There is, indeed something to be said for a Cambodian, white-sand Christmas. It’s a different kind of Christmas and I happen to like it. I’ll be walking down the sandy beach seeing ex-pats, locals and tourists in their beach attire with a Santa hat and it really makes me smile. Though the Cambodians don’t generally celebrate Christmas in their own culture, they do captivate the spirit of Christmas in their day-to-day lives, every day. The Cambodian way of life is all about being grateful for what we have, celebrating and spending time with the ones we love. Christmas is about sitting around in a circle and sharing stories, laughing and appreciating our lives/ loved ones. This spirit is something that we can feel very strongly in Cambodia, on the regular. I believe packing up the family for a Cambodian Christmas would be a huge hit and a Christmas to never forget! It would be a Christmas filled with the true spirit of gratitude that sometimes has gotten misconstrued by corporations and competition.

In my optimistic opinion, the times are changing and many don’t want all the random stuff that we buy each other that ends up in a bottom drawer somewhere. Money is better spent by having enriching experiences with the ones we love. These experiences will last forever and they will change the way that we live our day-to-day lives. Hopefully these types of experiences can bring us closer together, help us re-prioritize and bring more gratitude into our lives, which is what I think Christmas is all about. In the past year, I’ve seen many more people thinking this way and instead of buying useless gadgets and clothes, people are spending their resources on experiences and donating to charities. I think this is a really great way to do Christmas and you can be sure to still get a delicious roast dinner… even on the beach! As many western people have decided to move away from Western society all together and move to Cambodia, they are here to ensure you find a delicious Christmas dinner that we look so forward to. So, after a day of tanning, laughing, singing, games and swimming, you can pull up for a no mess-no fuss Christmas dinner! One could even get back to work for the new year with a tan, as beach weather is perfect this time of year!

So, this holiday season, why not try something new? I’m sure you’ll have a Christmas to never forget! Whether you spend it on a sandy beach, on a high-rise, rooftop pool in the bustling cities, in a quaint fishing village by the river or out in the rural countryside I’m sure you will expand your perception of what Christmas truly means. When you let the beauty of Cambodia and its magnificent people into your heart, you will be changed forever. The spirit of Christmas thrives in Cambodia. So, cheers to this Christmas and the true spirit of gratitude and appreciation! You’ll find me with my toes in turquoise water, butt in white sand, pina colada in hand, Santa hat with a bikini and gratitude in my heart. Of course, there is also no holiday cleanup to be grateful for! There are many reasons to keep the spirit of Christmas alive year-round and I hope you do! Wherever you are and wherever you go, may your Christmas be merry and may you be truly thankful for all the blessings that we are so blessed to have every day.

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Of course, there are geographical differences that affect how strong you may feel this. It is in its purest form when you get to the rural countryside. It definitely doesn’t take long to get into the countryside from a metropolitan area… Sometimes you simply drive a few minutes from the city and see yourself surrounded by rice fields or mangoes. When you get there, there is something so genuine and pure about the way the villagers go about life. Even in the smaller cities you can still feel it in all day to day errands and stops at shops and at the market. It is a contagious, joyous, accepting nonchalance. It is a refreshment from the hustle and bustle of western civilization. This is why in the major cities, it is not the same. The big cities are highly influenced by western civilization, culture and some societal pressures. Many Cambodian people who live in the city have been pushed into one-room shacks to build multimillion-dollar buildings. For this reason, some jaded ways of viewing the world are creeping into the city. Though not everyone has been swept away by all the changes… There is still a multitude of gems and genuine smiles at every corner.

So, when you submerge yourself in this culture, you are able to learn more about the art of happiness. Rural Cambodians live for the day. It is apparent that they work hard, rest hard, party hard and spend a lot of time with the people they love. Every interaction is looked upon with the spice of curiosity and the simple innocence of experiencing a new situation for the first time. How wonderful would western people feel if they were able to live with this perspective? It is a gift for our consciousness! To have the opportunity to emerge in a place where people simply do not stress the small stuff, they innocently laugh off any stress or sense of urgency, don’t spend countless hours of time asking why, when something bad happens they just move forward and accept. These teachings are so simple, but sometimes they cannot be fully understood unless you can see them in action.

