Day 1 (Tuesday):
Relax and prepare for a world-class trip on Singapore Airlines. Prior to your departure, you will have received your pre-departure packet, which includes your Rustic T-shirts, airline tickets, and important contact information. Once you arrive at your international departure city, our Flight Liaison will help you get checked in to your international flight. Working with our Flight Liaison will be your Flight Leader, who will escort you all the way to Cambodia! Our Flight Leaders are most often schoolteachers or good friends of our organization who happily fill this role for us each year. Once you're checked in, feel free to relax and get acquainted with your new friends before boarding your flight to Cambodia!
Day 2 (Wednesday):
Ghost Day - This day is officially 'lost' as we pass the International Date Line. We'll be sure to pick up a free day for you on your way home.
Day 3 (Thursday):
Suis-day! Welcome to Phnom Penh! Once known as the Pearl of Asia, Phnom Penh has long been a center of international intrigue. Situated between the Tonle Sap and Mekong Rivers, this amazing city serves as the political hub and economic center of Cambodia. As you exit airport customs, your Rustic Pathways trip leaders will be waiting just outside the door. From here we will take our private vans to our hotel and let you freshen up before we head over to the bustling riverside for your welcome dinner.
Day 4 (Friday):
In the morning we will hop in our vans to explore some of the history of Cambodia. We will meet up with our guide for a tour of the Killing Fields before we head north to the Orphanage. Once we arrive we'll meet all the great children that you will be working with; be prepared for them to swarm the van with excitement when you first arrive. They will take you by the hand and show you around the place while smiling and jumping around like crazy. You will fall for these kids immediately and want to get right to work improving their lives!
Day 5 - 9 (Saturday - Wednesday, Service Days):
You will be participating in a number of different service projects over the course of the week at the center. Most days begin at 7:30 when the group will get breakfast before heading out to the project site, where you will begin working on a community service project which can be anything from painting or building bathrooms in the community to teaching English and Art classes with the children. This year we built a playground and planted several gardens, which allow the children to learn how to grow and sell the vegetables, keeping the profit. We will break for lunch and return to Kampong Cham town where you will have about an hour to relax and escape the heat of the day before we resume work on the project. We will leave the facility around 4:30-5:00pm and return to the hotel to take showers before heading out for dinner at several of the great restaurants in town. We will return to the hotel around 8pm, where they will have time to hang out and relax before returning to your room by 10pm. At the completion of each session, students will be asked to come up with a project that they all feel would benefit the center the most. Each successive session will have the opportunity to build on the previous project or act on its own idea.
Day 9 (Wednesday):
After we wake up, we'll grab some breakfast and either head out to one of the unique temples that Kampong Cham has to offer or take the bicycles across the ferry to Paen Island for a fun ride through the countryside. We will have lunch along the Mekong River and then begin to prepare for our big event! On our last night we throw a big party and invite all the children over to our Base House for dinner and dancing. We show a weekly slideshow of the best photos taken that week, which is always a huge hit with the kids, resulting in them clapping and yelling for their favorite ones.
Day 10 (Thursday):
After a final breakfast, you will be returning to Phnom Penh for the next part of your journey. After hugs, and maybe a few tears, it's time to say goodbye… Lee-hi! The children of Kampong Cham will miss you! Some students will be joining you from the United States and will likely be jet-lagged, but you will all check into your hotel in and go out to lunch, where we your new (Western and Cambodian) leaders will lead a formal orientation. Even though you will have already been in Cambodia for a week, the Floating Village Service portion will be distinct from your time at the orphanage. In the evening, we will have a look around this interesting city, including a visit to Wat Phnom, before returning to the comfort of your hotel. Rest up for the week ahead!
Day 11 (Friday):
We'll begin the day bright and early with a nice breakfast before we head out for a day of touring. Although this is primarily a service project, the sites you will see today are necessary for you to realize exactly where you are in the world, and to put everything you see in perspective. Our first stop will be the infamous Killing Fields followed by the Tuol Sleng center, a former prison that has been converted into a museum to educate visitors about the genocide. This will be a more in-depth tour of the sites of Phnom Penh than you received before heading to the orphanage the week before. We then head across the street for an amazing lunch at the Boddhi Tree restaurant. Here, while enjoying the amazing collection of delicious (and healthy!) foods from around the world, we collect our thoughts before we hit the road for our departure destination, Battambang. From here we will check into our hotel for our last night on land.
