The Sreisaat Adventures in Cambodia

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Breathing easily now
2007-12-11 17:29:00
I MADE IT!I survived this afternoon's much anticipated, grueling one hour and a half panel discussion where I sat as one of the panelists. I was included in the company of experts and ICT and development practitioners who are way more experienced and older *hehe* than I am. I felt humbled and at the same time grateful for the privilege of interacting with and gaining insights and wisdom from them. No one made me feel inferior.I didn't realize community-driven networks is a subject of interest to many people around the globe - the room was instantly filled in to the last seat and there were a few that I spotted standing. So what's with this session, anyway? Here I am sharing with you the following key questions that were explored during the session, where each panelist were given only two minutes to respond:*Why focus on community networks?*Are community networks feasible?*What's needed to make them a reality?*How do you build on what exists and making alliances?All in all, it wa...
More About: Networking , Work , Advocacy

How insured are you?
2007-12-11 15:58:00
Leaving the Philippines to be based in Cambodia (for more than seven years now) has been a life-changing experience for me. One of the first things that many ex-pats like me had discovered, and I know they would agree with me, was the inadequate medical facilities and high cost of medical treatment in the country. I have heard from locals and ex-pats alike several horror stories of falling ill and how devastating it could be physically, mentally and financially. This is the reason why getting ourselves a health insurance is our primary concern. And, talking about insurances, here in Cambodia, more and more are now getting a car insurance. The capital Phnom Penh is becoming notorious for the number of vehicular accidents these days and many car-owners begin to see the necessity of getting their vehicles covered. A house insurance, however, is not as popular as in countries like the US and in some European countries. All these kinds of insurances are good, practical investments and gi...

Opening of the Global Knowledge 3 Conference
2007-12-11 05:47:00
Yes, it opened today in a subdued manner. The Prime Minister of Malaysia was expected to deliver the opening remarks but he didn't come. The Deputy PM came instead. I went to the Exhibition Hall, and by golly! I was amazed at the number of booths showcasing different ICT4Dev projects all over the world. A number of private companies were notably present such as Microsoft and Luscent Technologies. I think they took this opportunity to be visible as the GK 3 participants are the very people that they are wanting to capture.There were so much resource materials to be taken home, too. The freebies were plenty - I had a bag from the Telecenter.org which contains this cool, 1GB neon-orange USB stick that you can wear as bracelet. The workshop kit also contains cool stuffs - black Tshirt, brolly, fridge magnet and a GK3 ball that glows in the dark! There's so much brochures and other resource materials to be had, apart from the freebies, that if I don't refrain from taking some I would ...
More About: Networking , Work , Global , Opening , Knowledge

Some more updates of today's activities
2007-12-10 13:19:00
Hey guys! It's wet, wet, wet here in KL. Around 7am this morning I took a photo of the view outside my hotel window and it was still dark. And for the whole day today, the sun didn't come out and it was pouring rain. Anyways... I mentioned earlier that I was to attend the media workshop this morning. However, instead of going there, Maria of IDRC pulled me and one of the Pilot Coordinators of iREACH Project, Long Dimanche, out of the venue before it could even start. We were promptly deposited to another IDRC organized workshop on Graphic Recording. It was a good move actually because I enjoyed the half-day workshop. I'm glad I went to that workshop!Okay, so what is Graphic Recording?Graphic recording or graphic facilitating is, as its most basic, capturing what is happening in a group or presentation. The workshop was very relaxed and informal, and the facilitator, Nancy White, was a great fun! She gave us a glimpse into the world of graphic recording. With the materials Nancy p...
More About: Travels , Workshop , Work , Updates , Activities

