Tuesday, June 4 transport to Siem Reap

Today was a travel day. We had breakfast at 6:30am and said our goodbyes to our homestay families. We carted off all the plastics we had used for the week. After a boat ride to the mainland we had a 9 hour bus ride.  Along the way we saw beautiful green rice fields, Students enjoyed stopping for cold smoothie drinks and a pizza restaurant for lunch. On the bus we wrote about what we will remember most from Koh Pdao….







Family with widowed mom and two daughters, age 16 and 18 (away at school) 




Sophie H: I will most remember going to the school and meeting the neighborhood kids; they were very welcoming and cute. I will also remember learning Khmer from my homestay mother. 


Sophia: I will most remember the stories we gained from interviews with the local people, particularly of their experience coping with the Khmer Rouge and the joy they have found today.


Caroline: I will remember going to the Wat with my homestay sister dressed in the beautiful traditional clothes she lent us, and getting soaking wet from the water blessing. I will also remember our homestay sister and mother’s smiles and reactions when they read our letter translated into Khmer.


Family with 13 year old girl and 8 year old boy   



Clifford: I’ll remember on the last day when our homestay mom handed us a handwritten note in Khmer and asked Pum to translate. She said that she was too anxious to come up with something on the spot, so she wrote down her thoughts. The letter roughly said that she loved us like family, and really enjoyed our laughter and smiles in the house, and that she wishes us success and happiness in life. It was really sweet, and was a touching way to end our stay on Koh Pdao. 


Isaiah: I’ll never forget how my home stay dad would always try to find common ground with us by showing us videos on his phone and seeing his face light up when we seemed interested in what he was showing us.(ie.boxing, music, dolphin conservation surveillance)


Henry: My favorite moment from Koh Pdao was when we gathered a bunch of local kids outside our homestay and played their favorite hack-y-sack game. Even though it began to rain, we played on and their smiles only grew as we played through the downpour. It was an incredible moment of connection without any words exchanged. 


Family with 10 year old boy and 7 year old girl  and the village chief 




Aaron: The moment I will cherish the most from Koh Pdao is when I was helping my 10-year old homestay brother with his math homework. Even though my efforts to teach him 20/5 were fruitless, we still enjoyed each others company. It was amazing to be able to communicate with my homestay brother through math and help him in the process. 


Shailen: My favorite moment during our stay in Koh Phdao was the water blessing at the Wat. Wearing traditional Cambodian clothes that my homestay family prepared for me and participating in the ceremony was a way for me to experience a common Cambodian ritual. Following the chanting with the monks, we all lined up on the stairs and got soaked with water. Not only was it refreshing because it was hot during the ceremony, but it was a moment that I will always cherish and remember during my time in Cambodia. 


Family with girl aged 5 and a 2 month old baby 





Isla: One of my favorite moments on Koh Pdao was at the last night celebration when we all got to dance together with our homestay brothers and sisters. The kids were so happy to be there celebrating with us and we all got to have so much fun teaching each other dance moves to a combination of American and Cambodian songs


Scarlett: My favorite moment from our stay in Koh Pdao was playing volleyball with our group, as well as with the local people. Our game had some fun and friendly competition, and even those who had never played before really got into it. Our travel leaders- Mony, Pum, and JB -made the game lively as well as our homestay brother. It was fun watching everyone show off their talents and cheer each other on.  


Sophie L: I will remember most the last afternoon with my homestay when we lounged in the hammocks under the house and everything just seemed so peaceful and perfect


Family with 12 year old boy and 18 year old girl (was not there due to school on mainland) 



Carter: My favorite moment during our time in Koh Pdao was the very first day we arrived. After we met our homestay family, Cameron and I went to play volleyball with our homestay brother, Kop Mah, and some of his friends. Even though there was a huge language barrier between us we still had a lot of fun and it was really cool to connect over something that all of us knew how to play.


Cameron: The moment I will remember the most is the true water blessing that we received during the ceremony on our last day in Koh Pdao. We all lined up in rows of 4-5 people sitting on a staircase and the monks behind us continuously scooped water from buckets and poured it on everybody. Not only was it extremely refreshing, but it was so cool to see everyone’s funny reactions and also experience a once-in-a-lifetime blessing like this.


Family with a girl aged 7 and another girl aged 2 and grandmother 



Lauren: My favorite memory from Koh Pdao was when our homestay grandma picked out traditional Cambodian outfits for us before going to the Wat. She was so excited to help us and putting on a fashion show with her grandchildren was such a fun and sweet moment. 


Zoe: My favorite moments from Koh Pdao were the afternoons and nights spent with our homestay family. Playing every game imaginable with our adorable homestay sisters and talking about our families with our homestay grandparents was truly magical. I really felt connected with them, especially when we tried on traditional Cambodian clothing and had a fashion show for some of the girls and neighbors. 


Amber: A moment I will never forget from Koh Phdao is how our homestay grandmother tightly hugged us before we left while blessing us in Khmer. It was so moving to me because in the whirlwind past week of fashion shows, games, and conversations through charades and translations, we really became family. Grandma and her grandchildren treated us like their own. It was a beautiful experience to witness and receive the love of grandma and the grandchildren, to learn from them, and to bond with them. I will cherish the time I had with this family always.

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