Recently I discovered Birdy, an English folk musician with the most unique and dreamy voice. Assisted by Birdy, the dulcet harmonies of Ed Sheeran, a good book and good friends, I enjoyed a week off with neighbours from Australia at Siem Reap and Battambang. I must have listened to Birdy’s Not About Angels a thousand … More It’s Not About Angels
He lives in a home with walls constructed of bamboo, elevated on wooden stumps ten ladder steps from the ground. I have cycled or tuk tuked along this track which runs parallel with the Mekong countless times over the past four years. The track passes through many impoverished communities, an interweave of Buddhist and Islamic … More Boat Baby Update
It’s okay to be imperfect. On the other hand, we should not allow perceived success or praise for perceived success affect our ego. Someone cycling Road X is no better or worse than someone walking Road Z. In the field of humanitarian work it’s easy to find people willing to shower you with praise. This … More People From The Sky
Only in the past few years have I come to appreciate that I was born on the lucky side of life. Not only do I have enough food, love and shelter but I have the ability of having experienced going on an aeroplane, visiting towns and countries beyond my home, obtaining a first class education … More Battle of the Balance
Many hours of many days during my first 2 years in Cambodia were spent adventuring with my good friend, a tuk tuk driver who I blog-named Chom. He is currently living in Japan to earn $60 per day as a farm worker (10 hours per day, 7 days per week). This is big money to … More Pimp My Tuk Tuk
There are so many cultural quirks in Cambodia that you could write a book on them, if you were confident enough in your knowledge. One of my favourites, perhaps because of the similarity with Central Australian indigenous custom, is the practice of referring to people according to an assumed kinship status. Here I am often … More Bongs and Tycoons
Just over two years ago, during a boat cruise on Lake Windermere in north-west England, a small island in the lake captured my imagination when the guide described it as the place which had inspired Arthur Ransome’s children’s adventure series, Swallows and Amazons. Tonight at a hotel in Siem Reap I turned on the television … More Miracles, Swallows and Amazons
A first impression of Phnom Penh for any newcomer will likely relate to the traffic. Sitting at intersections beside trailers piled disproportionately high, their loads towering ludicrously into the sky, you may have fleeting images of death-by-crushing. Ladders stand tall on seats of motos between the back of the driver and the front of the … More Making Sense of Another World
One morning about 13 months ago I was unsuccessfully trying to help Mum with her iPad. The Siri feature kept turning on at inopportune moments so I was showing Mum how Siri works, as well as how to turn her off. I turned Siri on to ask her a question just as Mum spoke, which … More Saturday Lunch Musings
It’s a five hour bus ride from Kampong Cham to Siem Reap. I was the only Barang on the bus which is a reasonably unusual experience, especially on a route to the very touristic town of Siem Reap. Seat 29 was my allocation but someone had already taken it. One of the many young men … More The Frangipanis Above Me: Part 2
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