Feature Image: Daily visits from the landlord's kids

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Moving into our Workaway room

We were the first Workaway volunteers to show up at the bakery in Otres Beach, and we had to spend a couple of days in alternate accommodation while our hosts finished off our accommodation. It was a two-unit box, and although there was more space in the bunk bed room upstairs, we opted for the double room downstairs.

In hindsight, if I’d known about the night-time rats roaming the kitchen and scratching at our door to get in, or the flooding risk during the heavy rain, I would have opted for the upper room. But by the time we’d made these discoveries, other volunteers had moved into the upstairs.

The rooms were a hastily erected box with no insulation, and every time it rained the walls got wet and our clothes got damp. The humidity didn’t help, and a couple of times my laptop refused to fire up because of the moisture, which caused a minor fright as this was the beginning of the trip and I couldn’t imagine being without my laptop.

We had a small window overlooking the new Chinese casino construction site on the field behind, and I was glad I’d bought an extra sarong to use as a curtain so I could block it out.

Initially we were living out of our backpacks kept on the floor, but after the first flood we devised a way to keep as much of our belongings off the ground as possible. A piece of rope to string up our packing cubes did the trick. Red also suspended a pole from the ceiling to hang our bigger clothes up, but they were so tightly packed together on the pole that they were continuously moist and we walked around smelling like damp-dog.

Buckingham Pallets

Our initial Workaway task had been to create a stall for the weekly Otres Beach Market, and once that was done I migrated to the kitchen to take part in pastry wars to bake quiche and master the art of baking bagels, and Red started to create furniture out of pallets for the communal area so that we had somewhere to sit and eat our meals.

The next project was a couple of sturdy loungers out of pallets. Red and I worked on the design together, and we were both really impressed with our design of incorporating the headboard panels into the leg structure to make them more stable and robust. The first lounger was a challenge, but the second one was a breeze. Well for me it was. My design consultation responsibilities were done, so it was up to Red to dismantle the pallets and reconstruct them into the right shape, while I looked on offering encouragement.

Pallet furniture loungers at the bakery

The loungers were awkward to move because of their weight. The wood was dense but the mass of metal he used to attach the pieces together undoubtedly doubled its weight. Seeing Red walk down the alley way from the bakery to the hardware store to get more nails and screws to continue his project was a familiar sight. For a few weeks at least he was their best customer.

Red was getting into the swing of pallet construction and we joked about extending our stay in Otres Beach and running a company we’d call Buckingham Pallets. After the loungers, shelving units, and the dual purpose coffee table/small benches, it was time to make a refectory table and two benches so that the volunteers and our hosts had somewhere to eat and commune. This was a mother of a project, and once built, the table took four of us to move into place—the benches weren’t much lighter.

Dining table and benches made out of pallets

Pallet Furniture to Support a Community of Volunteers

It may have taken a lot of blood, sweat and tears (ok so maybe no tears, unless a few were shed when he got those stinging splinters that drew blood). But there was definitely a lot of sweating going on. At times it was 100F and 90% humidity, and this marathon building project took it’s toll, but the end result was a masterpiece, and created a hub to gather the volunteers together at meal times, and throughout the day to share conversation.

Sometimes it must have felt like a lonely and arduous task to get all of this furniture built, but Red got occasional moral support from the landlord’s kids who came to visit every day, and their puppy we named Bunker (a homage to golf and because he was sandy colored), but he was later dubbed Biscuit when he became the bakery’s mascot.

Frequent Visitors to keep an eye on Red

The icing on the cake, and much more fun to make that the furniture, was the granola bar and cookie display for Tony’s, the biggest food shop in town. We went to this shop every day to buy baking and cooking supplies, but it was also where we went to buy our own snacks and drinks.

Red’s product display was the first of it’s kind in the shop, and it had pride of place on the main display near the tills. It was a masterful creation—the Frankenstein of displays, cobbled together from random bits of pallet cast-offs. But it did the job just fine and even featured the bakery’s distinctive logo.

Probably one of the most highly appreciated products to come out of Buckingham Pallets was the bathroom caddy. This dual-shelved unit had more than enough space to house all the shower gels and shampoo from our team of volunteers, and provided somewhere to keep your clothes dry and off the wet floor during a shower.

Community Feel at the Local Shop

Tony, the owner, was an affable Cambodian chap with really great English. He always had a smile on his face, and it was a mystery how he juggled the charge books. No money changed hands if you were a regular client. We just had to give the secret word and our charges were added to our tab, and our hosts got the bill at the end of the week.

I loved shopping at Tony’s, not just because of the broad selection of food and drink for sale, but because we always ran into somebody we recognized from the village. It could be one of the business owners, another volunteer, or one of the travelers who was only planning on staying a couple of nights, but had extended their stay. Even if you’d only seen each other briefly across a crowded bar, that was enough of an excuse to strike up a conversation and catch up on the goings on in the village, or how we were spending our days.

