When you get as old as me everyone starts to look young. Over 50% of the Cambodian population are under the age of 24 years old. Coming from a country where 40% of the population are over 50 years old, it is no wonder that I spend my life wondering why I’m surrounded by twelve … More We Can Survive Another Day
All our knowledge has it’s origins in our perceptions Leonardo da Vinci I regularly tell people in Cambodia that I come from a rich country, but that I am not rich. Each time I hear these words from my mouth, I wonder how someone from a poor country who has never experienced societal prosperity, processes … More This Week’s Perceptions
As a young child I remember seeing footage on the television of scenes such as this coming from Cambodia. My enduring memories include a guy called Pol Pot, said by Mum to be “a very bad man”, and soldiers in black pyjamas with a checked scarfe. With the exception of the occasional elderly person, the … More The Krama
Most evenings I sit in a particular spot beside the Mekong River watching the evening cruisers go by on their variously populated motorbikes as I sip a glass of white wine. That’s a $2 luxury I can afford to spend on myself among the billions of other luxuries I take for granted in this lucky … More Dilemma of Departure
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
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
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
I wandered lonely as a cloud That floats on high o’er vales and hills, When all at once I saw a crowd, A host of golden daffodils; Beside the lake, beneath the trees, Fluttering and dancing in the breeze. William Wordsworth, 1804 It is so much easier to be in tune with things when you … More Wandering, Lonely as a Cloud
alicespringstomind 