When we are able to incorporate these viewpoints into the way we live our day to day life, we can feel joy much easier. It is easy to believe these concepts, but it is far harder to adjust your mindset in the day to day affairs. In so many instances, people may believe that they live like this until they see others who are truly living this way. Even spending one afternoon, sitting in the rural countryside and having a picnic on someone’s bamboo table will help you to relax into the joy of being that s living underneath all of the expectations, perceived urgency, fear and stress. They will teach you that Joy is not something to reach for or find, it is something that we can feel in each moment if we can learn to let go and unlearn the mindset that we were raised amongst.

From the times, countless times, I’ve been broken down on the side of the road with a mechanical motor issue, I have always been picked up by a local, taken to the nearest mechanic, given mango with chilli and charged a few dollars if that! And many of these cases, they have actually driven out to my broken vehicle and fixed it there on-site for less than five dollars. I will be sitting with their family, having a laugh and watching the kids and animals in the field. Honestly, some of my favourite memories have happened while waiting for my motorbike to get fixed. Cambodian people have taught me so much about being present, not stressing the small stuff and being generous. We all know that life has its ups and downs and things go sour, but why do we spend so much time asking, “why me?”.” We all have our struggles, we are all human and wasting our time on thoughts like “why?” or “how?”, is not making us any more content. There are no reasons for any of it besides the fact that we are all on a personal journey of spiritual growth in our lives and learning to have a bit more compassion, the innocence of experiencing a fresh moment, humility and gratitude could take us far on the road to peace! So, if you are curious about new perspectives that bring a newfound feeling of simple Joy, come visit Cambodia! Rent a motorbike and go into the country! When you return from an adventure there are beautiful hotels with modern-day luxuries for a fraction of western prices! When you get back to your beautiful hotel room at the end of the day, you will have far deeper gratitude for things like hot running water. Life is all about perspective… How do you frame yours?

The post Change Your Perspective, Change Your Life appeared first on The Red Road Foundation.

Protein: 2 grams

Vitamin B6: 19% of the RDA

Vitamin C: 12% of the RDA

Iron: 11% of the RDA

Riboflavin (B2): 11% of the RDA

Vitamin A (from beta-carotene): 9% of the RDA

Magnesium: 8% of the RDA

Click Here for the full article.

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Our first contact was with a friend, Pon, who is working in foster care here in Kep. He showed us our first few plots and explained the different ways we can go about pumping water, wells, solar panels, building structures and so on..

In Cambodia, they sell in hectors which is just over 2 acres. This plot was one hector and in a farming community.

In the process of exploring the Kep Province, we met a great man BK. He took us to a property 30 minutes from a place in the next Province up, Kampot. This is a much bigger town with better access to building supplies, medical attention and volunteer recruiting. He was insistent that he help us find land for the local discount. He has many resources amongst the community and has already drawn upon many of them to set us up with land owners, transportation, a moto ( The Red Road Foundation’s first asset) and construction workers/ discounts.

He found us a hector of prime land for farming, in a village with no school, where there is access to water from the mountain and next door to the chief of the commune. This land is absolutely GORGEOUS!! Our favorite so far. It will cost us the local rate of $4500. There is a man up the road who can prepare it for farming at the price of $600. This is a great option for us.

