THE PROMPTS
SUNDAY 1st OUT AND ABOUT: Hoping for sales at the Kampot Arts Design and Handicrafts Fair - representing IWA upcycling and selling our own Eco-wraps to support the little monks of Kep today
MONDAY 2nd LIGHTS: The closest thing to Xmas Lights I can spot in a Buddhist Kingdom
TUESDAY 3rd FESTIVE: For us Aussies the festive season is mid-summer and this vista as we arrived on Rabbit Island for an overnight stay with friends seemed the perfect festive season view to me
WEDNESDAY 4th I BOUGHT THIS: haul of goodies at the market on Sunday. With some of these items we are hoping to begin another fundraising project to assist our little monks and themed “Say no to plastic.”
THURSDAY 5th THE WEATHER TODAY: is perfect beach weather and even the local monks thought so
FRIDAY 6th SMALL: One very small orchid flower from the garden
SATURDAY 7th HOMEMADE: Today we had to make more medium sized eco-wraps to replace those sold at the market last weekend. I was plugging this size and we are more than happy with our first round of sales
PS Thrilled to say that this one made it to the Fab 9 grid for the “homemade” prompt on Facebook too
SUNDAY 8th MORNING: wouldn’t be the same without our standard baguette breakfast and coffee
MONDAY 9th SANTA: must be doing his laundry in Australia in anticipation of the big day, because I can see his stockings and cap on the iconic Hill’s Hoist (washing line for all non-Aussies) and there is definitely no trace of him here in the Kingdom of Cambodia
TUESDAY 10th GIFT: As we were leaving the pagoda after class today the Abbot presented us with this gift. At certain times of the year gifts like this are given to the pagodas by families and there is always an excess. In this case it was fresh fruit so we have spent the afternoon gifting rambutans, “milk” fruit, persimmons and melon to friends and neighbours as there was simply too much for two of us to eat. So, this was gifted three times over!
WEDNESDAY 11th MAIL: It will have to be email for me, since I have received exactly two pieces of mail all year! Yesterday I sent out 99 (yes, I just counted) emails with our Xmas message in them and so far, only 7 have bounced and I have received two replies. Hoping for some more replies over the next couple of weeks
THURSDAY 12th GREEN: All the mango trees in our yard are fruiting up now and there is an abundance of green mangoes. Not long before we will be eating them
FRIDAY 13th SPARKLE: The sparkle of light in the crystal in the studio of the Dust in the World; original jewellery in Kampot. Among all the glittery, colourful baubles waiting to be transformed into spectacular accessories it was the crystal that drew me inside to investigate
SATURDAY 14th RED AND WHITE: Xmas star made locally by Khmer Hands from painted strips of rolled recycled newspaper. It just happens to be the only Xmas decoration I have ever bought
SUNDAY 15th FUN: This is Ti. He is very serious and studious in class but on Thursday after class he had the biggest smile I’ve ever seen on his face while pretending to ride this motor scooter. I guess that’s what he calls fun
MONDAY 16th WRAPPING: Strips of green, banana palm fronds are the wrapping for my favourite Khmer snack - sticky rice with coconut cooked in palm sugar. This eco-friendly wrapping for a variety of food pre-dates plastic and polystyrene and hopefully will become the norm once again in a world increasingly aware of the danger of single use plastic
TUESDAY 17th TREE: This gorgeous tree provides shade and cools the entrance to the garden at a dear friend’s house here in Kep
WEDNESDAY 18th DECORATION: done my way! My favourite corner of the living room decorated in keeping with the two Buddhist cultures I love best
THURSDAY 19th JOY IS.......: a weekend break in the capital and a chance to soak up some culture
FRIDAY 20th XMAS TREAT: My homemade traditional, Guinness, boiled fruit cakes took on a tropical flavour this year when I replaced some of the usual fruit with locally produced dried pineapple, mango and papaya. We have been making them and giving them to friends and family for almost 20 years. This is half of this year’s batch and we always keep only one for ourselves but we did have to taste test the two small cupcake size ones with friends a couple of days ago just to prove they were edible .....
SATURDAY 21st STAR: Kak Channthy, also known as Cambodia’s Amy Winehouse and an incredible singing star of the kingdom is immortalized in street art in this little laneway in Phnom Penh. She died in March last year as the result of injuries sustained in an accident involving a car and Tuk Tuk in the early hours of the morning while returning from a performance
SUNDAY 22nd I DID THIS TODAY: Found my favourite Kampot clothing outlet’s latest branch in PP and the super friendly and competent staff member Ryan, who use to work at the flagship store, at the exact same time a favourite student from Bhutan started messaging me.... just had to buy a coffee, sit down and chat. I feel blessed
MONDAY 23rd TRADITION: After spending a few days in the capital, we go to the Central Market very early on the day of departure to buy a few fresh treats we cannot get in Kep. This morning was no exception. I can see an Asian style Xmas feast in the making right here
TUESDAY 24th XMAS EVE: Spent a good part of the day delivering small,l mostly homemade gifts of Xmas cake and shortbread to friends and tonight these small gifts will be delivered too. I firmly believe the best part of Xmas is giving
WEDNESDAY 25th CELEBRATE: Our contribution to the tribe to celebrate Xmas tonight
THURSDAY 26th HAT: That would be me in Ian’s authentic Panama hat, made and bought in Peru.... Doesn’t that make it a Peruvian, not a Panama?
FRIDAY 27th I’M GRATEFUL FOR....: the opportunity to interact with and teach these monks and the woman who drew us all together. They have added immeasurably to the quality of my life and I firmly believe our connection has done the same for them
NB: I’m delighted to have been chosen in the Fab Four selection for this prompt too
SATURDAY 28th I GOT THIS!: Our landlord gifted us three green coconuts and Ian harvested his turmeric crop today so I got a mid-afternoon refresher of fresh coconut water and flesh blended with turmeric. Might be just the detox needed after recent excesses
SUNDAY 29th SELFIE: Something I have never been good at and rarely attempt, but here is one I did a week ago in Phnom Penh because the art on the wall behind me inspired me to try ..... what could be better than my favourite colour combination of orange and aqua in a dragon mural?
MONDAY 30th LUNCHTIME: We rarely eat lunch but often have coffee and a treat in the middle of the day. Today’s special breakfast, sightseeing tour and picnic late lunch plans were cancelled due to a friend having an accident, so a rather special treat was our lunchtime pick me up today
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