pedals&pennies

CUFA Cambodian Leadership Challenge has ended

Well, the CUFA Cambodian Leadership Challenge is all done and dusted! 

Most of us are by now back into the routine of daily work life and the on-going responsibilities it entails.  When you have seen what we have seen the transition is not as easy as first thought…the mind drifts back to where we have been and whats going on…what a journey we have all been on - from the heat and dust of Siem Reap to the moonsoon rain of Sisophon and on to the bustling city of Phnom Penh.  From the tragic past of Pol Pot to the positive future seen in the eyes of the children taking part in the CUFA Financial Literacy Project.

This team has faced many challenges along the way - physical, mental, cultural - and in doing so, has been able to make a difference to the lives of 9000 Cambodian children through the funds raised and our physical presence in the communities we visited.

We have developed leadership skills, increased self-awareness, learned about teams and how to handle the dynamics of different personalities and come away from it all better people.  We certainly have a deeper understanding and appreciation of other cultures, a much broader view of the world in which we live and greater knowledge of how credit unions are building better communities…

Pat, Fran & Mark

Phnom Penh - the end

Today is the last day of the CUFA Cambodian Leadership Challenge, so it’s probably a good time to reflect on what we’ve achieved and the work that we’ve supported.

Speaking to everyone else in the group, the thing that stands out is visiting the schools and seeing just how passionate the students, teachers and parents are with the work they’re all doing. We’ve met some amazingly strong people who only think of the difference they’re making for the others in their community.

We’ve encountered unparalleled hospitality, the likes of which I’m amazed by. Riding along a rocky road some 30km from town, we were welcomed in to people’s houses when we had to use the, um, facilities. People went out of their way to help us and make sure we enjoyed our time in their beautiful country.

After seeing the adversity and horror that many people in Cambodia have lived through, it’s heart warming to see such zest for life and ambition to better their position. Visiting some of the killing fields and the S21 Genocide Museum last night was a big reality check.  Two million people died under Pol Pot’s regime through torture, murder or starvation. We saw a tree where babies had their heads smashed purely because their parents were educated.

It’s really hard to fathom this kind of barbarity and lack of humanity. One quote stuck with me as we walked out of the killing fields: “They had the form of humans, but the hearts of demons.” Surely they were still men who were killing other men. And women. And children. And babies

But it’s not all doom and gloom, and there are fantastic changes happening in Cambodia. People are working hard to rebuild their country and prepare themselves for the opportunities on their doorstep. Children dream of becoming doctors, teachers and lawyers. Yes, there’s still a massive amount of corruption and the elections are rigged, but things are slowly moving forward.

The work that CUFA is leading is a great example of the need for support rather than charity. It’s easy to give money to people and feel good about it but it’s so much harder to equip people to handle the issues themselves. CUFA doesn’t give people money; they give them the tools they need to support each other. The $50,000 we all raised wasn’t just given to a community – it was used to run programs that empower children.

It’s a fantastic country and to use another cliché, it’s a country of amazing contrast. From the (bumpy, muddy and uncomfortable) roads of the villages to the hectic pace of Phnom Penh, there’s still a visible sense of optimism and happiness, something I rarely see at home. It’s not strange to smile at someone on the street, it’s OK to laugh with a stranger and it’s just a matter of course to invite someone into your home. I don’t think I’ve ever let a stranger into my place to use the toilet, especially not one covered in mud and wearing a helmet.

Now what? Well I guess we’ll all head back to our hectic lives but I’d like to think we can all take something away from the experience we’ve just shared. We didn’t just ride bikes around a developing country; we helped to develop the country in some small way. I won’t give up my job and devote my life to charity, but I’d like to think that some parts of my life will have new perspective.

Tomorrow we all bid our goodbyes and go our separate ways. I’ve met some great friends on this challenge and we’ll share a common bond for a long time to come.

Pat

Thoughts on Phnom Penh

The first thing that strikes me about Phnom Penh is the lack of distinction between ‘rich’ and ‘poor’ areas of the city. Right next to a 4 ½ star hotel are people’s houses made out of scraps of iron and tarpaulin.

Walking down the street, you’ll see an obviously wealthy local or, quite often, a foreigner standing next to a beggar missing limbs. To say it’s an eye-opener would be a grand understatement. I feel guilty sitting down in my air conditioned hotel, thinking about what I’ll have for lunch, while outside the lobby I know there are people thinking about whether they’ll eat today at all.

