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]]>I was young back then. I believed in the power of good governance and policy. It seemed that they had come through decades upon decades of hardship, but now it was over and things would take a turn for the better. For the substantial better. I left Cambodia feeling hopeful for these people. Hopeful because they were hopeful.
I went back last week. Siem Riep has grown by leaps and bounds. High end hotel chains line the streets and I was one of the hundred of thousands of tourists visiting Angkor. Nevertheless I felt that, plus ça change, plus c'est la même chose. Undoubtedly Cambodians must be better off than they were 12 years ago. The money flowing in from tourism must be trickling down to the people. It did't really feel that way though. The stories are still incredibly sad, the poverty is still incredibly stark.
I met a man, my tour guide in fact, who spoke german which was my father's preference when looking for a guide. His life's story is his to tell but needless to say it was not an easy or happy telling. He nevertheless felt lucky. Lucky because he was not at home when his parents were killed, lucky because his neighbours took him in and raised him.
When he left the military as part of his decommissioning, he was given a plot of land. This plot of land is beside a school. As of today there are 27 children living with him. Children that are either orphaned, whose parents are too poor to send their children to school, or children who want to go to school but live too far away. He houses and feeds 27 children. In his own home.
We went to visit his home, to meet the children, and it is absolutely incredible what he is doing. This man who has so little is giving so much. It made me think about what I do, what it is that I give back. I have been to countless fundraisers, given money to many causes, but have I truly helped anybody?
There has been a paradigm shift in the last two years. Talk about how globalisation has failed, how inequality and the policy failures of the past have led us to this ridiculous place we find ourselves in now. Many people like me who are on the liberal side of the spectrum have been looking at this tidal wave of hate and resentment and anger and have despaired. What can we do to stop this? What can we do to mitigate this, is something I often ask myself. I think that maybe I found the answer in Cambodia. If all of us, or at least most of us help 5 maybe 10 people in our lifetimes, really help them, lifting them out of poverty in a meaningful and permanent way, maybe we can mitigate some of the damage and sheer fucking idiocy of some of the current governments in power. And maybe then we can leave this place in a better place than when we arrived. Government notwithstanding.
If anybody is going to Cambodia and is looking for an English or German guide please contact Saroath. Your money could not be better spent then hiring him. If you want to give to his small cause you can also contact him directly or drop me a line and I can arrange things.
His name: Saroath Roeun
Email: Saroath@hotmail.com
The House
Saroath
The bedrooms where the children sleep 4 to a bed
Children playing
The classroom where the village kids are taught english and german / The Kitchen
The table where the children eat. Saroath is currently trying to raise money to fix the table and put a proper roof over it.
]]>For those of you wanting some guidance on how to tune a guitar have a look at this site - GuitarSignal and their tuning guide.
]]>I want something playful and colourful, and gender neutral as hopefully one day there will be be some female additions to the brood. Have been on Pinterest alot of course, and I am thinking, lots of colours, baskets and crates for toys, and decals on walls. Thoughts?
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PLACES TO STAY
Fort Bazaar - We stayed here, it was very reasonably priced and very cute. Blog post re Hotel coming up next!
Fort Hotel - Next door and equally cute but with a pool.. Which is a very big plus.
Amangalla - It's an Aman, enough said.
PLACES TO EAT
Galle Things Roti - Very good. Not too spicy for non-indians like me. Fluffy roti, what more can you ask for.
Fort Bazaar - Amazing Hoppers (Sri Lankan dhosa/crepe) for breakfast.
Amangalla - I had a very Sri Lankan roast chicken dish which was excellent.
PLACES TO SHOP
Spa Ceylon - Very nice spa and bathroom products. Cute packaging, nice scents, great for gifts. I bought myself a pre-party rejuvenating face-mask which did the job quite well!
Barefoot - Cute home decor and knickknack shop.
Om (as in the sign) - more sophisticated home decor shop. The kind of place you would find in Bali. A friend of ours even bought himself a statue there!
Lose Stones - Sri Lanka is known for semi-precious stones and rubies. We sadly did not have the time to investigate this avenue properly, but I know from friends that they have gotten some very nice stones, very well priced which they then made into jewellery back home.
SIDE NOTE
While in Sri Lanka, if you have a chance to see or stay at a Geofrrey Bawa hotel or house. Do not hesitate. They look amazing.
]]>Below the details of who to call to make an appointment and where to go. English speaking staff apparently available.
Kouraku Kiln
Tel: 090-8351-4121 or 0955-42-4121
2512 Maruo, Arita, Saga
A 5-min bus ride and a 3-min walk from Arita Station
Treasure hunting from flor on Vimeo.
All pictures via This is Colossal
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I did not agree with everything he did, of course not. He was human after all not a messiah and nobody can run an operation as vast and complex as the USA and not make mistakes over 8 years. Nevertheless I have always appreciated that he must face impossible choices that I would never be able to fathom. That he would never have had the luxury of absolute moral standpoints that I have. I live in world where I can stand strong in my moral imperatives because there are no consequences really to my beliefs. Countries don't depend on my ability to compromise or see the other side. Regardless of all of that I believe he was a good and decent man as well as President. His humanity and realness shine through all of the pictures below and when looking at them or seeing him speak I have always seen a man of morals, of conscience and of intellect. I have seen him handle horrible situations with grace and everybody around him with dignity. Something I certainly do not see when I look at Trump. Below I share a link which I mostly agree with regarding Obama's record for those of you who are interested.