Integrating into the Community

Staying in one place for an extended period means you get to scratch under the surface of a destination. You see a different side that casual visitors aren’t privy too. You get to hear about the village gossip and the petty drama causing upset between rival businesses. You also get recommendations about memorable meals, and hear about impromptu live music gigs or which bar is hosting a happy hour/leaving party/welcome party/birthday, where all who show up are welcomed. We ran into travel agents from the village that were eager to practice their English, and when it came time to book our tickets they quoted cheaper ticket pricing. And the laundry ladies got to know us and our washing was prioritized over that of other travelers just passing through.

The majority of the Cambodian locals appreciated what the longer term residents did to bolster the economy. We spread the word, drummed up business, and kept new arrivals in the loop. There wasn’t a them/us mentality in the community, everyone recognized that during the season it was a joint effort to create an environment that travelers felt comfortable recommending. We also cemented some long-lasting friendships with the other volunteers in the village.

Red said on more than one occasion that he felt like Otres Beach put its arms around us and welcomed us in. It was right place right time, kind of moment. But progress in a developing country like Cambodia doesn’t stop.

Unfortunately the Chinese Casino was the beginning of the end of this community. We’ve since heard that more casinos have been built, and along with the gambling tourists came an influx of prostitutes and hardcore drug dealers. The age of innocence has been shattered—the era has come to an end.

The Cambodia government reclaimed land from the locals who’d built their homes on it. The bakery is no more, and many of the local families we were on nodding terms with, have been displaced. I look back at our time in Otres with more than a tinge of guilt. We spent a couple of months doing our Workaway gig, and then made a choice to move on with our lives, but the Cambodians and travelers who were impacted but the changes in this community didn’t have the luxury of choice. A government motivated by greed and progress, have shattered a community, and with it people’s lives and livelihoods.

Don’t take anything for granted, because tomorrow is not promised to any of us.

Kirby Puckett

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Building furniture out of pallets in #Cambodia, and becoming part of a community has left a long lasting impression on our travel memories. Share on X

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Flashpacking through Cambodia

Flashpacking through Cambodia: For Baby Boomers on a Budget is my latest Roving Jay travel guide full of travel tips, advice, and sample itineraries for flash packers who want the back packing experience without foregoing some of life’s creature comforts – like a comfortable bed, a hot shower, free wi-fi, and somewhere to plug your electric toothbrush in. I spent almost three months backpacking around Cambodia in 2017/2018 to research this travel guide, and I share insights and first hand knowledge of tourist traps and off-the-beaten-path discoveries. We ate street food, drank 50c beers, and travelled by train, bus, minivan and tuktuk to identify the best ways to get from A to B. If you’d like to receive a free Review Copy ahead of the general public release, please click here. Here’s my Cambodia posts on this blog:

• Cambodia Visa and Arrival at Siem Reap Airport
• Cambodia: How to Avoid the Crowds at Angkor Wat
• Filling up your scooter in Cambodia
• The Best Tasting Street Food in Siem Reap
• Angkor Wat at Dawn: Is it worth it?
• Come face to face with Angkor Thom’s Bayon
• Good vs. Evil at Angkor Thom’s Impressive Southern Gate
• The Baphuon Temple and the Terrace of the Elephants at Angkor Thom
• Visiting Siem Reap’s War Museum
• Where to Stay in Siem Reap
• Visiting Siem Reap’s Markets
• Give your taste buds a disco at Siem Reap Night Market
• Responsible Tourism at Joe to Go in Siem Reap
• What to See and Do in Siem Reap
• Which Siem Reap Floating Village should you visit?
• Memorable Boat Trip from Siem Reap to Battambang
• Libations and Bric-a-Brac tempt our purse strings in Battambang
• Vegetable Amok at About the World Restaurant in Battambang
• Cooking Classes at Nary’s Kitchen Battambang
• Pomme Bar, Restaurant and Hostel, at the Core of the new Battambang
• An educational trip around Battambang’s Central Market
• Sightseeing and things to do in Battambang Cambodia
• Bayon VIP Bus from Battambang to Phnom Penh Cambodia
• Exploring Phnom Penh’s 172nd Street in the dark
• The challenge of wandering Phnom Penh’s streets
• A visit to Phnom Penh’s Central Market
• Exploring Phnom Penh’s Markets
• Phnom Penh Photo Diary
• Tops sights to see in Phnom Penh
• Touring S-21 Security Prison (Tuol Sleng Museum Phnom Penh)
• A reflective visit to The Killing Fields
• Taking a train from Phnom Penh to Sihanoukville
• The majesty of Otres Beach sunsets
• Our Workaway Gig at Otres Beach Market Cambodia
• Working Away to make Cambodian Bagels
• Cambodia Pastry Wars: The Battle of the Quiche
• Our Cambodia workaway gig renovating a market stall
• Unwind on Cambodia’s Koh Ta Kiev Island
• Cambodian Beach Massage and Grilled Seafood
• Building Community during our Cambodian Workaway
• Gecko Village in Kampot Cambodia – a Photo Essay
• Christmas Eve in Kampot
• more coming

 

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