Day 1 of Technical Exchange (Phnom Penh)

I arrived at the PSI headquarters where I met with Sokea, Bunsak, and Alysha to discuss the schedule of events for the following eight days where I would be helping PSI out with a project. I quickly realized that I would be leading much of this activity and with minimal direction, other than a list of photographs to take. The project that they are undertaking is creating a health education game that promotes the usage of IUDs (intrauterine devices). So, they gave me their new Canon 5D Mark II that they just purchased and let me throw it around my shoulder and ride off (on my bicycle) to play around with it for 4 hours before coming back (how nice...and trusting of them to do so). Before I left I was introduced to the country director and much of the staff that works there.

I got to the Peace Corps office and just stared at the camera (glad that it didn't fall off my shoulder in the middle of the Independence Monument intersection (for those of you at home...this is probably the most dangerous place in all of Cambodia) absolutely elated. I went back to the PSI office at 1:40p (as was requested) but waited around until 2:20p until we actually left. Wait! Garrett. You didn't tell us you were going anywhere. Oh, right. Sorry. I forgot. They asked me to help shoot some staged photographs of their women's health hotline, which happens once every month. Basically, women don't feel comfortable going to the health center to ask particular health-related questions (i.e. family planning), because they might feel embarrassed for others to know they are thinking or talking about it. So, PSI created a women's health hotline for them to call anonymously and receive advice/help. The photo shoots were somewhere around Sorya mall and were a bit mundane and slow at first until we started interacting with the women and directing them (this is really difficult in Khmer). You would think simple things like "please turn your body a little bit to the left and rotate your head towards the corner of the room" would be...so simple. It's not. Anyhow, we got some good shots and one of them (not sure which one yet) ended up in their annual news letter; that's neat.

We finished around 5p and I headed back to the PC office to send some e-mails and then go to dinner with a couple of friends. So far, so good.

Talk to you soon,

Garrett

p.s. photos will come mid-April.