KL Updates
2007-12-10 00:40:00
I'm on my fourth day here at KL and the two-day evaluation workshop ended yesterday. Organized by IDRC, the evaluation workshop brought together IDRC research partners from different countries in Africa, Asia, Middle East, South America and the Caribbeans. Participants were introduced to evaluation methodologies such as Outcome Mapping, Utilization Focused Evaluation, Gender Evaluation Methodology, and the Most Significant Change. Some of those who attended, like myself, are already using Outcome Mapping and GEM in our planning and M&E. Some of the proceedings and outputs of the workshop were already posted at the evaluation webspace created by IDRC.Today, it's a little cloudy and it's drizzling outside. The clock says 7:00am but the streets are still quiet. Anyway, I am off again to another IDRC-organized event called Media Skills for Non-Profits. The workshop is aimed at making IDRC-supported researchers more aware of the media as an important channel to promote their research...
More About: Travels , Networking , Workshop , Work , Updates

Photo Hunt #7 Long - Elongated shadows
2007-12-08 14:39:00
Hi. I am currently in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, and will be here for 8 days to attend a series of workshop organized by IDRC as well as participate in the Global Knowledge conference. Luckily, there is free internet in the hotel where I am staying so I was able to post this week's photo hunt entry even if it's a little,err, late.This photo was taken in Kep town, Cambodia in September 2006, while my husband and I were walking up to our hillside guesthouse. It was nearly 5pm and the sun was minutes away from setting. While we were walking, I noticed our shadows. The sun was behind us that our shadows were elongated, making us look taller and skinnier. I have been fascinated by shadows since I was little and loved the times I spent playing and stomping on shadows with my playmates. Ahh those were the times :)
More About: Photo , Memories , Long , Shadows , Hunt

Flavor of the Month
2007-12-08 10:59:00
I got tagged by Redlan and Roselle and this is about your birth month and its corresponding personality traits. Here are the instructions:1. Mention the person who tagged you and create a link back to them.2. Copy-paste the traits for all the twelve months (see below).3. Pick your month of birth (see below).4. Highlight the traits that apply to you.5. Tag 12 people and let them know by visiting their blogs and leaving a comment for them.6. Let the person who tagged you know when you?ve done it!I was born on March, let's see what it says about me:Attractive personality. Sexy. - Ahem. I believe so, my husband reminds me all the time.*lol*Affectionate - Depende kung sino ang recipient ng affection!Shy and reserved - I tend to be quiet when I first meet people but eventually warm up if and when I like their company.Secretive - Sometimes.Naturally honest - In many cases, yes, to the point of being brutally honest.Generous and sympathetic - To the right people, yes.Loves peace and seren...
More About: Flavor , Month , Mont

Air ambulance, anyone?
2007-12-07 12:29:00
When we say ambulance, what comes to our minds is a white vehicle, with a loud, wailing siren and flashing lights. It usually comes when an emergency number is dialed and rushes sick people to the hospital.Well, not anymore. Introducing? the air ambulance!As crazy as it seems, air ambulance exists and is getting more popular nowadays as more and more people are resorting to this kind of medical service. This is very important especially for people who are in critical condition or in immediate need of medical attention. There is one website that offers information on air ambulance. AirAmbulance .net is the central hub of all air ambulance services in the entire United States. All of the aircrafts dispatched are FAA-approved and equipped with the state-of-the-art medical equipment and life support equipment on board. The team is composed of registered nurses, respiratory therapists, and flight paramedics, and are all well-trained in flight physiology to ensure that patients are well-e...

Humor at work
2007-12-05 11:34:00
Please scroll below for the Wordless Wednesday photo.***Last week while I was purging my mailbox, I stumbled upon this email from one of our Research Coordinators. I was laughing hysterically and kicked myself for not noticing the error right away. Not only that my name was misspelled, I was even labeled as dead! Click the image to enlarge. You be the judge:I laughed so hard that my lunch just flew out of my nostril, bounced off the wall and hit me right back on my face! *I'm exaggerating, of course!*
More About: Humor , Work

