With the closing of Wat Opot, some children could not be returned to their families and were therefore placed by Social Services into the care of another orphanage. It is a much smaller operation than we were and the conditions, although not the same as Wat Opot, are satisfactory. We have been putting off our visit so that the children could adjust to their new environment, but in a conversation with the Director this morning, we were given the go-ahead to visit. The children were excited to see us when they returned from their school lunch break and appeared comfortable in their new home.

Our next assignment for the day was to get one of the secondary school students re-registered into a new school. He, and his younger brother and sister, were placed at the same orphanage but decided they did not want to stay there anymore and went back to living with their relatives. Because they did not obtain permission before leaving, reintegration into a new school was their responsibility, and that is how we got involved.

We had hoped to make a short day of the assignment, however, what doesn’t get done before 11:00 in the morning, must wait until 2:00 in the afternoon… and that goes for everyone.

Fortunately, in Cambodia, there is always a seller close by who is ready to serve you a hot meal and provide a hammock to take a nap in.

The task was finally completed by 3:00 PM… a thumbprint makes everything official. From here a trip to the market to buy a uniform and books, returning the student home, and then, for Dara and myself, the long drive back to Phnom Penh. He will be back in school tomorrow.

Thanks for stopping in! If you leave your questions in the comment section below, I will be able to share the answers with everyone.

The Watopotians