Charles Dittmeier – Page 141 – Welcome to Cambodia, and…..

COVID-19 in Cambodia

From January, 2020 to February, 2021, Cambodia experienced about 375 COVID-19 infections. Then on 20 February, two infected people started a series of infections and in the next two weeks another 600 infected people were found. Click here to see more background on this development.

Language Student’s Nightmare

Quite a few superlatives can be written about Cambodia. One of them is the bane of anyone trying to learn to read and write the Khmer language: The written script has 74 letters and is officially the longest alphabet in the world. Above are some of the letters

Notable Quotes

Looking for something to give up this Lent? Disappointment, resentment, frustration, and anger must all be given over to Christ or they will consume us–and our world.
Richard Rohr, OFM

A good friend’s funeral…

Last night, Cambodia time, a funeral was celebrated at the Maryknoll headquarters in Ossining, New York for Fr. Ed McGovern. Ed was a former prosecutor for New York City courts but made a career change and became a Maryknoll priest and was assigned to Cambodia in 2004. He and I lived together until 2008 when he was elected to the General Council for the Maryknoll priests and brothers group. Good guy. I’m going to miss him.

In the photo, Fr. Ray Finch, the Superior General of the Maryknoll priests and brothers, incense’s Ed’s coffin at the beginning of the funeral in the main chapel at Maryknoll, New York.

Latter Day Saints

I don’t see them as often as I used to but the missionaries from the Latter Day Saints (the Mormons) are around in Phnom Penh–always in pairs, always in black and white, always on bicycles.

New Manager

Today the Maryknoll Deaf Development Programme welcomed a new program manager, Mr. Sau Soknym. Soknym had previously worked for the Maryknoll Seedling program until it closed so he is well known to many of the DDP staff and the Maryknoll community. He will be in charge of managing the day-to-day operations of the DDP Administration and the five projects. Welcome, Soknym!

Topics: Coffee–Franchises

Previous posts about coffee in Cambodia have shown how coffee and the coffee shops have been introduced into the kingdom and now are an established presence. Click here to see photos of some of the franchises that are now operating in Phnom Penh, confirming that the market is real and maturing.

Safety First

He figured a seatbelt wouldn’t be much use on a motorcycle so he looked for an alternative. [Note there are TWO people on the moto!]

A jump in the wrong direction….

Cambodia seemed to be blessed. It took a year to reach about 350 COVID-19 infections in the kingdom–and no deaths. Then on 20 February four Cambodians bribed guards and sneaked away from quarantine and started a surge of infections. In just five or six days 200 new infections were discovered and the numbers keep increasing.

Because of that all schools in Phnom Penh and Kandal Province have been closed and the prime minister has asked people not to come to the capital city.

Street Food

Sidewalks in Cambodia are not used for walking, so just find an empty place, bring over your food cart, and you’re in business for the morning breakfast crowd.