We met a new guide today, Mr. (phonetically-sounding) Sauthee.  It rained heavily last night, and the rice paddies on the way to his village were quite flooded.  I believe he said that his village was called Palm Tree Village.  One of the most interesting aspects of our day so far has been our guide.  Like Mr. Santhou, he is the oldest of 9 children.  He did not go to school until he was 13 years old.  Khmer soldiers lived about 10 km from his home, and he recalls attacks on his village from the time he was 8.  He and his brother used to hide in their well when the rockets shot over their home.  At any rate, he knew he wanted an education, and he joined a monastery when he was 13.  He learned to read at 13 and went through primary school in two years while living at the monastery (quite bright!).  He wanted to go to secondary school, and one of the monks registered him.  He then had to leave the monastery, and he lived at home and walked 9 km to and from school every day.  At some point he located a family living much closer to the school, and he lived with that family for a few years, where he earned his keep serving food at the family restaurant.  They did not pay him, but they let him live there, and he said he received “a few meals a week.”  His father ultimately purchased a very old bicycle for him for $7, which he raised by selling 6 bags of charcoal.  He works part-time as a tour guide for Journeys Within–he spends the rest of his time doing his many other jobs:  grinding rice into flour, running a rice wine still (!), growing a small garden, planting and harvesting rice, tending to his three cows, selling chickens and pigs, and raising his three children as a single father.  A very interesting and tired man!

While driving through the village, we passed a large group of people who were praying and chanting in a larger structure, possibly the village center.  Our guide told us that they were celebrating the life of one of the village women, who was quite sick and was dying.  Her family and friends attended this Buddhist ceremony in her honor. 

We stopped at the Artisans d’Angkor Silk Farm on the way back to Siem Reap–local women (and a very few men) are trained here in the art of silk weaving.  They are selected for training based on “motivation tests.” The mulberry trees were lovely, the silk worms interesting, the silks themselves quite beautiful.

We fly out this afternoon to Laos–we have enjoyed our stay in Siem Reap, but we are ready for the next step in the journey.