Day 12 - 15 (Saturday):
After breakfast, we will wonder through the Lotus Market and buy food, supplies and service materials for our time on the water. Prepare for the real adventure to begin, as we hop on board the boat and begin our trip into rural Cambodia. As we cruise up the river during the early morning hours, you will see a whole new way of life in the floating villages we pass. Families cook their morning meal aboard their watery homes and set out nets to reel in the day's catch. School children, dressed in white shirts and blue shorts wave excitedly to us as they begin their day. The scenic boat trip will give you some time to relax, snap photos, and get to know the members of your group and your friendly staff members.
Our nightly accommodations will be mixed between sleeping on our own boat with quarters separated by gender, and also with some traditional floating village home-stays. Settle in with your amazingly accommodating host family before heading out to explore the village. Life here is simple, but the people are incredibly hospitable and will share everything they can with you. You will quickly make friends, especially with the local children whose passion for learning is inspiring. It is really important and helpful for these students to hear English spoken by native speakers, so share your story! These kids will be fascinated by your descriptions of your home, your friends, your family, and the places you have traveled to! Many of these students have never left their village so they will even be amazed that you have been to Phnom Penh!
Our service will be a mixture of teaching the children and supplying them with arts and craft supplies. Crayons are very valuable here, but the schools are also very much in need of daily school materials. In addition to inviting the kids on board for some fun in the sun with our karaoke machine, we will also be donating hygiene supplies to our "anchor villages," which will include things like toothbrushes, soap, and anything else that you decided to buy.
As the sun rises on the water, the narrow, muddy passageway expands into the greater Tonle Sap Lake. Interested in bird watching? Well this is the place! Keep an eye out for the spot-billed pelican and the milky stork- the Tonle Sap Lake is a great place to spot these beautiful birds! The natural beauty of this trip is incredible and your heart will be filled with rewarding joy as you help some of Cambodia's poorest families.
The entire trip ends in the floating village of Chong Kneas, where our vans pick us up. We will then check into a hotel and you can grab a hot shower! Refreshed and relaxed, it's time to go to the out on the town. Siem Reap has great food, live music, and, not to mention, lots of markets! But tonight we must be sure to go to bed early, because the next day we will up early to see the sunrise over Angkor Wat - one of the man-made wonders of the world!
Day 16 (Wednesday):
Good morning! We set out today in the blue-grey of the early morning. Despite the early hour, the Angkor Wat temple complex is abuzz with people already waiting to see the sun rise over this amazing 5-spiered architectural marvel. Grab a good spot and get your camera ready for the incredible view of a lifetime! Following the sunrise, the crowds clear out and we enter the complex to explore the structure. Check out the intricate carvings of Angkor's historical battle scenes. If you are brave enough to climb the steep steps, the view atop the highest tower is well worth it. Leaving this incredible sight just as the crowds are returning, we will grab a bite to eat before continuing to explore. Next, we will travel to see the huge, carved faces of Bayon. We then journey on to Baphoun, whose rose-colored ruins allude to this temple's past grandeur. Time for a break! We will grab our picnic lunches and find a shady spot along the river to enjoy our food and relax. Now, in the heat of the day, we make our way to the shady and cool tree temple, Ta Prohm. Massive trees have grown up through these ruins, making for a spectacular site. Have fun! This is a great place to check out the hidden passages or duck into a cool spot to collect your thoughts. What an action packed morning! Head back now to the hotel where you can jump on the internet or relax in your room. It's amazing how fast two weeks go, because now it will time for our farewell dinner! We will head to the famous Blue Pumpkin for some amazing Western, Thai, and Cambodian dishes. After wrapping up dinner, let's grab an ice cream- they have the best frosty treats in Cambodia! Enjoy your last night in Cambodia shopping in the Siem Reap Night Market with your new Rustic friends!
Day 17 (Thursday):
It's time to journey onward. For some, you will head home, for others continuing onto other programs, we will connect you to your next group. We hope you leave with an in-depth understanding of the history Cambodia is overcoming and a profound appreciation for the people and culture of this beautiful country. We are confident that the Kingdom of Wonders will earn its name!
