Day 5 - Thursday

Today was a very busy and fulfilling first day in Phnom Penh! It started off with a nice early wake up at 4:00am and flying for a painfully long period of 25 minutes. Upon our arrival we headed to the Royal Palace and had a short tour of some of the most magnificent buildings complete with breathtaking and meticulous architecture. We were lucky enough to have another unique market experience at the Russian Markets where we browsed the local crafts and produce and also bought some clothes for the children at the Sunrise Children's Village (an orphanage and daycare centre). After the market trip we travelled back to the hotel to eat our delicious hot noodle boxes that did not help with the intense heat that we were already feeling. We set off again and traveled to the supermarket to stock up on snacks. the teachers and a few of the students had $1000 altogether to spend to buy toothpaste, shampoo, laundry detergent and many more toiletry and homeware gifts. we packed back onto the bus and headed to Sunrise Children's Village where we delivered the goods and had quality time to laugh and play with the children. We sat down with the head of the Children's Village to discuss the importance of the program and she shared with us some eye-opening stories about a few individual children. The children were sad to see us go just as we were sad to leave them but they touched our hearts and we will never forget them. After a hot and tiring day we finally checked into the hotel properly and relaxed for a bit before leaving to go to Chabad House for dinner. This was an eventful trip as we drove to the Chabad House from last year unbeknown that they had changed locations. Finally we made it to the Chabad House and had a very enjoyable meal with the owners of the house. Today was a long day however we pushed through and had an amazing experience to start off our time in Phnom Penh.

Written by Liora and Lexi !!! :)