP with plans to buy a flat and live a more reasonable life than they would have in the states. We had a lovely pool visit at a hotel and lunched there as well. Followed up with more pampering ourselves with manicures/pedicures.

Our final night was such fun - a party on a boat on the Mekong River with the DDD staff - a mix of management and operators many of whom we had already met. There were lots of other party boats as well as small boats filled with Vietnamese who are fishermen and live on the boats. Roladet, fabulous event planner, had catered the dinner and also brought a birthday cake for one of the guests - a former DDD employee. We had a DJ and dancing - some Cambodian music but a lot of American-sounding modern rock music. Almost everyone joined in with the long lines of dancing around the boat. I think they were surprised to see Jaymie and I dancing - not part of the culture for sure. They presented us with gifts and thanked us for visiting and helping and of course heaped praise on Bryn who was described as a DDD "legend". Toro drove us home and we admired the lighted fountains and monuments of PP. Sadly said goodbye to the staff of our guest house who had gotten to know our names and what we wanted for breakfast. Amazingly sweet and gracious people.

Off to Singapore via Bangkok today, Tuesday.

Spiders anyone?

Last night we had dinner at a restaurant run by an NGO, Friends. They take street children and train them for work in hospitality. It's authentic Cambodian food. When I saw that tarantulas (deep fried) were on the starter menu I said "Why not? If not now, when?". Much to the surprise of our dinner companions, Rady and Tip, from DDD, I just popped one whole into my mouth. Quite tasty but a little weird. Jaymie and Bryn restricted themselves to the legs. Our dinner couldn't have been more interesting. These two guys are incredibly smart and well traveled. Tip's family left Cambodia in 1971 because they knew things were going to get bad. He grew up in France, went to college in Houston and has returned here to work. He's head of IT for DDD. Rady is of Chinese descent but has lived here - he has a brother in Philadelphia and relatives in California. He has worked for a bunch of different companies including Price Waterhouse Coopers and is head of HR. They both speak eloquently about their goals for the company and seem to understand the challenges of both a developing company and a developing country. Both of them speak English fluently and were able to find out more about the political scene here as well as more about their personal lives. What their typical weekend would look like and who they live with. Rady is married and lives in a house with his in-laws, and grandmother-in-law. They meet every morning for breakfast before dispersing to their jobs. We learned about the relationship between the ruling party and the opposition party and Rady and Tip's predictions about the political/economic development of their country. Jaymie and I are both so appreciative of the welcome we've received at DDD and so impressed with the amazing development of this company. Having a previous window on Bryn's involvement and now our own experience has enriched our understanding of this country beyond what I imagine most tourists get. We are following Bryn around "in awe".

the Killing Fields

We had a sobering morning on Friday visiting the prison (formerly a high school) that was used to torture prisoners during Pol Pot's reign. We learned that the Khmer Rouge was similar to the Nazis in their attention to recording the names of all their victims. We viewed room after room of photos, numbers and names of those killed here. There was a very moving video detailing one particular couple's demise. The Khmer Rouge kept all their letters and forced confessions all of which are now being archived. The brutality is unbearable - and so recent. After touring the S 21 museum we drove out about 15 minutes to the actual killing fields. Very strange that this monument has been purchased by a Japanese company who is running it. The Cambodian populace isn't pleased with this but evidently they are managing it well and have added a paved road to the sight. The mass graves are marked - just large pits where it seems like you can still see shreds of clothing. In the middle is a beautiful stupa (monument) with skulls of the deceased 50 feet high (pictured above). Throughout the exhibits are signs with a face with a smile and a line through it. Not a place for smiling.

Cooking Cambodia Style

J and I went to Cooking School today with a group of 9 other foreigners - folks from Canada, Australia, Sweden, Norway and us. We started by a tour of the food market - we went in 4 tuk-tuks. Our teacher, Jenny, a lovely Cambodian woman, took us to different stalls to show us vegetables, herbs, meat, fish, and fruits. We returned to the school, a rooftop garden with 10 cooking stations and we prepared spring rolls and fish amok (you will remember as our favorite Cambodian dish). The fish amok required an enormous amount of pounding with a mortar and pestle. I dont know if it was the pounding or something else but I got really sick in the middle of the class - a wicked headache and I felt like I was gonna pass out. Our driver, Toro, to the rescue of course. He brought me home and J completed the amok course. I've spent the afternoon sleeping and feel pretty ok now but declined the opportunity to see the Phnom Wat and so J is venturing out solo.

