On my first full day back in town Chom was taking a day off work to travel the 60km to his wife’s village, to pick her up and bring her home. He works up to 18 hours a day, six days a week now, in two jobs (tuk tuk driving and managing the hotel I … More Rock ‘n Roll
If you wait until you can do everything for everybody, instead of something for somebody, you’ll end up doing nothing for nobody. These words appear at the end of a short video currently doing the rounds on Facebook. In it, a young homeless man in a ripped t-shirt stands on a cold Manhattan street, holding … More “Just Stop”
It’s not really Paris, it’s an airport hotel on the outskirts of the city. Even Paris can be less than ordinary. In a few hours I’ll be winging my way to Phnom Penh. Thanks to the situation evolving with Paula, I finally picked Cambodia. It was an agonising decision thanks to the incredible experiences I’ve … More Pontificating in Paris
Waking on Friday morning, it seemed as though just another day in paradise lay ahead. Karen was attending her final class at the five-day cooking course being held at the home of the cookbook author and her husband, who run these courses several times a year. I was invited to join the 11 students and … More Another Day in Paradise
Picking grapes? Picking lavender? Picking olives? No! Picking whether or not to be here. Talk about a First World Problem! There are castles on hilltops at every turn and churchbells ring out on the half hour from medieval spires reaching into blue skies. Ancient Roman cities recently discovered under layers of soil sit on display … More Picking in Provence
Since my last blog post I’ve had a couple of days of “down time” in London. A while ago Laura loaned me a DVD copy of The Hundred Foot Journey, and I finally got the time to watch it. Starring some brilliant actors, Helen Mirren shines in a lead part alongside the very lovable and … More Freedom and Genius
If you’ve noticed the theme of Google’s home page today, you might know that eight hundred years ago, on 15th June (today in England), King John of England signed the Magna Carta. He was an unpopular king, apparently spiteful, petty and regularly placing himself above the law. He often features as a villain in tales … More Experiencing England
Phter Koma have a new website! http://www.phterkomacambodia.org Thanks to Amber, the daughter of a good friend of mine, who is extremely clever at building websites. Not only did she create the page but she also donated the page costs to us. Thanks, Amber! This is in addition to the French website which has been in … More A Plug for Phter Koma
If I had a bucket list, “take Eurostar to Paris for a day” would definitely have been somewhere in the top ten. So on Monday I took Eurostar to Paris for a day! Every year one national staff member from each MSF program attends the Annual General Meeting in Paris, an incredible opportunity for anyone, … More Trying Not To Be Grotesque
Parque de El Retiro, sometimes referred to as “the lungs of Madrid”, is a beautiful and huge park on the edge of Central Madrid. A boating lake, many majestic fountains, statues, manicured gardens, tree-lined avenues, and at least two beautiful buildings hosting art exhibits are some of the features I saw today. Maria, Bianca and … More A Beautiful Bubble
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