We were picked up from the house at 8.30am and taken to the company office for our orientation. There were around 20 of us new volunteers there. We started by doing introductions and a warm up game, and then we were taught about the history of Cambodia and about the organisation. It was really interesting learning about the history of Cambodia. I knew a bit about the genocides that had taken place here, but not to the extent that they told us. They explained that when the Khmer Rouge took over Cambodia in 1975, they forced everyone to leave the city and forced them to become farmers. All of the hospitals, schools, and banks were closed and all of the educated people – doctors, teachers etc were killed. Over 25% of the population were murdered and a lot of people died as a result of being forced to work long hours in the farm with very little food – just a bit of rice and water. And there were no doctors to help when they got sick as the doctors had all been killed. All religions were banned and anyone seen practising their religion was killed. It sounds horrible! And it was so recent! Its hard to imagine.
They then taught us some basic words and phrases in Khmer which is the language spoken here. We went for lunch in a place called Russian Market which was really cool. I think I need a day back there just to shop! After lunch, we went through some role play exercises showing some of the scenarios we might experience while volunteering. We were also taught about the culture here and the dos and don’ts, some of which were quite interesting! For example, don’t touch a Cambodian on the head as the head is considered to be sacred, don’t point your feet at anyone when sitting on the ground, and always give or receive something with both hands. We were also taught about the widespread corruption here, from the police to the judges to the school teachers. We were told that the teachers salaries are very low here so they demand extra money from students for attending classes, and for good grades in exams! So even the public schools that are technically free, are not really free! After our orientation, we went back to the house and I went for a walk along the river with a couple of the other volunteers. Its really nice there. You see people out exercising in the outdoor gym and doing outdoor aerobics!