Tonight we had a huge blast of fireworks that went off right next to our hotel. I thought it was a bomb and I have to say I was completely terrified. The locals thought it was funny but once I picked my self up from the floor I could laugh too. Blimey what a fright I got. It's election time in a couple of weeks and everybody here goes a bit mad for some strange reason. Apparently violence is also on the increase at elections as people get quite carried away about their party allegiance.

Today we visited the Peace Bridges program and I was able to share the work we have done at RDNS. I will probably come back at some stage later and show them how to use the model we developed in Adelaide for families recovering from abuse and violence. This would be short term visits to do some capacity building work with NGO groups via the Peace Bridges program workers. They would train up local Khmai people to do the work with families and in villages.

We also went to Hagar Women's program where we were talking to Wilma a woman working here for 2 years at Hagar. She has come from Perth with her husband to work with the womens' programs and the handcraft factory. The building is typical of most here rather old open and sparse old wooden desks and plastic chairs many brittle and broken. Their building is in great need of paint and scrubbing clean and cheering up. They have hardly any decent play and school equipment for the 50 children living there. Boy the poverty and lack of simple goods is just pathetic.

She was telling us her key Khmai counsellor son had an accident yesterday and has serious head injuries. Four people die every day on the roads in Pnomh Penh alone 1,970 people last year in this city!! When you see how they drive its no wonder its unbelievable. I wish I could video it to show you all!.

Wilma said she stopped yesterday on her way home from church to get a man off the main road. He was sitting there with a toddler in his arm dressed in rags, the baby was wrapped in rags and lying limp in his arms. He had no money for food, clothes or hair cut... After begging him to come off the road and she would feed him she saw he also had only half a leg because it had been blown off by land mines. These peoples in the country are destitute and so desperate they will sit on the road and rather get run over because they have nothing to lose may be someone will stop and provide a meal. Pitiful stuff really.

We read that Amnesty International estimate around 100,000 Cambodians have been displaced by the rabid land grabbing going on here. Cost of houses and rents are on a par with Adelaide yet government workers get $40 pr month wages!! How do they get ahead that way with rising food and petrol and costs? Yet the rich are doing very well thank you... which is a shame. Its every man and woman for themselves since the Khmer Rouge has left because they have pitted brother against brother and so family trust has been destroyed. There are however many NGOs helping here. In fact they provide the entire welfare system which in itself produces problems, but people have to do something or there would be mass starvation. It's interesting and challenging to see how they can still bounce back and be positive and happy in the midst of all this. We are learning much from this experience. These are amazing people.