THE PROMPTS FOR THE MONTH
SATURDAY 1st SPOON: The first delicious spoonful of my design your own bowl dinner at ARTerillery tonight was every bit as sensational as I anticipated
SUNDAY 2nd DAD: I have absolutely no photos of my long-departed father but I have spent today reminiscing over memories of him. Instead I have a selection of some dads I know and admire. Some recent and some almost ancient shots among them but all are or were great dads
MONDAY 3rd RAIN: Despite the ominous, dark, rain clouds not a single drop of rain today and I can’t say I’m sorry after the near constant, torrential, daily downpours for the last month and longer. Maybe the monsoon is really truly over now
TUESDAY 4th SAUCE: Tonight’s dinner was Buddha Bowls featuring Ian’s homemade Asian Pesto Sauce. We’ve got this now: 3 proteins, 3 roasted veggies, 3 blanched veggies and 3 raw veggies over quinoa but the ‘pièce de résistance’ was the sauce!
WEDNESDAY 5th TOES: This is an archive shot from my birthday trip to Mondulkiri Elephant Project. I just love the fact that this elephant looks like it is doing a soft shoe shuffle minus the shoes.
Here are a few interesting facts I checked and stole via Mr. Google after remembering the toes were one way of identifying African and Asian elephants: ”Interestingly, not all of the toes have nails. Overall, it is generally accepted that the African elephant has four toenails on the front feet and three on the back as opposed to the Asian elephants which have five on the front and four on the back”
THURSDAY 6th BALLOONS: Teaching little monks basic literacy and phonics has been an eye opening experience for me. This illustration from a text book we bought shows how culturally biased language resources can be, but it is still possible to utilise it meaningfully with a little imagination. How many balloons are there? What colour is this balloon? Point at the pink balloon. Yes, there are balloons here!
FRIDAY 7th MUSICAL: options are a bit limited in our attempt to lead a simple minimalist lifestyle here in Kep. These two Bluetooth speakers are able to put out pretty good sound and we can listen to our music and connect to the Australian radio stations we like too. Lo-fi simple, cheap and effective music on demand
SATURDAY 8th PEPPER: is a major crop here and the plantations are popular tourist attractions and the product a sought-after souvenir, so of course we have plenty on hand. These are red and black certified organic peppercorns from a local plantation
SUNDAY 9th DANCE: is an integral element of traditional Bhutanese culture. This is the black hat dance of Tshechu, which is a religious festival and a three-day spectacle of movement and dance. An archive shot from a culture we desperately miss
MONDAY 10th KICK: My feet kicking in the pool today and the photo credit goes to Ian
TUESDAY 11th BROKEN: The broken and dilapidated benches that were donated to the “pagoda” where we teach the little monks. They are still better than the floor, which was our previous option
WEDNESDAY 12th SWING: When you are in a hammock you have to put your feet down if you don’t want it to swing. One of the older monks at the pagoda where we teach is often in this position while our classes are going on
THURSDAY 13th CLEVER: I personally think all of our little monks are pretty clever to have mastered the alphabet, initial phonics, and the English words for numbers to 1000, colours, some fruit and vegetables and shapes as well as various simple greetings, rejoinders and many objects having never had any formal education before, even in their native language. And all this in only three hours of instruction a week for eight months with multiple interruptions and breaks. Of all of them, little Duan (pictured) is perhaps the most focused, determined and astute. He is quite obviously very clever and loves the challenges
FRIDAY 14th GRUB: When you’ve done this bus run to Phnom Penh so many times that you know the grub will be non-vegetarian friendly, unhealthy, pre-prepared, luke warm and sitting in a fly infested cabinet, then you make your own and take it with you. Passenger envy was obvious
SATURDAY 15th STEPS: It’s where the steps lead that helps you decide whether or not you will walk up them. Temple steps are always too inviting for me to refuse to climb them
SUNDAY 16th SWISH: A rare selfie says it all. We went to Phnom Penh this weekend to pick up my swish new progressive and transitional lens glasses and I happened to be wearing a piece of jewellery I recently bought in Bangkok and I think of as the wooden swish. I got a swish new haircut while I was there too
MONDAY 17th SUIT: Our newly-purchased second hand bicycles suit the climate and terrain better than the previous versions. They also better suit us and our riding styles
TUESDAY 18th TWENTY: freshly baked pecan shortbread cookies coz that’s what you do when long awaited guests are arriving soon
WEDNESDAY 19th POCKET: I love to have everything organised and this new handbag has 8 internal pockets so there’s a good place for everything. It was the last purchase I made just hours before leaving Australia and it has already proved its worth. Being waterproof is another big advantage in this season
THURSDAY 20th HANDSOME: The oldest of our monk class students is handsome Nit. Today he sketched me in chalk on the ground after class and I love that he had to add in my heart in orange, of course
FRIDAY 21st A BOARD GAME: Our little monks playing an animal memory game yesterday afternoon. They love this game donated by a Canadian friend and are hopeless cheats so I had to make a board and now supervise them while they play. As with all kids and games arguments still occur but focus is good -boys first, monks second!
SATURDAY 22nd WAITING: Today we have been waiting for the arrival of our guests and we are delighted they have now arrived
SUNDAY 23rd HANGING: A corkscrew curl of root hanging from the canopy of a tree in the Kep National Park
MONDAY 24th BITE: I quick bite to eat! A healthy and delicious dinner tonight for the final night with our guests
TUESDAY 25th PLAYFUL: Even little monks have their playful moments. They received the balls thanks to the donation of Joe who is about their age and decided to help them after his mum gave a donation for supplies
WEDNESDAY 26th KIND ACT: Our friends from Australia left yesterday and not only did they carry our new drivers’ licenses to us (the first ones were lost in the post) but they also bought and carried some stainless-steel straws I requested, left behind unused rain capes hoping needy locals would be able to use them and bought us some Midori as a gift. Come back anytime guys it was so much fun
WEDNESDAY 26th KIND ACT 2: Minutes after posting my photo for the prompt our lovely French neighbour who returned to Kep yesterday popped in with these treats from France! Second act of kindness today. Feeling Blessed
THURSDAY 27th FLOWERS: I associate these flowers with Buddhist temples as they are so often grown in the grounds or nearby in Asia. I don’t know their name but I was recently told they are cannonball flowers, as the tree produces a huge seed pod which resembles a cannonball. However, it is the shape that fascinates me
FRIDAY 28th ENTERTAINMENT: options are pretty limited in small town Cambodia but locals and expats alike gather around the pool tables - not that I play myself
SATURDAY 29th GREY: skies looming over the fishing boats in Kep this afternoon
SUNDAY 30th PINEAPPLE: I love the way the vendors prepare pineapples here and in many other places in Asia. It is one of my favourite fruits. It’s easy to eat and so pretty especially with pink guavas and coffee as an alfresco breakfast. This shot was taken in Phnom Penh. We often enjoy this kind of breakfast on the balcony of a guesthouse where we stay and we specifically request a room with a balcony for this exact purpose