Of course we saw these sort of living conditions in the other provinces we visited, but with the exception of the tourist mecca of Siem Reap, there just wasn’t this stark contrast.

I guess this sort of a shock is showing us all just how important the work we’ve done is. The $50,000 we’ve raised will help 9,000 equip themselves with some of the basic skills they need to get ahead in life. The credit unions that CUFA has built and is building are helping people save for emergencies and start small businesses. It’s only a drop in a very large bucket, but at least it’s making a start.

It’s strange being a faceless foreigner again. When we were going through the villages or smaller cities, kids would run out of their houses to wave hello or try out some English on us. Here, we’re just another tourist; another person amazed with how cheap things are and (hopefully) trying to hide their comparative wealth.

I’ve seen some people who understand the meaning of this more than others. At a bar last night I saw a group of westerners laughing at how small the bill was for dinner and (what I can assume to be many) drinks. It was $50, quite a significant amount to their waiter and here they were laughing at how small it was.

Saying no the beggars who approach us is hard and sometimes I just can’t help but give them a few hundred riel. I’ve been told that many of the children begging are forced to give their takings to other people and it’s especially heartbreaking to walk past a kid of four or six holding out their hand.

There just seems to be no middle ground – buildings are either ornate and large or small shacks made of scrap. We visited the CUFA office yesterday, which shares a block with several other NGOs, and it was certainly more comfortable than the houses just a couple of streets away. It has an excellent training room where credit union staff from around the country learn how to run a financial institution, as well as guest rooms for CUFA staff from Australia and quarters for some of the local workers.

This afternoon we’re heading down to the S21 Genocide Museum (Tuol Seng), a high school that became Cambodia’s largest and most notorious place of torture and detention under Pol Pot’s regime. It’s going to be a tough experience for all of us and it will be hard to come out of there without being profoundly touched; more than 17,000 were taken to S21 before they were executed at Choeung Ek, which we’ll also see.

For something a little more uplifting, we’re also heading out to see another school and credit union today. We only had a chance to visit the others on weekends, so it will be good to see what happens when they’re open and operating.

Pat

Battambang

Over the last couple of days we’ve really experienced a different side of the CUFA Cambodian Leadership Challenge. We temporarily waved goodbye to the bikes and finally got the chance to see the Children’s Financial Literacy Program in action.

The program is designed to teach kids about saving money and how important it is to their future. More than 9,000 Cambodian children have received the training thanks to the $50,000 we raised before we left Australia.

We had our first chance to see the program in action when we visited a school on Saturday morning. The kids had come back from their school holidays to take part in the lesson, and they brought more than a few ring-ins with them; a class that usually holds around 35 kids had at least 70 or 80 smiling faces crammed inside.

There’s heaps more information about the program on the CUFA website, but I’ll give you a quick run-down.

A CUFA project worker visits schools and talks to children (usually around seven or eight years old) about the importance of saving money and what it could mean for them in the future. They use really simple explanations, like buying one ice cream instead of two and saving the difference.

The kids are asked to think of something they want to save for, which is usually school books, clothes or a new school uniform. They’re given a money box to help them save, which they need to take care of and make sure they don’t lose.

Most of the children get money from their parents each day to go to school and they’re encouraged to put aside a small amount every day or week. When I say a small amount, I really mean it. The kids might get around 30c a day to take to school and buy lunch so they have to be quite frugal to put anything in their money box.

After we’d helped to deliver the lessons (including some hilariously melodramatic role plays) we got a chance to play some games outside with the kids. It was so much fun and I can’t remember the last time I smiled or laughed so much.

The kids are also encouraged to join their local Savings Bank (more on those later) and get follow-up visits from the CUFA workers in their home.

We got a chance to visit a couple of the kids’ houses with the CUFA staff and it was such an eye opener. The first home we visited was quite basic – we sat under the house and met the boy’s mother and sister and discussed how much he’d saved, how much his mother gave him each day and how much he managed to save. He was so proud of everything he’d managed to save for a new school uniform.

