Cambodia: Day 4

Day 4 was an exciting day. Thanks to Sabrina who contacted a Malaysian dental lecturer who has been working there for years.....we got a chance to see the Faculty of Odonto-Stomatology, University of Health Sciences. This is the only public dental school in Cambodia. Initially, Dr. Chern Chern, the dental lecturer was suppose to bring us around....buttttt...somehow...the Dean saw us and welcomed us instead!!! how cool is that...he was so friendly and generous to explain the establishment of the university to us and even showed us around the faculty and covered every single corner! Met two other dental students there too, Hak and Chean ( following that, we found out that Hak was going back home to Siem Reap the same day that we were leaving, so he booked a ticket on the same bus as us and was our tour guide around Siem Reap...how blessed we were..hehe). Interesting facts we found out during our visit:
1. The students there have to learn English and French throughout their dental course!! and they study for 7 years to become a DDS.
2. During the Khmer Rouge era, only 12 dentists in Cambodia survived!! ( many intellectuals were killed during that time).

at the ortho dept

After the 1hr+ tour...we adjourned for lunch. People there have lunch very early..at 11.30am-ish...lol. Now, my biological clock has altered...i wake up early, eat lunch early and sleep early...
Had yummy Khmer Cuisine by the Tonle Sap river. Hak was persuading us to try spiders!!! nooooo...wasnt adventurous enough to digest those creepy crawlies...

a dip that goes with the food: salt, pepper and lime juice...yummy with seafood

On the way back home, stopped by Lucky Supermarket ( their equivalent of Jusco supermarket)...was craving for chilli padi by then...so decided to buy some white chillies...if you think the red chilli padis in Malaysia are hot...these white, pure, innocent looking chillies...are DAMN HOT!! but good..hehe


Helped out at the youth centre...ploughed the soil in their backyard using cangkuls so that they can plant vegies and sweet potatoes...and to think of it..i dont even pluck weeds in my own garden.LOL...plants are just not my thing. Following that, headed off to the city with the Bus Ministry again...this time it was my turn to bathe the kids. The street kids, most of them homeless or live in the market area, were so happy to get a nice cool shower. First, 3 kids will come in (boys with boys and girls with girls), they will undress, hop into the shower, give them some soap, help them scrub off the soap( the kids were quite dirty...the white scrub turned brown!!), towel dry them, put on their clothes, comb their hair and then another 3 more will come in. This cycle repeated so many times i lost count...say...12-15 kids???And because of my height..i had to squat down in the shower area while bathing them...ahhh...after that was sweaty, wet and had a mild backache..lol...was a good experience tho.

Went home and had a real good shower myself. XD...prepared for English lessons for the village kids the next day...and dozed off into dreamland.....