We’ve spent the last two weeks in Kampot, Cambodia. We moved up here after finding the magnificent piece of land that we’ve posted above. We have learned that Kampot is a glorious place. The infrastructure here is really taking off and there are numerous people who live here from all over the world. At first the town didn’t seem so impressive, but now we have found rapids, waterfalls, hidden temples, gorgeous river beaches and mountain caves. The villagers are truly the happiest people I have ever seen with the least amount of material goods that I have ever seen. They are a true inspiration. Our dear friend BK that I spoke of earlier is truly helping us on the legal matters, getting local deals and land finding. In the mindset of not jumping for the first wonderful piece of land we saw in Kampot, we have been searching properties and different areas all around Kampot to see what is available. Because of the growing amount of resorts and guesthouses, along with a two million dollar hospital they just built it makes sense that land prices are rising. We found many plots around town and into the mountains but the prices are sky rocketing up to $30, 000 to $50, 000 for a hector because so many westerners are looking to buy here. We went down to the local Land Management office and talked to the man who is in charge of land sales, land development, GPS coordinates of land and hard titles to property. Funny enough, he told us our best option is the original piece of land that we fell in love with. It is thirty to forty minutes from town, but it is in the middle of two glorious villages that are truly filled with beautiful hearted people who love to smile as we drive through. We put a $300 deposit down on the land, we met our neighbor who works at an orphanage in town and loves our idea, we discussed the matters with the Chief of the Commune and got our papers stamped that we are residents of the village and opened bank accounts!! We have a meeting coming up that will have our Site Manager, Chief of Commune, Land Management Director, Owner of the Land, Our Communications Director and myself. This will be a big meeting for us and we should get all the information we need and be on the same page with everyone after this. Following the meeting we will arrange a meeting with the governor and tell him of our plans. Progress!!! 🙂 I love it! Not to mention, my Khmer is coming along quite nicely, as I learn a few words everyday. 🙂

The post Documenting Our Story – Part 1 appeared first on The Red Road Foundation.

We’ve been getting dirty on the farm this week. The back breaking labor has begun. We had a neighbor recruit some local help, when we showed up it was mostly women and kids. We didn’t want to send them away, so we worked side by side, took many breaks and cut it into a half day. There are so many women who want to work and ask us to come, but at this point we need some man strength to prepare the land. Though we have promised these lovely women work in the future, with preparing moringa goods. The village is lovely, we are constantly being invited to eat rice with everyone’s families and our land is oh so fertile! The rainy season is creeping in and bringing so much greenery. We start construction this week and we go out tomorrow to scope the land with our contractor. The village is excited and looking forward to our community development project. 🙂

It has been quite a past two weeks over the Khmer New Year!! The Khmer people have been preparing for and shutting down their businesses for a week of getting together with the family and having a great time! We’ve been experiencing the New Year with our adopted Khmer family and it’s quite fun! Last night was filled with singing, dancing and eating.

As for this week, its time that everyone is back at work. We have our bore well driller coming out, we start construction of the Khmer house at the beginning of May and we will be preparing for planting. We have been filling our brains with all types of information about lucrative and healing plants to grow, options for solar panels and planning how to efficiently attain sustainability and bring the necessary knowledge and resources to town without offending Khmer culture.

We’ve been learning about PermaCulture, visiting farms, calculating start-up costs of varied crops and learning about Khmer culture. We are having emails and calls from volunteers who want to help and we thank our incredible donors for getting us on our feet. We’re Moving Mountains, one boulder at a time!

We have been learning that the kids who go to the government schools are still unable to pass the entrance exams to get into University. They are lacking in areas of science and math especially. We want to develop a school program to give the kids who already go to school a well-rounded education where they can attend a second study session after they go to school in the morning. We will also be developing a program for the children who aren’t going at all.

We have been having many interactions with the local people. We have been looking into well options, began meeting potential families to site mange the farm and getting quotes on building the security/ family home for one lucky local family. We have been incredibly fortunate and have felt the Divine workings through the people who have come together to help our project.

The family we are living with have grown to become our family. We eat dinner with them, teach each other our languages, charade stories and go on walks around the premises where the head of the household will point out the new things growing and how big the fish are getting! It is a beautiful set up and what is even more special incredible is that they want to be apart of our project. It just so Divinely happens that the family’s original roots are in Kampong Chin!! They are very well-known through the community and loved by many. 🙂 The first time we took Wana, the head of the house, out to the project site, we stopped at the neighbor’s house who has been helping us out. As soon as the two saw each other they had a long embrace and a huge smile!! They have been childhood friends. It really gave me goosebumps to see how things are coming together. The family has been coming out and introducing us to the locals. It is really a beautiful thing to be associated with a family that is held is such high regard in this community. The icing on the cake is that Wana is a professional and amazing contractor! He will be working along side of us as we begin to build.

