running amok

Prior to leaving Siem Reap, I paid a visit to Angkor Hospital for Children.

I first learned of the hospital while perusing a pamphlet for the hospital when I visited my friends Joe and Lorenzo.  I flipped through the pages and told Joe, I could volunteer (not as a doctor) at a place like this.  Joe then informed me that the CEO of Friends without a Border, which is the organization that founded the hospital, was a good friend of theirs and lived a block away.  This eventually led me to see the hospital for myself.  From pamphlet to hospital, within one month, thousands of miles away from my home.

The organization was founded by Japanese photographer Kenro Izu, who felt compelled to help the children of Siem Reap after a photographic journey to Angkor nearly 20 years ago.  Watching the video on the organization's history clarified for me that this would also be my goal:  to create beautiful art that will move people to help those in need.  I don't know yet how or when this will be realized; I have to make the art first (insert emoticon smile).

Before I leave Siem Reap, I need to mention a bit about Khmer food.  Yes, every single restaurant I encountered - there was an enormous amount of them - was for tourists, since most Cambodians cannot afford to eat out, even though these prices are considered very low by foreigners.  Yes, many of these restaurants combine both Khmer and western foods to cater to tourists, leaving one searching for true Khmer cuisine to doubt their authenticity.  Nevertheless, there is one Khmer dish which stands out - Amok.  It is a meat or seafood dish made with various spices cooked in banana leaf, and it is absolutely delicious and full of flavor.

So now, I go from Amok to Bangkok.