WASH

  I'll bet minds are being boggled wondering what I am actually supposed to be doing here in Cambodia in terms of Peace Corps and the reason I was chosen for this mission and flown cross the world.  And no, it's not wholly due to my sparkling charm and irreplaceable wit.  As much as it may seem, my time isn't taken up with rice eating and traversing across southeast Asia.  What I am doing right now is Khmer language acquisition and CHE technical training.  I would like to get out there to my actual site in the far reaches of rural Cambodia, but I also do not want to be unprepared so that ineffectiveness follows.  My talents (natural and American-acquired), without the correct training, will come to nothing here and I will end up being useless. That's why I am here in Tramkak for about 4 more weeks.
   CHE volunteers are one of many groups in Cambodia interesting in improving the health of the Khmer people.  Peace Corps volunteers in particular focus on a few main regions of interest: maternal and infant health, nutrition, and communicable diseases.  We are not here to treat these maladies, but rather for the education of the people.  For instance, one of the things we will be spreading the word about is that breastfeeding is good for mothers and infants for up to two years after birth.  Khmer mothers feed children rice soup as soon as possible.  Nutrition plays a bit part in our technical training because it is such a problem here in Cambodia.  Not only does their diet revolve around rice, but as the staple, they believe that it is really good for them in large quantities.
     Nutrition is one of the most visible problems in Cambodia and one only needs to view Cambodians to see this. Cambodians as a whole are generally smaller in stature than Americans or Europeans, but it's not the stereotypical "skinny Asian" that we might see on campus or at work. Cambodians are just small. My group has had many discussions about this regarding sports. One thing that I noticed at our first soccer game was that the Cambodians had great skills but no body behind the skills. The would not be able to compete with European football players simply because they are too small to be competitive. This problem begins, literally, in the womb. Khmer mothers are slowly (with our help and help from others) learning about pre-natal care. Previously we have learned that about a month before giving birth, pregnant Khmer women would stop eating as much so that their birth would be easier. The child therefore is deprived of nutrients very early. They are often not breastfed, and wealthy families believe that formula is better than breast milk. As early as possible the children are fed rice-soup (rice and water) and from there as they grow up the diet generally consists of rice and anything else their mother prepares for them. A big problem is that mothers prepare what their mothers prepared...and the food groups, while known to the children, are not known to the mothers and fathers and therefore a generation passes before a change is made. Parents also think, "well it worked for me so it will work for my kids" not understanding the cycle that persists.
      One of the programs here that we are learning about now is WASH, or Washing and Sanitation Hygiene.  A large problem in Cambodia is sanitation and clean drinking water.  Let me tell you the root of the problem: toilets.  I am not going to post a photo of what I see on a regular basis here, but it can be summed up for you in one word: shit.  When people here need to poop or pee, they do so-on the side of the road. Or in the market. Or next to the table they are eating at.  You think I'm pulling your arm hair - I'm not.  Not everyone here has a toilet for various reasons.  Some because it's too expensive, some because they've never had one and they're still alive, some because it's too hard to clean, or pump out.  Whatever the reason, 100% of the population does not have toilets.  This presents a whole slew of problems that I'm sure Americans can only wince at, the largest of which, here, is contamination of drinking water.  Therefore, we assess sites and villages without toilets and proper hand washing education, and attempt to rectify the situation through education.  It's hard to go into details but basically I am presently learning about the problem, about the solution, and about how to educate Cambodians in a respectful and correct manner.
   Yesterday I was able to go out with a group in my first village survey to talk to some Khmer about habits they already have, and knowledge they would like to acquire. Speaking a little bit of my own rusty Khmer and mostly through a translator, my group discovered that the people living in the village are more worried about Dengue than diarrhea and do not always utilize hand washing or proper food washing. Sometimes the women who prepare the food simply don't have time, they told us, or do not know the correct way to cover food. Since there is no refrigeration the food has to be prepared right before it is eaten or else it sits out for hours. This sounds appalling to an American ear, but washing hands is not prevalent here...and neither is soap (no worries, my mom is sending a bounty of hand sanitizer for me...THANKS MOM!).
 I hope I've explained these things ok...I'm still learning about a lot of it myself!

  In completely unrelated news, I've survived my own first Cambodian sickness and have lived to tell about it.  One of the only bad things about growing older, in my opinion, is that your mom isn't on hand to take care of you when you get sick (she's pretty much all I want when I'm sick).  Imagine getting sick with your mom 7000 miles away...that's an additional 7000 reasons I wanted my mommy!

 Happy hand-washing back home!
 xo-Amanda