Friday is fun day at the Farm. The kids spend most of the day painting, making bracelets, spaghetti necklaces and painting!
I now have a lovely collection of handmade bracelets as well as my very own portraits painted by one of the kids.. 
We finished the day with a party at one of the other orphanages….to celebrate the New Year.
Dousing each other with talcum powder is a key component of any New Year Party…
Happy Khmer New Year…
Greetings from Cambodia! We had the day off on Thurs
day and made use of the time by exploring Phonm Penh. New Year blessings were being conducted in the school and perhaps our being there might have been disruptive? One never really finds out everything….
We made use of the time by visiting the Russian Market during the morning! You can buy just about everything there..have your tailoring done while waiting for from your pigs heads to be wrapped up for supper!
The afternoon was spent exploring the Royal Palace.
And the evening socialising with my fellow volunteers and other expats..
ciao
A year ago today (the 7th of April), my father passed away and I was on a very different journey. I reached his bedside two days before he passed.
That event and a number of others in my life have forced me to pause and take stock, and have been the catalysts for the journey I am on now.
Paul Coelho states in the Alchemist:
“To realise one’s destiny is a person’s only obligation.”
Most people never realise their destiny or ever ask the question, “why am I really here?” They are too afraid to step away from the path that society begs them to follow. Or perhaps, too afraid of the answer to that question. The road is well trodden, and there are plenty of tips from well meaning friends and family who have chosen to go the same way.
If you are filled with enthusiasm for your life’s work, then perhaps you may have found yours!
Today, I remember a man who found his destiny and gave life his best shot. I feel his presence as I go in search of mine…
I’m settling in but I am still fascinated by everything I see during my morning commute to the orphanage. Even though I grew up in Asia, living in the sterilised west for almost half my life means that the diversity of Asia still holds enormous appeal for me. From the Cambodian Crocodile Dundee to the Yellow Hummer and the family of four piled up on a motor bike…I see it all during my hour long tuk tuk ride to the farm.
I have settled in to helping Dan with the intermediate class and I think that’s what I will be doing at least for the near future. We had quite an interactive class today and got the kids talking about the upcoming holidays and their hopes and dreams for the future.
In case you’re wondering…most Cambodian seem to love having their picture taken which is good news for me :)
There’s a lot of excitement in the air, as it is Cambodian New Year next week. Classes were disrupted in the afternoon as the kids piled into tuk tuks to go shopping for new clothes!
We went down to Riverside for dinner today..and walked the back roads in search of some authentic Khmer food.
Guess what I had for dinner today :)
Ok…I’m kidding.
That’s it for now. Next week, most of the kids will go home to extended family to celebrate the New Year…and we will have more time to explore.
Stay tuned…lee-hai!
My new life at least for a month has begun! We leave for the farm early in the morning after
breakfast at the guest house. I have traded in my Camry for a tuk tuk and my Aussie gear for local Cambodian clothes.
There are 6 
of us working on this project and we have a lot of laughs during our hour long commute through rush hour Phnom Penh traffic.
Today I was mostly observing and helped out with one of beginners classes in the morning and with a more advanced class for teenagers in the afternoon. The kids are delightful and motivated to learn and join us on our lunch break to practice their English a bit more.
We finish teaching at 3 in the afternoon. The heat is killing me, but after a short rest Liz and I went out for dinner to one of the Indian restaurants in town and explored the city. The temples are stunning and I can’t wait to discover them properly.
s teaching English to young children, mostly orphans and then helping out with the farm animals in the afternoon. 
The area is flood prone so I have posted some pictures of the raised houses for my colleagues back in Sydney! Don’t miss the evacuation plan – canoe parked in front garden!!
I think I started planning for this 
is trip about 6 months ago. When I first visited Flight Centre and mentioned to Shane that I intended to travel around the world..I don’t think even he quite realised what I intended to do! In retrospect, planning a year around the world has been the fun and easy part. Packing up my life in Sydney was what really stressed me out! The list of things to do
, never seemed to end…from terminating all my services to making sure my vaccinations were up to date and organising my computer & banking… the list never seemed to end! Then of course there were the goodbye parties. I started saying goodbye in February! 
I thought if I was really organised about this…there would be one less thing to worry about in April! But of course.. February is far too early to start the goodbye process…so my last few weeks were spend catching up for lu
nch and dinner with all of my friends one last time :) ! “ Together with my sister who helped me pack up, my friends helped me out in so many ways! I would not have been on that plane without them!
I will always be thankful to them…and miss them on my journey. I love you guys very much !!
(source:http://www.squidoo.com/linchpin)
Yes. Now.
I am an artist. • I take initiative • I do the work, not the job. • Without critics, there is no art. • I am a Linchpin. I am not easily replaced. • If it’s never been done before, even better. • The work is personal, too important to phone in. •The lizard brain is powerless in the face of art. • I make it happen. Every day. • Every interaction is an opportunity to make a connection. • The past is gone. It has no power. The future depends on choices I make now. • I own the means of production—the system isn’t as important as my contribution to it. • I see the essential truth unclouded by world view, and that truth drives my decisions. • I lean into the work, not away from it. Trivial work doesn’t require leaning. •Busywork is too easy. Rule-breaking works better and is worth the effort. • Energy is contagious. The more I put in, the more the world gives back. • It doesn’t matter if I’m always right. It matters that I’m always moving. • I raise the bar. I know yesterday’s innovation is today’s standard. • I will not be brainwashed into believing in the status quo. • Artists don’t care about credit. We care about change. • There is no resistance if I don’t allow it to defeat me. •I embrace a lack of structure to find a new path. • I am surprising. (And often surprised). • I donate energy and risk to the cause. • I turn charisma into leadership. • The work matters. •
Go. Make something
happen.
problems. There are too many of us who just can't be bothered to give life our best shot. We are happy to just scrape through life, never realising what our true potential might be. We don't like being pushed outside our comfort zones and we are too often reluctant to take up challenges that would not only help us grow but would inspire our peers to grow with us. 
that we are powerful beyond measure. It is our light, not our darkness that most frightens us. We ask ourselves, Who am I to be brilliant, gorgeous, talented, fabulous? Actually, who are you not to be? You are a child of God. Your playing small does not serve the world. There is nothing enlightened about shrinking so that other people won't feel insecure around you. We are all meant to shine, as children do. We were born to make manifest the glory of God that is within us. It's not just in some of us; it's in everyone. And as we let our own light shine, we unconsciously give other people permission to do the same. As we are liberated from our own fear, our presence automatically liberates others.” 
