Welcome to Cambodia, and….. – Page 113 – Charlie Dittmeier's Home Page

November 18, 19, 20 were the annual Water Festival holidays. This year, though, because of Covid-19, the boat races on the Tonle Sap River were canceled so the migration of two or three million people to Phnom Penh didn’t happen.

There are always aspects of Cambodia culture that we foreigners will never understand or fully appreciate. For me one of those is the association of the flower decorations pictured in the photographs with the Water Festival. They are of a Khmer style but their meaning, the origin of the design, how they are used is a mystery to me

These specialized designs were widely available in the markets and from street vendors.

And people bought them, maybe adding a bit of holiday cheer to a major Cambodian festival that suffered in its celebration in a pandemic year.

Well, we got the sink….

Cambodia has a lot of major problems: corruption, impunity, deforestation, trafficking, drugs, poor education, poverty, etc. And then there are the nuisances. When we moved our Maryknoll office to this building, we asked the landlord to put in a real sink in the kitchen. He did but the bottom of the sink is at knee level. It’s perfect for the Cambodian woman who cooks a few meals a week, though.

Is she home?

“Hi! Is this the home of that cute black kitty? I think her name is Fluffy….”

Annual Staff Meeting – 7

There were a lot of interesting things to see in Mondulkiri. I was surprised at the different types of vegetation. Click here to view some of the things we saw.

Annual Staff Meeting – 6

One of the greatest benefits of a large staff meeting is just the presence and interaction of all the staff with each other, meeting each other and working together in ways different from the office routines. Click here to see some of the ways the staff was together.

Annual Staff Meeting – 5

The afternoon of our final full day in Mondulkiri was spent exploring some beautiful natural settings there in the hills of Cambodia. Click here to see the places we visited.

Annual Staff Meeting – 4

The main purpose of the staff gathering in Mondulkiri was for staff training and review of our policy. Click here to see photos of these work sessions.

Annual Staff Meeting – 3

Angkor Forest was the name of the meeting center where we had our staff gathering. It is built around the top of what is a mountain in Cambodia. Click here to see pictures of the grounds and buildings. Really nice.

Annual Staff Meeting – 2

Every year at DDP we have a large staff meeting and retreat near the end of the year. We use it for training and updating and for bringing the staff together from different provinces. Click here to see Day 1 of the trip.