By Jessica Fager | Community Programme Manager
Dear Friend,
We hope you're well and are enjoying the return to more normal life! We're feeling incredibly grateful to be back to providing our usual programme, and Cambodia as a whole is beginning to feel the benefits of the country having now fully re-opened to travellers. It's a welcome relief for many who rely on tourism to earn a living, however tourist numbers are still incredibly low, and many are still struggling to make ends meet. If you're feeling the itch to travel, now is a great time to visit! Without the crowds you'll get to experience a really unique side to Siem Reap and the temples! Get in touch if you'd like to incorporate some volunteering into your trip!
Inspiring and Motivational Careers Talk
Back in February, we were thrilled to welcome Chef Pardet from Haven; a hospitality training school and restaurant in Siem Reap. Chef Pardet kindly gave up his time to talk to our students about his own experience, as well as careers in the food industry as a whole.
Although a little shy at first, our students soon came out of their shell and began quizzing Pardet on various jobs in the hospitality industry. They even asked him for tips on how to be successful in other fields! A huge thank you to Haven, and Chef Pardet for this incredibly useful and inspiring session!
Phare Circus Workshop
With thanks to some very generous donors, Lise and Stephen, we were all treated to a true, once in a lifetime experience recently. Phare, The Cambodian Circus, came to Helping Hands for a very special day of workshops, followed by our own private show of their incredible circus and music skills!
In the days leading up to the workshop, the teachers were bombarded with questions about what a circus is. Our students' (and teachers) excitement came to a peak as the Phare vehicles pulled onto campus, and they eagerly watched as the equipment was unloaded! Our older students all participated in the activities, despite some doubting their ability to do it successfully. They rotated between three workshop stations, learning to juggle, do yo-yo tricks, balance on a wheel and even build human pyramids! After their recent talk from Chef Pardet, some of them are now eager to pursue a career in circus arts!
Our younger students were equally excited by it all, and we had to give out multiple warnings of "don't try this without professionals", because they too began crawling atop one another!
It was a truly incredible day and after a long 2 years of closures and uncertainty it was really special to see everyone having so much fun together. A massive thank you to our special donors for making this happen, and to the Phare Circus for such an engaging, passionate and exciting day.
Welcoming new volunteers!
After the excitement of welcoming back regular volunteer Kathy in January, we have since had the pleasure of meeting some new helping hands, inlcuding Steven. Steven supported our teachers in the classroom with English lessons, and out on the field with our sports programme. He was a huge hit with both students and teachers! As travel is returning to normal, we look forward to welcoming even more volunteers soon!
As always, we’d like to say a huge thank you to all of you for your continued support. These last couple of years have not been easy, but we’re immensely grateful to have your backing and encouragement. Thank you and take care!
Jess, Sopheap and all at Helping Hands Cambodia x
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