Slam dunk

Arrived in Ban Lung in Ratanakiri on Monday. Fell in the lake at the bottom of the Ka Tieng waterfall the next day. So no more photos. Despite this, went on to the Tompuon villages around Boeng Yeak Lom, bought some handmade garments & saw the extraction of rubber sap from the tree.

A day of backtracking, before making it out to Sen Monorom in Mondulkiri. Visited the Elephant Valley project there on Friday. After feeding them bananas, did a half day of volunteering with no calculator in sight.

Stayed overnight with a family in a Bunong village. Had a bath using the street pump. Ate a traditional meal before we gathered around to drink rice wine. Then slept in an army hammock. Back in Phnom Penh today and catching the flight home tomorrow. That is all.

Closed for business

Running through the key steps in drafting a budget proposal. Feeding back to all levels of the hierarchy including CFO. Defining post placement objectives and prioritising next steps for the organisation.

Received a farewell present of traditional Cambodian clothing, which was modelled on demand.

Spent much of the week saying goodbyes. Thursday was a buffet dinner with all of the staff, and leaving drinks with the expats on Friday. At the weekend, went to Kompong Cham and then onto Kratie to see the Irrawaddy dolphins.

Welcome to the jungle

Made it to Koh Kong on Sunday. Shame half of the city had packed up and left. Still able to grab a beer with the local chicken farm owner, and watch the grand prix. Dry season at the Tatai waterfalls, so could walk right across the ledge.  Spoke to the ranger in the South Cardomoms, who helped direct me to the rainforest. A great moto drive through the valleys.

Sihanoukville on Wednesday was a bit of a cheesy small town Vegas. Hard to believe people recommended this place. On the plus side Angkor’s brewery is based there.

Back to Phnom Penh on Friday to see the remaining tourist sites; National Museum, Japanese Friendship bridge etc.

Born in the PRK

Success with month end cycle completed within six days. I consider the accountant to be my protégé. Ratio analysis and forecasting fully implemented. A few one-on-one chats with individuals on personal development. Developing the outline of revenue growth plans for use after I leave.

Chink in the armour, I think I’ll miss these guys.

Took the team out on Friday. Went for a nice sit on the floor meal, followed by Cambodian Karaoke. I take back my previous statement. Off to Killing Fields today.

Branching out

Discussions with the Head of Agriculture on boosting revenues & managing finances. Also a training session with the Legal team on report writing. Groundwork completed to ensure that March processes run smoothly, given a day lost for Khmer New Year.

The Khmer workers are dressing up in the lead up to the event. Looks like some straighteners have made their way around the office. They did indeed bypass me.

Spent part of the weekend at some of Phnom Penh’s markets. House party on Saturday night. Now looking into options for the week off.

A day in the life

The van journey gets us in for 8a.m. I grab an authentic Cambodian 3 in 1 coffee before settling down to work. The 3+9 forecast is today’s topic. The accountant is asked to spend the next hour analysing which assertions should form the focus and quantify all impacts.

I take a break and try out the aquaponics. We sit down again and discuss her output, challenging ideas put forward a la Alan Sugar (without firing her). Then explained additional areas for consideration.

Lunch is rice, fresh fish and vegetables from the garden. A few of us sit around the table together.

In the afternoon I ask the accountant to lead the forecasting meeting with the project manager on the back of our discussion. He fires more tough questions her way. A two hour epic, deliberately allowed to overrun and spilling into other work areas.

Because the task itself was a side issue; the accountant’s soft skills were being tested and there were positive signs of increasing confidence in this area as the day drew to a close.

An early finish to allow pictures to be taken of all of the staff. Never knew there could be so many posers in one office.

Diversification is the name of the game

February deliverables finalised. Defined responsibilities, sequencing, resource requirements and revised timescales for March. Key performance indicators ready to go having commenced activity management. Available funding splits quantified.

Working mothers bring their babies into work each day. This can be entertaining on the van journey. The gear lever being kicked into neutral on an A-road is an acquired taste though.

Had a few drinks with the expats on St. Patrick’s day. Travelled to Kep at the weekend and sampled the fresh crab. This included a day driving our own motos on open highways and around Kampot Province.

Cambodia leaves it's mark

Process designs around donor funding allocation and activity management have been communicated to staff, to help meet objectives set. Implementation to commence next week. Also reviewed processes that start with the financial close and end with the production of the management pack.

A bunch of clowns turned up on Monday. No....real ones, all the way from Romania. Part of a community day for the acid survivors & local kids.

Friday: Phnom Penh’s bar scene is ‘colourful’.  Sunday morning: bloody strike to the dome. The mark isn't the almost certain scar. More the passing moto driver, who helped cut out the bleeding, drove me to the doctor and refused payment.

Down to business

It's been good. A radical change from what I'm used to. True front-to-back.
Spent the first few days absorbing as much information as possible. Then sat down with the CFO to discuss my plans and agree objectives.

The acid survivors are on site, so we have an opportunity to speak. I get a van to work every morning at 7a.m. (before usually nodding off again), with the rest of my colleagues picked up along the way. Good for team bonding, and not just the collective snoring.

Sunday was a day of quad biking through isolated villages along the Prek Thnot river. Rice fields, gravel tracks, banana planations, lakes, pagodas and vibrant communities.

All play no work

31 hours spent exhausting the film catalogue on Singapore Airlines' on flight entertainment system, before arriving in Phnom Penh on Saturday. Straight out to Siem Reap the next day, catching the sunset at Phnom Bakheng. A day at the Angkor temples (yep, and there's......another one) before heading to the floating village of Chong Kneas, observing all types of improvisation & handing out books at the school to pupils.

Battambang inner circle; eating at night with locals before we hit the town. Back to Phnom Penh to check in at the accommodation arranged for me and meet up with the project manager.