The second house we visited made the first one look almost palatial. There were no walls between the rooms, only sheets or tarpaulins draped over for some sort of privacy. This young boy only received a third of the pocket money as the first child because his family was very poor. His mother could barely afford to clothe them, never mind give him extra pocket money so he could save.

Nevertheless, she was very proud of the regular contributions he was making into his money box and the plans he was making for his future.

We also had the chance to visit three of the credit unions (called savings banks here) that CUFA has built for villagers to keep their savings in. The buildings are only provided to savings clubs that have a good history of helping their village to make sure the funding CUFA receives goes to projects that are sustainable in the long term.

To qualify for a building, a local savings club needs to have at least 900 members and have a 20 per cent growth in members or savings once they approach CUFA for assistance. In other words, they already need to have the support and trust within the community.

Before a building is provided, the savings clubs operate under one of the committee member’s house so it’s hard to convince people their money is safe. Once the building is there, growth really picks up because there’s something substantial there to offer security.

Sitting in one credit union, we were asked by a general manager (all of whom were women) about ways to increase her margin on loans without putting up interest rates for members. It’s a discussion that’s happened in every credit union around the world and despite the 15 people from various roles in successful credit unions, we just couldn’t come up with a solution.

Today we’re driving to Phnom Penh to visit some more savings banks and the CUFA training centre, where we’ll see the programs they run for volunteers and committee members in the savings banks. It’ll be really good to get another view of the work they’re doing over here.

We’ll also get a chance to learn a little more about Cambodia’s recent history, especially the atrocities under the Khmer Rouge. We haven’t had a lot of time to experience things outside of the CUFA work and it will really be our first opportunity to get a an afternoon to explore and learn a bit more.

Oh, and we’ll also be quickly reunited with our bikes tomorrow for a lazy 20km ride around the city.

Pat

The final (very sore) leg

Only two days since we last touched base but , my goodness, this challenge just keeps getting better and better.
Thursday, day six, we jumped straight back on our cycles as the birds awake and we head west towards the Thai border. Our destination – Sisophon.
With plenty of rain over the previous few days our unsealed route (the only option) to Sisophon is, well, incredibly muddy. No more than 5km into our cycle we are faced with the first of many traffic jams of the day.
As we very slowly weave our way around the sliding motor bikes, cars, buses and trucks we cannot help but feel for the locals who must contend with this situation day in day out.
What makes this particular experience so enjoyable is the laughter we are causing (and sharing) amongst the locals as we cycle through knee-deep mud covered from head to toe in the stuff – for no perceived purpose other than choice!
Friday, day six , is the final cycle leg of the challenge.  I am confident in saying that the group has surprised themselves as to how good they have managed to pull up after such an intense and demanding physical push. Many would not ave ever thought themselves capable of cycling up mountains, through rivers of mud and heavy down pours – all on the opposite side of the road in a completely different country with limited road rules – they have certainly surprised themselves.
I think the incredibly happy and positive nature of the Cambodin people has played a great role in this accomplishment.
Departing Sisophon the group heads 80km to Cambodia’s second largest city – Battambang.
An entirely flat road through rural country-side – proved an entirely different challenge.
With no mention of sore limbs, bottoms or injuries, the group joyfully pushes  through any pain felt (and trust me, there was pain!). 

Fran

Slipplin', slidin' and ridin'

Well sorry it's been a couple of days since the last update, but we didn't have internet access in Sisophon last night. Things are great now in Battambang and we can now even upload photos!

OK, I should probably start a couple of days ago. We left our hotel in Siem Reap at around 7am for a ride to Sisophon, which is around 150km away. We knew that we weren't going to make the entire distance in one day, so a bus was going to pick us up after around 60km.

I know what you're thinkingt (please let me paraphrase for you): "60km in  day? Wow, you guys are so soft! I mean, what sort of a challenege is this?! Show us some real riding!"

I thought the same things at first, especially along the first 10km of sealed roads. Then came the mud. And more mud. And different types of mud. Do you want to know how many types of mud there are in Cambodia? Just have a look at one of my shirts.

Not one to be ashamed of taking the odd fall, I had three nice slides during the day. Now, I'm not the most co-ordinated at the best of times, so I wasn't entirely shocked but apparently all was forgiven because of the conditions.

So as you can see, it wasn't really an easy ride and the mud was a bit of an effort. In fact, we all looked quite dirty afterwards.