Fun, funky teenage bedroom furniture
2007-12-05 10:42:00
A few weeks ago I mentioned about getting few pieces of furniture for our apartment. I also mentioned one online furniture shop based in the US which is great for furniture shopping -- and that?s the Furniture from Home. This site offers various fantastic and high quality home and office furniture. One of the best products Furniture from Home is known for is their bedroom set collection. Furniture from Home understands that the bedroom is one of the important rooms in the house. And so they offer only the best bedroom collection there is -- from the finest bed to the matching cabinets and other accessories. If you have teenage kids who want to choose their own bedroom decoration and style, then worry no more. Furniture from Home can definitely help you with that. With its teen bedroom furniture, your teenagers will surely love its fun and funky sets, see the pictures.Apart from this, Furniture from Home prides itself of other quality furniture like sofa, cabinets, chairs and many ...
More About: Bedroom , Teenage , Funky

Wordless Wednesday #18 - Scruffy and Scruffy
2007-12-05 06:04:00
Check out the Wordless Wednesday HQ for more fantastic entries for this week.

Getting ready for the big C -- as in, conference!
2007-12-05 05:42:00
Hi guys, it's only now that I have the chance to come up for air.I am getting ready for the Global Knowledge Conference in Kuala Lumpur. But before that, IDRC is also conducting parallel workshops that I need to go to. For example, there is the Evaluation in Practice: Use and Outcomes in ICT4D Research and the Media Skills Training for Non-Profits.Before I could sing:All my bags are packed, I'm ready to go...I have several tasks to complete: the iREACH poster which will be displayed during the evaluation workshop, the evaluation plan, the readings assigned, and the one that I am concentrating the most is the Emerging People Session 3: Making Community-driven Networks a Reality of which I am one of the speakers.Yaikks. Ngatog. Nginig. Scary.Ok, so that's what's keeping me from blogging. I'll update when and if I can.Toodles for now.
More About: Work , Cambodia , What , Ready

Of hypnosis and well-being
2007-12-03 08:43:00
Last night, my husband and I were enjoying our evening by watching television. We?re the channel-surfers kind of lot, you know, we don?t stay long on a certain channel if the show is boring or not to our liking. While we were channel-surfing, we caught Criss Angel?s Mindfreak show. I like magic and so I managed to get R hooked as well. In this show, Criss Angel was in Las Vegas distributing leaflets, probably an advert for his show, to passersby. For some magical reason, once these people read it, they all fell one by one, asleep on the floor. Supposedly they were hypnotized by reading the leaflet with subliminal message. Can that really happen?Magic aside, more and more scientists nowadays believe that hypnosis could unlock our brain?s potential to change our lives. Evidences prove that hypnosis is useful in medical, psychiatric and psychological, and even dental applications. Hypnosis is now becoming more popular and preferred by millions of people worldwide ? whether it is to con...

Photo Hunt #6 - Red
2007-12-01 09:58:00
Teener 1: What's your favorite color?Teener 2: Fuschia, it's so cool!Teener 1: Oh yeah, can you spell it?Teener 2: (Stammers) Fuschia? Uhm... fuschia... F-O-O-S.... oh no. Okay... F-U-S-H...uhmmm... F-U-C-S... hmmmp! Can I change to red instead? Red... R-I-D!Teener 1: (Scratches her head)I am so like teener #2, I can't find something red so this color instead. *tee-hee-hee*A commune hall in rural Cambodia
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Of cars and garages
2007-12-01 08:37:00
How many of you have seen the Monster Garage over the Discovery Channel? It was a popular television show in the US wherein a team composed of 5 people with expertise in car-building turns a car into something else. Now I can't imagine what the show's garage floors are like in their set!Here in Cambodia, in Phnom Penh particularly, it is common to use the ground floor of an apartment as garage. During daytime, the ground floor looks like a common living room (see picture). But at nighttime, all the furnitures are shoved to one side to make space for the family car. Luckily for us, our landlord has a garage enough to hold two cars including ours, two motorbikes and four bicycles, two of which are ours. But when R and I have our dream house in a few years time, I want a garage like this:Very simple and yet functional. Spacious, and yet it's got everything you need just within your reach. The flooring's color is off white so oil stains are not easily visible, cushioned for more com...
More About: Cars , Rages , Ages

How much of the Philippines Have You Visited?
2007-11-30 11:41:00
Found this at Mrs T's. Very interesting, but am saddened at the result - I got a C! How ironic this is because of the 24 or so provinces of Cambodia, I'd been to 20 of them! Hopefully when I return, I would be able to travel and see more of my own country. My Lakbayan grade is C!How much of the Philippines have you visited? Find out at Lakbayan!Created by Eugene Villar.

