Cambodia Workaway
We arrived in Otres Beach a few days before we were due to start our Workaway assignment, and spent that time catching our breath after our meandering lists to Siem Reap, Battambang, and Phnom Penh. When I saw the photos of sand in from of the accommodation I thought we were right at the beach.
No such luck, the beach was actually ten minutes away, on the other side of the main road and across a bit of wasteland. But worth the walk.
Arrival at our Workaway home
Our first workaway assignment was located along the single main road through the town, between the medical building and a little market (that was converted to a motorcycle repair shop after the daughter was married off to a mechanic).
Down a dusty lane to discovered the compound that was going to be our home for the next couple of months. Hardly the most salubrious of surroundings, but we were soon to discover that through these gates we’d get to witness the rhythm of day-to-day life of the family who owned the land and leased out the end portion to our Workaway hosts.
Looking back on our workaway activities, I spent the most time baking and cooking in the outdoor kitchen.
Each week I baked bagels, and did battle with the humidity to bake vegetarian quiche, Jamaican patty’s and banana bread for the weekly Otres Market stall, but before we could start selling food at the market we had the task of revamping the stall.
Revamping the Otres Market Stall
Our hosts wasted no time in hustling us down to our first assignment, which was revamping this sad looking market stall and turning it into an appealing food stall for the next Otres Market being hosted in 5 days.
Known as the Clock Tower, this sad excuse for a stall needed much love and TLC. Looking around and couldn’t image location would be anywhere near ready for the weekend market. It was the first market of the season and the whole area was in a shambles.
We were the only ones there at the beginning of the week, but during the week more and more business owners showed up to revamp their stalls. But, as the early birds, we got choice pickings on reclaiming and repurposing any bit of wood or natural material we could forage. Not pallet, piece of bamboo, or palm leaf was left unturned in our quest to build a sexy looking food stall.
Red’s first job was to detach the sorry looking shelves that clung to the outside of the clock tower. There was no way these would hold wicker baskets full of food, so we decided to cut pallets down to create sturdy shelves.
Unfortunately we didn’t have the luxury of power tools. So I chose the less-rusty of the two saws at our disposal and started my workout. Not an ideal activity when it was over 90f and humidity to match.
Once we’d sawn off a portion of the pallet off, we attached it to the side of the Clock Tower, and gave it bamboo legs. We also scavenged smaller bits of bamboo to fill in the pallet gaps, and found dried palm leaves for a bit of design mastery, straight out of the pages of Cambodian Vogue. Not a bad start.
Once we’d got the prototype design down, it was full steam ahead to create two more shelves, and start finding uses for the pallet remnants. We used one as a blockade between the stall and the bar area, to stop drunken revelers from trying to squeeze through the gap and knocking into our new shelves. In hindsight, it was a fabulous design decision.
I used the casual font style our Workaway hosts used in the product packing for their cookies as inspiration to sketch out the menu board text and the signage on the Clock Tower.
After the three days of sawing pallets and bamboo, this sketching exercise was a welcome relief from hours of manual labour.
To make the signage show up in the dark, we painted the walls and boards with off white paint, sign wrote the names in black, and covered it all with varnish, which knocked down the new-looking vibrancy and added an aged look to our signage.
Red did a stellar job of following my pencil lines even though the gooey black paint we had for sign-writing became thicker than treacle in the heat. By this time in our renovation activities we’d become used to make the best of a bad situation and just getting on as best we could.
At this point, our stall was near enough done and still no sign of other stall holders. If there was a prize for best stall on opening night, ours would have won hands down.
The finishing touch was a healthy coat of varnish to stick everything down, and hopefully kills any germs that were lucking in our bits of wood and leaves we’d foraged from the rubbish and side of the road. After all, food was going to be placed on near these surfaces, and we had health and safety concerns. But we needn’t have worried, as far as H&S was concerned we were light years ahead of our neighboring stalls.
We loved the combo bamboo and pallet shelves we created. They were plenty wide enough for the wicker baskets of donuts and the other baked goods we were in charge of selling.
Before and after pics of our Clock Tower Food Stall
BEFORE:
AFTER:
Over the coming weeks we make minor modifications to the stall, which included additional spot lights wrapped in palm leaves, and indoor shelves to hold the drinks and our cash box.
The first week we only had to do battle with the mosquitos that lived a good and healthy life in the neighboring river (the music stage for the market was actually located right above the water, so I pity those poor performers). Even though I doused myself in repellant every week, I always managed to attract a collection of bites.
By the second week we were over-run with ants. The remnants of sugar left over from the donuts was too much of an incentive for them, and on more than a few occasions we sold donuts to stoned revelers with added protein. They didn’t seem to mind—the ants or the stoners.
Red and I have different ways of working, and this is the first time we’d done a Workaway gig, but it didn’t take long for each of us to find our groove and split up the work depending on our strengths. Working the market was against all health, safety and decent work conditions. It was hot, sweaty, humid, and overrun with little creatures. But this market stall was a hub of community activity. Each week we met global citizens in search of a sugar fix, a vegetarian food option, or directions for the toilet. We met people of all ages from all walks of life who were as interested in our journey as we were in theirs. It was one of those, right-place, right-time adventures that couldn’t be repeated (and quite frankly I don’t want to) but boy, it was an experience I’ll never forget.
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
I imagine that you get a great deal of satisfaction from turning something old and rickety into something workable for a community. Such a worthwhile project and you get to leave a little bit of yourselves there long after you have returned home. A great job.
