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Hi! I will be starting my project on Monday 31st December so I have a few days holiday until them. Most of the projects are closed this week because the ex-pats want to celebrate Christmas. The school is about 40km (about 1 hour by motorbike) from Siem Reap in a former Khmer Rouge stronghold, where there are over 1000 children and only one school! The school itself doesn't have electricity or water and many of the children don't even have enough food. An awful lot needs doing. My main duties will be painting walls, digging wells, and helping as a classroom assistant - acting as the 'perfect english' speaker and helping the children with their pronunciation etc. Very basic stuff, but fulfilling all the same. I've also moved accommodation and I'm now staying at The Shadow of Angkor just by the Old Market in central Siem Reap. The owners are friends of a friend here (Andy) and they are very friendly. The room is basic but has a tv and nice double bed. Best of all, I can use the air con, it has a hot water shower, and I haven't been bitten (yet)! In an evening it's just a 2 minute walk into the main part of town with all the bars and restaurants. Had a fabulous curry this evening (Craig knows the place and will no doubt be jealous!) and met up with a lady called Kiki from New York who works for Martha Stewart. She's travelling on her own here for a few days, so we dined together. Yesterday I visited the Angkor National Museum which only opened in November and then a place called the Butterfly Garden, which as you can probably guess, has lots of butterflies - over 1000 in fact. So while you're all freezing in the UK, I was sitting on a comfy sofa, sipping iced lemongrass tea, in the gorgeous 35 degree sunshine! ;0) I'm renting a bicycle tomorrow! Yes, I know it's almost unbelieveable, but I'll get photographic evidence to show that a) I do occasionally exercise and b) I can ride a bicycle in this sort of heat! Bye for now . . . . .
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