So what's your love story?
2007-11-30 09:52:00
Browsing through several blogs months ago, I?ve seen a tag floating around asking married female bloggers how they met their husbands. Some were so direct ? boy meets girl, both interested with each other, ending up in each other?s arms. Others were so romantic it was like reading a plot of a Hollywood movie. I?ve been asking R that we have to weave our own love story to tell our future kids how we met! He playfully agreed to the idea and starting making up our story. Not that we don?t have one, but we think it?s a little short on the romantic side it needs some polishing to make it more exciting. A love story starts when boy-meets-girl. They go out. They kiss. They fight and eventually make up. To me the real love story is staying together still after the many fights and arguments. If love is still there, then surely there is no reason to part. Both should ensure that love is still there to keep the romance alive. So what to do when love and romance is flickering out of your relat...
More About: Love , Story , Love story

Hello, hello, hello...
2007-11-30 05:24:00
Hello. Apologies for my being quiet these days. I?m still here, dealing with extreme upper back pain. My therapist said I have myofascial pain syndrome and recommends regular physio-therapy treatment. Ouch, that?s way too expensive! One session costs $30 and what?s more frustrating is that my insurance won?t cover for it! Walang kwentang company yan! And if the physio-therapy won?t work, I?d be given some medications. I did some research on this and found out that this can be caused by poor posture, stress, and depression. I don?t know about depression but posture, yes. Stress? Oh yeah, baby! I thrive on stress everyday!I think I?d better go back to meditation and yoga. Whatchathink?

Wordless Wednesday #17 - Lost in thoughts
2007-11-28 10:02:00
Check out other photos at the Wordless Wednesday HQ.
More About: Lost , Travels , Thoughts

Can you hear what I hear?
2007-11-25 10:10:00
When I was in university, I lived in a co-ed boardinghouse just a stone?s throw away. There were more than 20 students in that boarding house, and we could hear what the other students in the other rooms were up to because the walls were made up of a thin layer of wood. We all got along pretty well, but it was the nighttime chaos that was breaking us apart. One by one, the male boarders started to snore, slowly at first like a cat?s purr then the snores increased as the night went on. Nudging them to roll over was not a solution anymore as they rolled back again and continued snoring. All the female boarders gave up and purchased the best hearing protection there was. There are various types of hearing protectors for the different kinds of noises that could impair our sense of hearing once exposed frequently. A company called Hear os.com provides the most affordable, most varieties, styles and functions for every individual needs. Apart from ear plugs for snoring, there is the music...

There's something new over the internet!
2007-11-25 08:31:00
It is very rare that I write something about fashion and clothes here in my blog but I stumbled upon a clothing line that is making waves in the internet shopping industry that I can't help but share.Introducing Tobi.com, a fantastic online clothing company started by two experienced entrepreneurs Corina Nurimba and Catherine Chow and Next Internet LLC. Combining their expertise in fashion, marketing and customer care spells the arrival of a new generation of online shopping. Tobi.com prides itself of its personalized customer care, of the uniqueness of its products, and of its fun, online shopping experience.For the latest trends and styles in clothing for women and men, Tobi.com is the ultimate place to go. Tired of your usual jeans? Go nudie! Tobi.com?s nudie jeans gives a new meaning to skinny jeans. If you are looking for something unique, try seven for all mankind, a unique brand of jeans for both women and men.Tobi.com has hundreds of choices catering to different needs ? y...
More About: The Internet , Some