As time is passing and we are learning about the culture, place and people, we are seeing our plan morph into what the community needs and figuring out what approach will be most effective. I thought we would come out and get set up right off the bat as a safe home, I am now seeing that the way to be most influential and beneficial is to delve into the sustainable farm and the community aspects of the program, as we need a strong backbone to foster youth. We are starting to hire a few local people to work along side of us and get to know local people. Our first priorities are to get a Khmer house built, find a suitable family who will work alongside of us on the farm, get a well dug and the trees planted in May which is the first rains. We will continue to fundraise, as we need a well dug, Khmer house built and trees planted before the wet season in June. Once we get this rolling in the next year, we will take a few years to sink our roots in the community, build up the community through knowledge and resources and then, be able to employ local people to make moringa products that will, in turn, fund the project itself. When we get to this stage, a few years down the road, we will have produce that we sell to local restaurants and resorts, products we make/sell and then we have a community who is benefiting from the work and the moringa itself. By this time we will have strong bonds in this community, a community that is one of the poorest in Cambodia and has high risk of children being taken for the trafficking industry. When this happens, I estimate five years down the road, we will be in a prime position to bring kids into a safe home environment. This will ensure that our children will be raised alongside local children, we will be sure to have the funds to support all their needs and it will reinforce our philosophy that it takes a tribe to raise a child. Through having patience, we will be able to provide for the needs of the community, the community will thrive and therefore we will thrive. This project will be handed down for generations as a center for healing and knowledge. Our hopes are that the knowledge and wisdom that was slaughtered in the genocide, will begin to be reestablished and trickle into the surrounding communities… 🙂

As for now, we continue to fund raise, it’s so important we have a community well dug and a Khmer family living on site and ready to start farming at the start of this rainy season May/June. Fundraising will take place again across the US and the UK in June, July and August. This will allow us to return in September and start to build a community center/ school for all residents of Kampong Chin, along with becoming sustainable enough to support a safe home.

It has been quite a past two weeks! We have broken ground, started clearing the land, meeting local people and establishing connections for Our Community Program. We’ve met several Good Hearted People who want to help our project and have been working on collaborating with them, whilst bringing a dream team together. It’s an inspiring project to be apart of and see the curiosity and excitement multiplying in the villagers and in ourselves.

As we’ve been progressing, there have been many lessons we have become aware of and are learning. Patience is of the most prominent of them. We’ve been seeing the importance of establishing ourselves in the community, gaining trust, sharing resources, bringing knowledge to the community and getting our farm sustainable enough to foster children. It is a long-term project, things will evolve in their time. As for now, it is a beautiful journey that we feel blessed to be apart of. We are working in such a monetarily poor village, but WOW, are they rich in their hearts. It always such a joy to drive through town and share the smiles, waves and nods of approval. I feel us starting to sink our roots down.

The post Documenting Our Story – Part 2 appeared first on The Red Road Foundation.

This experience has been hands down, one of the most incredible, rewarding, encouraging and uplifting experiences of my life! What beautiful people we had living together in harmony, with inspirational talks, swimming in rivers with the locals, learning Khmer culture and coming together for the good of the whole!

The post Documenting Our Story – Part 3 appeared first on The Red Road Foundation.

Classes have started and the kids are loving it! We are operating as a free education center that acts as supplementary education for the government school system. Last year only 25% of students were able to pass entrance exams into college! We are aiming to bring as much free education as we can to the village and eventually develop a micro-finance and scholarship program! We have started off with English language, Khmer language and math class on a regular basis. We are currently seeking volunteers and staff to teach science, history, sports, art, music and several workshops/ speeches by potential mentors. Please contact us if you’re interested or know anyone who would want to help develop this beautiful project and influence these knowledge-hungry children!

School starts August 4th with an Environmental Awareness workshop from Wildlife Alliance, followed by regular classes from our new two Khmer teachers, which will cover Khmer language, English language, math, hygiene and how to be environmentally friendly. We are still seeking volunteers to teach specialized skill workshops.

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