8th March 2001
I felt so honoured today to meet one of the most beautiful people I have ever met. His name is Keo Sokhum. He is an amputee as a result of a landmine and has also gone through the vocational training program. He now runs his own mechanical repair shop with his 11 year old son and is earning a good Cambodian wage. His wife has died, his daughter has an adopted mother and his other son is in Phnom Penh learning sewing.



The moment we hopped out of the car I was struck by his happiness, his smile and his warmth towards us and his life. It was not so much the things he said or what he was doing but rather that his whole soul shone. You could not help buy feel uplifted just being near him.

8th March 2001
This country is such a mixture of hope and of suffering, of harsh cruelty and on going destruction and yet a celebration of life and humanity. It is still a country of sickness and poverty and yet is a country of beauty and community. It is a country that shows the dark deep horrors of the human psyche and yet at the same time the joy and the enormity of the human spirit to overcome atrocities, which I can only barely begin to imagine.



Seim Reip 11th March 2001
AMAZING! This morning we got up at 5.30am to go to Bayon, one of the temples near Ankor Watt to watch the sunrise. It was simply breathtaking. One of the most amazing sights I have ever seen. Huge faces of the king carved into the rock. Each face conveying its own personality. I was overwhelmed by a powerful sense of peace, stillness and serenity. I found myself wanting to capture every moment and every inch of what I was seeing by taking photos but I know that no photo could possibly do it justice.



BANAN 14th March 2001
…we then jumped in the car and travelled to Banan. What a road! We travelled on the "Highway no 10" and it would have to be the worst road I have ever been on. Last week when we went to the ADP they called the road the ‘dancing road’ as it was so bumpy and pot holey. This one they call the ‘disco road’!!!

There are heaps of pot holes, but mostly big trenches. It has been raining the last two days so we were glad to be in the 4WD. It took us two and a half hours to get here.

I am now sitting in a community briefing for Landmines awareness. The organization running this program is MAT – Mine Awareness and Action Training. They educate the community of landmines, UXO’s and what to do if you see one, what they look like etc and some basic first Aid. They also have ‘Action’ where they educated people or give loans of $30 to people so that they can set up their own business – ie a shop on the side of the street, food delivery. Then they don’t need to go into the minefield.

This village and the surrounding villages are some of the most heavily mined areas in Cambodia. Where we are sitting now is flanked by minefields. It is a strange feeling.

As we drove here we past a few houses that had mine signs next door!! These people are living in the minefields.