Here we are at Day 2 of the trip!
The day started at 6.30am local time. After having our breakfast in the hostel, we headed to the church to collect the gifts we had prepared for the children. Once that was done, we set out via boat for the floating village!
The journey took about an hour and a half, and was pretty uncomfortable. However, the water we travelled on was a deep blue – something you never see in Singapore. For a large part of the trip, all we could see on the horizon was more and more water. It was a truly beautiful sight.
When we reached the village, the children were already waving and smiling brightly at us. Upon reaching the village church, we sang and performed for them. They in turn performed for us, and we felt very welcome.
The children’s performance for us was truly memorable. They sang Cambodian versions of popular songs such as “If You Are Happy And You Know It” and “The Community Song” with great passion and harmony!
Afterwards, we got to interact with the kids. Some of us did colouring and origami with them, while others made balloon sculptures. The group then presented them with the clothes we had prepared. The look of elation on their faces really lightened our hearts.
When lunch rolled around, we served the kids first with “rice soup” (something like the porridge we eat at home). All we can say is…it tastes delicious.
Though the villagers have little to eat, they were very hospitable, and even served us food! It came as a shock when they served us food first, ahead of their own kids.
Once lunch was over, we embarked on our boat journey home. Along the way, we stopped at an interesting handicraft store that sold goods made out of dried water hyacinth. We also visited another store that exhibited crocodiles, snakes, and exotic fishes!
Upon reaching shore, the team headed for dinner, which like the previous day, was Cambodian cuisine. As with Day 1, we quickly headed back to the hostel after our meal, to rest up and prepare for the next day’s village visit.
And that’s all for our second day in Cambodia! Until our next post!
