Walk with Sandra: Self Care and Social Enterprises (Phnom Penh, Cambodia)

Tuesday, April 21, 2015

Self Care and Social Enterprises (Phnom Penh, Cambodia) - 20 April 2015

After breakfast Monday, I took the tuk-tuk to Pasteur Institute to re-up my vaccinations since I never got around to doing it in the States before I left. The speed, ease, and value of their professional service really put the U.S. health care system to shame. I showed up without an appointment, talked to a doctor, paid for the service (US$70 for Hep A, B, and Typhoid inoculations), and received the injections in less than 10 minutes.

With my vaccinations done, I walked to Raffles Hotel Le Royal, which was less than 10 minutes away, and sat down at the lobby to have tea and do some work. The posh environment inside was seductive and enticing and a nice escape from the outside reality of harsh heat, pollution, and chaos. Service was impeccable. An attentive hostess asked if I needed an adapter after she saw my disappointed look at the sight of a three-prong outlet. I had left my three-prong plug behind in the hotel room as thus far, I've only seen two-prong outlets around (Cambodia uses two types of outlets). When I said I needed one, she swiftly brought it to me. Close to where I was sitting, a young man played the roneat ek (a type of Cambodian xylophone), which was very soothing and nice. Here's a sample:

For lunch, I headed back to my hotel area to have lunch at Friends, The Restaurant, a popular training restaurant that is run by former street youths and marginalized young people and their teachers. Managed by local NGO, Mith Samlanh, in collaboration with TREE Alliance, this social enterprise strives to impart self-esteem, self-respect, good hygiene, and hospitality skills to the students. Many graduates from this restaurant move on to find paid work in other hospitality establishments and build a new life. Such a great concept.

I had dinner at River Crown restaurant near the river and then spent some time people watching from the second floor. I ended the day with a full body massage at Khmer Angkor Seeing Hands Massage, another social enterprise near the hotel that intrigued me. They hire blind people as masseuses, which I thought was a novel idea. My masseuse was a 50-year-old man who exuded a gentle vibe. With his rough hands, he massaged me from head to toe and would periodically pull out his phone and press a button to hear the time. The 60-minute massage cost US$6; I wore a comfortable top and pants that the business provided. According to the owner/manager, the blind live with them at the shop and their basic needs are provided for by them. Occasionally, they would return home to visit their family (like in the past week for the holidays).

It is encouraging to see local social enterprises such as Friends, The Restaurant and Khmer Angkor Seeing Hands Massage in Phnom Penh that serve some of the needs of the less-privileged. There is a high demand for support and assistance in this city of contrasts and complexity but buyer/traveler/volunteer beware; there are shady voluntourism organizations in the Kingdom that exploit the young and disadvantaged. You can read more about this here. Do some research first before you invest any time and money.

Above left: Iced green tea latte with complimentary banana chips at Raffles Hotel Le Royal (US$5.00)

Above: A musician playing the roneat ek at Raffles Hotel Le Grand's lobby

Above: Khmer heritage pieces for sale at Raffles Hotel Le Royal ~ having seen statues with their heads pilfered or whole bodhisattvas carved out from rocks at Siem Reap temples in previous travels, I'm a little skeptical of the sources of these artifacts