To be honest, we didn't stay as a group during this section. We tried really hard, but some kept going and going and going. Mark, for example, decided to skip one of our water stops and keep riding. (Well, he didn't actually skip the stop, just miss the Australians with bikes on the side of the road)

20km later, one of the guides found Mark wandering aimlessly around a small rest stop between Siem Reap and Sisophon looking for a phone, his wallet and someone who spoke English. Thankfully, everything turned out OK and we were reunited for a pleasant and comforting bus ride into Sisophon.

Before I go on, I'd like to mention the strange driving habits that people seem to pick up in Cambodia. There are no indicators. Well, there are, but they don't seem to be used much. Instead, people just use horns - a lot. Traffic lights are most often ignored and it's sort of a give-and-take attidude towards driving: the bikes and scooters give, and the trucks, buses and cars take.

So you can be going down a street at a leisurely 15km/h on your bike, and a bus will TOOOOOOOT and then drive past at 100km/h. This is OK, because at least he tooted.

Anyway, for once we were on the upside of this equation and in one of the biggest vehicles on the road - a big bus with windows and seats, and wheels that went around without us peddling. Despite the controband smuggled on board the bus, it was almost as scary as being back on the bikes.

The bus was slipping, sliding and doing things that I find difficult to even comprehend. We asked why the roads were so bad an were told that it had a lot to do with government deals with airlines and their monopoly on transport. Whatever the reason, the bus was sideways a lot more often than I cared for (though it was quite cool!).

We arrived in Sisophon and eventually found our hotel, which was comfy and right in the middle of town. The city was much less 'touristy' than Siem Reap and infinitely better. It was small, friendly and the market was fantastic.

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The next morning (this morning, as it was) we had the final 80km to ride between Sisophon and Battambang, which is where we start the financial literacy program with CUFA. It was sealed, flat and absolute heaven to lower bodies that had become accustomed to. We also knew that this was our last ride for the trip.

It was great. A couple of people had some falls, but everyone was OK, and we made sure that everyone rode the last 15km into town together.

Once we got into town we were greeted by the CUFA staff, who we last saw on our first night in Siem Reap. They had a sign welcoming us and made sure the hotel staff weren't too disturbed by the 15 Australians covered in mud behind them.

Today the reality of Cambodia really hit home to me. I stopped with some of the other guys to have a glass of water and saw a young boy of about three or four smiling and yelling "Hello" to me from the other side of the street. I saw him, waved back and then realised that he had no arms.

His mother was with him, as was his sister. The mother's head was on the small of his back, making sure he was with her all the time. It was one of the most touching scenes I've ever seen.

I knew I'd see children missing limbs when I came to Cambodia, but I didn't realise just how it would feel. I cant' even imagine living somewhere thinking about the risk of landmines being in my playing or living area.

Until next time,
Pat

PS - I'd love to upload some more photos, but we're still having some "technical difficulties". The last one took 10 minutes.

It's a long way to the top (if you want to roll down some rocks)

Just after I uploaded yesterday's post we found out one of the guys in the group (Tony from Abacus) had a little bingle with some locals as he was riding home last night. He landed pretty hard on his elbow and had to miss today's ride. I thought he was surprised, but apparently the look on the other person's face was priceless - Tony's around 6'7" and is more than a little over the average height in Cambodia.

Today we really took things up a notch in terms of the riding, hitting around 75km in some not-so-great conditions. We woke up to some fierce rain, which was coming at us from all angles but this didn't dampen our enthusiasm (cliche #1). The first 20km or so was on flat bitumen and was relatively easy-going; because we left at 7am, we managed to escape most of the heat early on, though the rain flooded a couple of the streets near our hotel so we were quickly knee-deep in water as we rode through.

The next stretch was around 17km along some dirt roads that were very slippy and slidy thanks to the mud, and involved six (yes, six) flat tyres. Obviously, this was pretty annoying as it took around five or ten minutes to patch them up each time, and we were starting to get pressed for time.

Something we were all looking forward to was a "creek crossing" that was a little deeper than we planned the night before - the overnight rains had made the water waist-deep so we had to jump off the bikes and carry them across.

Anyway, the highlight of the day was to be a ride to the top of a waterfall. That's the top. The very top. 475m kind of top. On dirt tracks. With bikes.