It was our first time working g together on a project like this and it was really satisfying. The owners loved it.
Wow, you really revamped that stall. I’m not handy at all so I’m amazed with what you did. It must feel good to help out people like that!
It was a challenge and I did many tasks for the first time. But I loved the creative aspect of the project.
Jay Artale recently posted..Our Workaway at an 18th Century Flour Mill France
What a rewarding work you do!
I must say that I really enjoy following you around through your blog and Instagram, I really admire what you do 🙂
Are the mosquitos worst there, then at home?
At home the mosquitoes get sprayed by the government. But in Cambodia they don’t do any preventive spraying.
Jay Artale recently posted..French Train Strikes won’t stop us in our tracks
Hats off to you Jay! I am truly impressed how you did this fantastic revamping job in that hot and humid weather. Not to mention the mosquitoes. It must feel so satisfying after this constructive project! Well done! 🙂
Jan recently posted..Odaiba – Getaway from busy Tokyo
Yes very rewarding. At the time it was a challenge but looking back we only remember the happy memories and the annoyance of heat and mosquitos fades.
Jay Artale recently posted..How Travel Writers Self-Publish Podcast Ep#30: How to Become a Confident Interviewer
You did an amazing job there! What a beautiful stall you made! And I bet that walk through the wasteland was worth it to see that white sand beach after! Lovely 🙂
Thanks Iris. The beaches were fabulous – a perfect place to spend the day, and also watch the sunsets.
This sounds like such a fabulous experience! I love that you were able to do good and see the before and after of your labor. What a worthy trip. I need to check into Workaway. Such a great concept.
I always take so many photos when we’re traveling. But I like to take lots of before, during, and after photos during a project like this, because it’s so easy to forget where you started from.
Workaway looks like a great idea for traveling and also a lovely way to contribute to the local culture. I had heard of Workaway before but never a first hand account like your experience.
I need to look into it for my future plans.
I’m surprised there’s not more bloggers writing about Workaway, it’s difficult to find ones that are sharing their personal experiences of their different travels and Workaway adventures.
Must have been a rewarding workaway project. It feels so good indeed to see things through, specially when its refurbishing or repurposing some things. It does give a sense of achievement, which you guys definitely got. It can be very well seen in the pictures.
Arnav Mathur recently posted..The Myanmar Travel Guide + F.A.Q’s
There’s a great sense of achievement to upcycle or recycle old items into something new. On this assignment is was more out of necessity than choice. But there’s a real satisfaction about scavenging for objects to repurpose.
hi – Firstly this was a great activity that you guys managed to pull it off. The ingenuity in creating those shelves using the pallets, and bits of bamboos speak volumes of the presence of mind and dedication to the task at hand. Thumbs up to Red I would say for the critical effort put in and the teamwork that you both did in the designing of the menu display. I am sure there would have been many great small conversations that you guys would have had with travellers visiting Ortes market, and those anecdotes would be treasures to hold. The before and after pic of the clock tower food stall bears testimony to the effort and the success of this work away assignment.
We met some great people from all walks of life, of all ages, from different parts of the world. It was a real community feel that we were blessed and thankful to be part of.
This looks like an exciting Project. Refurbishing things to make something brand new gives us quite a fulfilling achievement. Glad to hear about your workaway experience in Combodia. This is great way to serve the local society.
I love the name and meaning of your blog Mayuri … I’ve never heard of that German word meaning “one feels sick when at home too long” … I’m sure lots of travel bloggers are feeling like that at the moment! I know I am.
A workaway trip sounds like an interesting way to get close to the local scene. Especially after the stall was back up and running. How great to be able to see something through from the start to the finish. It looked great when it was finished.
Seeing a project through from beginning to end has been one of the things we’ve preferred on all the gigs we’ve done. There’s nothing worse than starting something, and having to move on, leaving it half-finished. You miss out on that sense of achievement.
Hey, you did a really amazing job! The added protein in the form of ants made me laugh. I also had the first experience with workaway on my trip to Southeast Asia and I loved it. We spent some time volunteering in Russia, Mongolia, and Thailand. I love the whole idea of workaway. We did not have time for workaway in Cambodia but we still wanted to “give something” to the country, so we donated blood in Angkor Hospital for Children. Maybe it might be interesting for you or other travelers in that beautiful country! Best wishes from Norway.
Radka Stankova recently posted..Nejkrásnější norské fjordy + tipy na túry a ubytování v okolí
Interesting to get a comment from a fellow workawayer … there’s lots of us about, but it seems like not a lot of them blog about their adventures, or at least, I haven’t come across those articles.
What an interesting assignment. Work and fun together. The Otres beach looks super with the beautiful sea, white beach and no one around. The outdoor kitchen sounds exciting. Cambodia has intrigued me for quite sometime and need to look at the possibility of visiting sometime.
Cambodia was a fabulous country to visit. But it is changing quickly. There is so much Chinese investment in it, which is changing the culture and landscape dramatically.
What a fantastic experience & not sure if I could take on the challenge of building the stall. I’m really interested in the whole Workaway thing as I’ve never heard of it before. I’m definitely going to do a bit of research as it sounds like an interesting & fun way to immerse yourself into the community.
It’s a great way to travel. You meet some fabulous people along the way, and become part of people’s family and social circle, which really lets you get a different view of a destination.
Jay Artale recently posted..Building Community during our Cambodia Workaway