PHN sites

We've had two great days touring and volunteering at DDD. Tuesday was Jaymie's birthday...an auspicious number in Cambodia. let's just say it has the magic 9 in it. We started with a birthday breakfast at DelGusto (our hotel) complete with presents brought by B from the USA and one from me from S'pore. J and I went sightseeing with Toro, visiting the magnifique Palace and National Museum. The video is J jamming with the musicians...it's even better than her singing. In the afternoon we relaxed at lunch at Villa Langka where we were able to use the pool and hang as long as we purchased some food. an easy afternoon in the shady garden area. We met B and proceeded to G-mom's gift of foot massages and dinner at a spectacular Asian restaurant, Malis.

Today we were at DDD talking to Narin the operations manager. He explained the very sophisticated management plan to increase productivity, revenue, English proficiency of the operators and other goals. They use very cool data tools to communicate speed and accuracy by operator and by team. J and I interviewed several operators some of whom were pretty good at English. We will be preparing a brief report of some suggestions of some non-monetary reinforcers (e.g. employee of the month parking space for the moto a la d.h. jones realtors) and other ideas to increase English conversation.

Afterwards we did a little shopping at the Central Market followed by a siesta in my sarong. You can look forward to my modeling that this summer.

Phnom Penh

Jaymie and I are sitting in Bryn's office at DDD after a full morning of getting to know PP. Please check out her organization at www.digitaldividedata.org. They provide digitalization to clients around the world. There are 175 operators here in the PP office - all disadvantaged or handicapped young people who have been trained in computer skills, data entry and IT skills. They are earning money and also going to school with scholarships provided by DDD. It's an amazing project. Jaymie and I will be volunteering every day - helping look at the English curriculum, written materials, and maybe doing some tutoring. We met with Rathay - the head of HR - an amazing guy who has worked in many different places - hotels, hospitals, Price Waterhouse. His story, like all we've heard is amazing. Getting up to learn English at 4:30 because if was illegal under the Vietnamese, finding English tutors in odd places because he knew it was his chance to get out of Cambodia. And then his deciding to stay ultimately to help his country.

We reviewed some of their English materials and then discussed how we might be helpful - questions of training slow learners, assessment of proficiency, reinforcement for completing goals...familiar territory. After a brief siesta at our hotel we went out to drinks at the Elsewhere with a group of DDD folks and alumnae who have gone on to other jobs. Very inspiring to see how DDD has provided them with skills and confidence to be successful. Dinner at a wonderful restaurant where we sat on pillows and enjoyed fishcakes, lemon grass soup and eggplant. not to mention angkor beer and sticky rice with mangos. yummm.

We have a driver for the whole week, named Toro. He has a Toyota Camry like everyone else here. The driving is CRAZY like it is all over Cambodia. Motos, tuk-tuks, bikes and cars all converging with no stop signs or stop lights. Toro drove us around after our morning meeting at DDD. We saw the river front, palace, and various sights and lunched at the Foreign Correspondent's Club (FCC) - delicious western food - a nice break after all the Asian food.

As I write this post on B's computer we're watching her training some of the staff on a new website initiative. She is a STAR here - quel surprise. When we arrived this morning there was a sign "Welcome Bryn and family". I am honored to be introduced as Bryn's aunt.

When I get back to our lovely guest house I will upload some more pics. Going backwards a bit - - on Saturday we got up early and went to a temple on top of a small mountain. The steps up were treacherous but down was even worse. But worth the journey to see the Tonle Sap river and the reservoirs around Angkor Wat. After Leonora left midday :-( we spent the afternoon at the pool and then went to the Western Baray - a giant reservoir. We took a boat out to a temple on an island and returned in time for a glorious sunset. When you see the scope of this reservoir (Cambodia's Quabbin) you totally understand how marshalling the water resources was key to their success. I said it would be really cool to design a college course around water - from a cultural, economic, environmental basis. Sunday morning Jaymie and I did a final walk around our hotel area, checking out some galleries and the river front. Following a swim we took a private car to PP. The driver spoke no English which was only a bit challenging when we tried to get him to slow down a bit and find a toilet. The drive was long (5 hours) but beautiful. Past rice fields, rural villages, duck farms and drivers of every possible vehicle. Many of the trucks had so many people squashed in you just can't imagine.

On to Cambodia

After a wonderful farewell banquet at No Signboard Seafood in S'pore we left on Wed. a.m. Lee and I left for Cambodia. Our first place was to Bangkok. Since we were changing airlines and had to go in and out of immigration we missed our next flight. We made the best of it by shopping in the fancy airport and having shoulder massages. I'm hoping Isaac can make this his next business venture: massage at US airports. If you were stuck in the airport wouldnt that be better than just drinking?? Anyway we made it to Seam Riep by 7pm on the next plane and met Jaymie and Bryn at our beautiful hotel, the Shinto mani. Everyone in Cambodia is so gracious and friendly. Instead of handshake they bow with hands in prayer position. The height of the hands signals the degree of respect with the highest being for a deity of course. We had our first dinner at the hotel and began our affection for fish amok - a Cambodian dish.