We all decided to help each other as much as we could up the hills, but everyone has different ways of tackling these things. Fran blitzed the field and powered up the hill in record time. Mark wasn't too far behind.

I, on the other hand, took a little longer to make my way up, as I had to push my bike up some of (well, most of) the steeper sections. Some of the guys we were riding with had to pull out because of injury, dehydration or exhaustion, while some of them (Christian especially) really powered through some obstacles to make it to the end.

After taking a little rest at the top and having some lunch (at 2.30) it was time for the descent. This was something I had been waiting for, mainly because I knew how hard things had been going up, so going down would obviously be a dream. Maybe I was a little over-enthusiastic.

I was quite close to the bottom of the hills and thought that I was pretty fantastic at mountain biking by this stage. I didn't need to slow down as I went down the slopes, in fact, I had to speed up.

Until... (pause for effect)

I flipped. Quite well, as it were. I must have had my front wheel stuck in some sort of rut, because I flipped over the handlebars and landed flat on my side with the bike next to me. Apparently a hearty "whoops-a-daisies" could be heard throughout the land.

Mum, if you're reading this, then I'm OK. I managed to escape with a couple of scrapes and a dented helmet. Oh, and a broken seat that the Intrepid guys had patched up for me in no time at all.

So that's it for the riding. Hot, wet, gruelling and spectacular.

As I was riding through town last night I was having a look at all of the street signs, many for political parties (have a search for some more info if you're curious). One sign I noticed was for a group called the Human Rights Party, which hit home pretty hard. Back in Australia, we have people supporting the Animal Rights Party. Here, a lot of people are fighting for human rights.

So tomorrow we head down to Sisophon, which should be around 85km or so, but most of it flat and sealed. The ride will also take us to see the first schools where we can see the CUFA work. I can't wait.

Pat

The first day of real riding

Today we hit our first day of 'real' riding, which was a little earlier than we thought (in a couple of ways) and longer than we anticipated. Rather than the first day of riding being 30km, it was just over 71km, every one of them pretty exciting.

We started at 4.15 as we wanted to get on the bikes by 4.30 at the latest. Considering the early start, the day went well. The ride to the temples was complete darkness, and the only thing to lead us was the flashing red light of the bike in front of us.

Every now and then someone would yell out "pot hole" or "puddle" but that was the only sort of 'vision' we could rely on.

After joining what seems like every other person in Siem Reap at the temples, we watched the sun come up over Angkor Wat. We took some fantastic photos, none of which we seem to be able to upload at the moment, but they'll be up as soon as we get a chance.

We had a couple of hours to walk around the temples and take in the craftsmanship and storytelling which was evoked in everything they did. It was breathtaking.

The rest of the morning was spent similarly, riding around to different temples and taking in the amazing scenery. Photos and video wouldn't really do them justice, nor do my words for that matter.

There was only one real hiccup in the morning, which involved one of the Savings & Loans party (who may be me...) losing his ticket to the temples. Apparently I missed the most amazing temple as I had to travel (via truck, thankfully!) back 17 back down the hill to get another ticket.

This is starting to turn in to a travelogue so I'll change tact now.

Something that's wonderful about this country is the joy that people we meet seem to have, no matter what their circumstances. This afternoon we were riding through some dirt roads and dozens and dozens of kids ran out to greet us. Their smiles were completely infectious and nobody in the group was too tired to wave back and use our (very pedestrian) Khmer to say hello.

One thing that really hit home was sitting down and talking to one of the staff at our hotel last night. He was such a nice guy, asking how long we were in town for, what we were doing and then laughing heartily when we told him that we were riding the 90-something kilometres to Sisophon in a couple of days. After a while he started telling us about his job.

He feels so lucky to earn $40 a month, plus a room and meals at the hotel. His "take-home" wage is much less than that - $5 a month for a phone, $10 a month for school and $5 a month that he sends back to his mother and family.

That leaves just $20 a month. This has started to put things into perspective - put a human face to what we're doing. In a couple of days we start visiting the schools were CUFA is teaching financial literacy projects, and I know that these stories will hit home even harder.

Speaking of which, we met some of the CUFA Cambodian staff last night. Their commitment and passion for their work is completely infectious; they're so committed to what they're doing and the way they're making things better for the people of their country.