PS. If my husband looks at me in 20 years time the way Obama still looks at Michele....I know I would have done something right.
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We went to South Africa for my sister's wedding so we had alot of evening commitments. Julian had also never been, so we had a full schedule of places to see, restaurants to try, neighbourhoods to explore and we figured the kid will just come with us and do what we do. Well yes, he will come and do what we do but that is not to say he will enjoy it. The culmination being when we went to a restaurant we just HAD to try, and my son ended up having to eat olives, sous-vide pork and some foam. When we arrived at the restaurant and asked them if they had a baby chair they looked at us as if we were crazy. And crazy we were. With a schedule that packed the only thing that can give is our sleep and R&R time. So we returned home absolutely exhausted with a cranky child in tow and I promptly fell sick the minute arrived in Hong Kong.
Boracay on the other hand was a revelation. There was nothing to do and nowhere to go. Pre-motherhood I would have said, what an absolutely boring place and why would I go there for 9 days! I will go absolutely crazy. Not so. We let our son dictate our schedule, getting up when he got up, and going to sleep pretty much when he went to sleep, naps included. We played in the water and the sand, building snowmen and destroying sand castles when he felt like it (my 60 year old mother even kicked a ball around with him) and ate when it suited him (yes that meant dinners at 6:30pm). It turns out a child's life is incredibly restful and nourishing for the body and the soul. I had never spent so much time doing not much at all and it turns out, it was lovely. Lovely to get to spend so much time with him. Lovely to really turn off and have no plans. Lovely to not have to rush him and us into the next set of plans. Just lovely.
So moral of the story, travelling with kids can be restful, but choose your destination wisely and don't plan too much!
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Generally speaking when it comes to Moroccan Rugs we are talking about Berber rugs, more specifically rugs that are not made in factories but are made by the Berber tribes themselves. This does not mean that there aren't very good reproductions of the berber rugs made in Moroccan factory like environments that take the look, feel and style of the Berber rugs and recreate them. All the rugs I will be mentioning below come in these three categories; vintage and the real deal (made by berbers themselves), the real deal but new, and new but made in factories. The price will vary according to which category you go for, the most expensive ones being the vintage ones obviously. The advantage of buying a factory made one is not only the price but also the size. If you are looking for a big rug, this will be the only category that will work for you. Everything made by the berbers themselves is never going to come in a 3 x 4 meter dimension.
These are the rugs that have been making the Pinterest rounds. They are essentially rag rugs, made out of old clothing. Vintage ones in good condition can still be expensive but generally speaking this is not an expensive rug. The reasons they are so popular is that they come in all sorts of colours. They are not limited by the colour of traditional dyes. If you are looking for something bright with colours like pink or turquoise or emerald, or even black this might be the only category for you. The other upside is that you can throw it into the washing machine. Which makes it a great rug for a kids room for example. The downside is that they never come in really big sizes and they are made out of rags. So if you are looking for a lush wool feel this is not for you.
These are wool rugs with a white base but with some colour motifs throughout the rug. The vintage ones can be absolutely gorgeous but they are harder and harder to find. On my last trip I did not see a single nice vintage Azilal and I only bought new ones. They are more expensive than the Boucherouite above but cheaper than the Beni Ourains. Its a very good option if you want a white base rug with a bit of colour. The new ones tend to come in bright even neon colours, with the vintage ones being more muted.
Although technically two different kinds of rug, to the naked non-connoisseur eye its really hard to tell the difference. Apparently they are knotted differently. To my understanding if they look like Beni- Ourains but are new, factory made and not in the traditional colours it's probably a Mrirt. The vintage Beni Ourains are really really soft, but come in strange sizes. Not really an option if you are looking for a big rug. The new ones come in all sizes and there is now a nice selection of colours although the white with black crosses is still the most popular kind. They are not cheap though and a small one will be around 700 USD with a big one being around 1500-2000USD. Furthermore they are really freaking heavy as they are so thick. So think another 300 USD shipping to get it anywhere.
These rugs are really nice and if you are looking for a really lush feel this is your rug. The quality of the wool is just better although the patterns and colours are quite traditional. Old ones are quite thin and long and more appropriate for corridors with the predominant colour being saffron. New ones are more normal dimensions but still come in autumnal/red/orange/ colours.
]]>And I am back. I have not done an outfit post in ages.. Not since before I was pregnant, which seems like a life time ago now. I can hardly remember my life pre child. Shopping somewhat lost its allure when one didn't know what size one would be in two weeks time. Not that that stopped me mind you.
One phenomenon that I definitely followed was this whole vyshyvanka craze. For those of you who do not know what I am talking about a vyshyvanka is a Ukrainian blouse, as pictured below. Made famous by Vita Kin, they now are available in all sort of price ranges, from 800USD by Vita Kin (sold here) to ones for 200 on Etsy (check here). I have by now availed myself of the full spectrum from a price point of view, and to be honest there isn't much in it.. So give the Ukrainian seamstress on Etsy a hand I say.
Two other sites selling these beauties are:
Fanmmom (I have bought myself a dress from here)
Namib Desert
Mississippi Delta
Crete
Amazon Forest
Plankton
Ganges Delta
Atlantic Ocean, Clouds and Desert
Pictures via My Modern Met
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