On our first full day we began in our tuk-tuks (motor cycle with a pull behind cart for people) and our guide,Ly, a 36 year old man whom we had hired for 2 days. He is so knowledgeable about the more than 200 temples in the area. We learned about the change in religion from Hindu to Buddhism which resulted in yanking all the Buddhas off the temples. These temples were built from 890- 1191, many by the King Jayavarman VII - not to be confused with all the other Jayavarmans. The guy made incredible temples for himself, his mother, his father and his relatives - in that order. He was Buddhist and his dad was Hindi - and he respected the dad's preference and made him a Hindi temple. nice, don't ya think? Angkor Wat - the biggest was the one for himself. Some of these temples were in use forever but many had been abandoned in the 1400's and only re-discovered amidst the jungle that had grown around them in the 1800's and 1900's. Amazing. The temples are beyond beautiful and no pictures can do them justice. The engineering genius is staggering. And the trees and roots now intertwined with the stone work is unbelievable.

We returned to our hotel for foot and body massages. After the long day of touring it was bliss.

Our Thanksgiving dinner was in a Thai restaurant where we all expressed our gratitude at the opportunity to make this trip and to be together. All of us missing our people at home.

On the second day we set out earlier because it's really hot in the middle of the day. Because we were going to temples that were further out we opted for an AC mini-van. good call. Ly had told us some of the mythical stories that are recorded in the beautiful bas reliefs in eachof the temple. On day 2 we got to see the heroine Sita who had been fought over in a previous temple. The Cambodian Helen of Troy. These are some great stories and the carvings are so detailed and magnificent. we also stopped at the Land Mine Museum. it was put together by a former child soldier who has devoted his life to de-mining the country. His organization also cares for children who are victims of landmines. It is a small little place with a very moving video. Landmines continue to be a serious problem as you know. Our guide had told us his own story of being separated from his mother and siblings at age 3 and living on his wits from several years. The thought of a four year old walking thru the jungle looking for his mother, eating berries and roots is just unbelievable. He described the time when the Vietnamese took over after the Khmer Rouge as just as bad. Until the U.N. threw them out it was still a terrible place for the Cambodians. There are so many reminders of this awful period in our history. And yet the Cambodians have moved on, embrace even their enemies and are working hard to make this a desirable place for tourists. Awesome in every way.

Afterward our second temple day we had some terrific pool time.

Peranakan Museum

Andrea's colleague and friend, Dinesh, gave us a private tour at the Peranakan Museum. we were joined by A and I's friend Katie, an ex-pat who they met through friends of Leah Bicknell's. small world. It's one of two Asian Civilization Museums in S'pore. It's focused on the Peranakans - people of mixed heritage - usually Chinese father and Malay mother. He is a history student at NUS and is leaving academia for the Defense Dept. He serves as a docent at the museum and gave us the most interesting tour of all the exhibits. One of the best featured the jewelry - BaBling. Afterwards we all went out for drinks along the Quay.

Downtown shots

Maxwell Hawker Center. Chinatown lanterns. Leonora's posing with Sir Raffles, the Englishman who really brought on the trading to S'pore. He's revered here - Raffles Hotel, Raffles Place etc.

Downtown touring

Isaac zoomed over from school and met us at the Maxwell Hawker Center. After a sumptious meal (again) we traipsed around Chinatown and then to the Asian Civilizations Museum. Fantastic exhibits and beautiful view of the Singapore River - the contrast between the traditional houses and the skyscrapers is pretty cool.

Tooth Temple

Monday was a big touring day. Lee and I took the MRT and our first stop was the Tooth Temple. There are 10,000 Buddhas along the walls. And they are inscribed with people's names. Fundraising round the world is the same - reminded me of all the named plaques in synagogues in the US.

Pulau Ubin

Our Sunday outing was to Pulau Ubin - an island near Singapore. We took a long cab ride and then a "bumboat" to the island. And yes, Leonora and Isaac and I were happily back on bikes. We biked the whole island and meandered on the boardwalks of the mangrove swamps. They say the island gives you a sense of Singapore long ago. It's a nature preserve now and there are farms as well.

Leonora's here

Foot massage at Beauty World. Massage is completely part of the culture here. We were here at the Beauty World mall around 6pm and the shop was filled with men and women, young and old. You could get foot or full body massage.

Here's Lee and Andrea waiting for some food to take the party at Jordane and Caroline's. We watched a video of the Beijing Olympics opening ceremonies on a projection dvd player. Jordane and Caroline and their son Mateo live in a very cool apartment near downtown with a fabulous view. Other INSEAD friends were there as well.

Halia at Halia