I've just been told I'm hogging the internet, so it's time to bid farewell for the day. Tomorrow has us tackling a hill and riding a total of 80km. Hopefully I'll be alive to write afterwards.

Pat

We have reached Cambodia

Today we finally hit Cambodia, our first hotel and the first trip (albeit quite small) on our bikes. We went out to Angkor Wat to get our visitor passes before we head down there at 4.30 tomorrow morning to watch the sun come up over the temples. From the sounds of things, this is going to be pretty special.

We've had a few changes to the itinerary so now we'll be doing all of the riding over the first four or five days and then visiting the schools and CUFA projects afterwards. This way we can make sure that the students and projects are our first priority, rather than thinking about the afternoon's ride. The big rides don't really start until Wednesday, as tomorrow we only cover 40km or so. After that we head up past 80km. That's not exactly a walk in the park by itself, but the weather here is going to take its toll over the first few days.

The tour is being run by CUFA and Intrepid Travel, and they've provided us with a hefty support crew to help us along the way. As well as the 15 of us riding, we have five guides (plus a local guide in some places) to help us out. They really know what they're doing and they're guiding us through the traffic pretty well!

One thing that stands out is different way people use horns. In Australia it might indicate that people are upset or angry. Over here it just means that people are on the road and want people to know it. We obviously don't have horns on the bikes, so we might resort to random screams every now and then to keep people on their toes.

We also met a couple of the CUFA Cambodian project officers today. These people seem to absolutely love their work and everything they're doing. You can tell that they feel really privileged to be able to help people in their country, and it feels pretty special to know that the money we've raised is helping them do that.

In case I haven't given you all the info before, the money we've all raised (over $50,000 so far and still rising, so I believe) is helping to fund financial literacy programs for around 9,000 kids in three Cambodia provinces (the names of which escape me at the moment). These programs are encouraging the kids to save for their future, whether that means next week, next month or a couple of years down the track. CUFA's also doing some great work here physically building credit unions and encouraging people to trust the institutions, and they all work hand-in-hand.

I must be off - we have to jump on the bikes and ride off to dinner pretty soon.
Pat

It's not the heat that gets you...

It's the humidity!

Well we’ve made it into Kuala Lumpur for our stopover on the way to Siem Reap. I think I’m close to dying – when we left Sydney it was around 15 degrees and light cloud. Here it’s 28 degrees and muggy. Very muggy. Breaking-a-sweat-walking-off-the-plane muggy.

In case you’re interested, the flight was pretty uneventful and much like any other flight. Thankfully there weren’t any unexpected delays or frisk searches for our party. And yes, there were a couple of movies but sadly they weren’t Jumanji and Twister (watch The Castle again if that isn’t hilariously funny).

David (who works for Credit Union Australia) had some very fancy t-shirts made up for each of us, which he assures me will increase air flow and draw sweat away from the body. I think that’s a big call this close to the equator. To be honest, I think he’s trying to get some incriminating evidence of me wearing a CUA t-shirt. I knew I should’ve brought my Savings & Loans Cycling Team jersey and knicks (available at a special discounted rate for members).

No matter how far I rode the bike in preparation (which probably wasn’t near as far as I should have), the heat and humidity are going to take their toll. Still, I know this is going to be an amazing experience – we’ve got a day or so to get acclimatised in Siem Reap and then we head off for the first day of riding, which is only 30km around Angkor Wat.

The next day the riding really begins with a leisurely 80-something kilometres. Lovely. More importantly, we head down to the first school to see the financial literacy programs CUFA is running. This is going to be fantastic!.

In the meantime, I’ll have to contend myself with the gentle lulling of planes landing and taking off around our hotel.

It hasn’t been a great introduction to Malaysia. As I write this, we’re all sitting outside the aiport waiting for the shuttle bus to take us to the hotel. The general consensus is that a shower is needed by all – and a nice lie down. Actually, make that a shower each…

Hopefully we’ll get a chance to update when we hit Cambodia tomorrow. Fran bought a video camera along with her so if the planets are aligned and the interwebs can talk to each other, we might upload a movie or two to YouTube.

Until next time…

Pat

Oh, and sorry for the lack of pictures at the moment. I picked up the wrong cable and can’t transfer the images over just yet. Should be fixed pretty soon.