{"id":1135,"date":"2026-04-22T10:57:44","date_gmt":"2026-04-22T10:57:44","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/watopotians.org\/?p=1135"},"modified":"2026-04-22T12:43:02","modified_gmt":"2026-04-22T12:43:02","slug":"khmer-new-year-events","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/watopotians.org\/index.php\/2026\/04\/22\/khmer-new-year-events\/","title":{"rendered":"KHMER NEW YEAR EVENTS"},"content":{"rendered":"<div class=\"wp-block-image\">\n<figure class=\"aligncenter size-full is-resized\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"450\" height=\"409\" src=\"https:\/\/watopotians.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/Screenshot-2026-04-22-140131.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-1136\" style=\"width:664px;height:auto\" srcset=\"https:\/\/watopotians.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/Screenshot-2026-04-22-140131.jpg 450w, https:\/\/watopotians.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/Screenshot-2026-04-22-140131-300x273.jpg 300w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 450px) 100vw, 450px\" \/><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n<p><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-medium-font-size\">For the past 5 nights, this has been the scene below my bedroom window as literally thousands of people celebrated the extended Khmer New Year.<\/p>\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-image\">\n<figure class=\"aligncenter size-full is-resized\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"449\" height=\"671\" src=\"https:\/\/watopotians.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/Khmer-NY-1.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-1138\" style=\"width:573px;height:auto\" srcset=\"https:\/\/watopotians.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/Khmer-NY-1.jpg 449w, https:\/\/watopotians.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/Khmer-NY-1-201x300.jpg 201w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 449px) 100vw, 449px\" \/><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n<p><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-medium-font-size\">Crowds estimated at 600,000 splashed water and dusted each other with baby powder as they walked down the designated streets. To my knowledge, there were no incidents of violence during the celebration.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-medium-font-size\">Other SAHAKA activities included a meeting with the University students at my place. They made there own meal to save on expenses. All of them are working while attending classes.<\/p>\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-image\">\n<figure class=\"aligncenter size-large\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1024\" height=\"768\" src=\"https:\/\/watopotians.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/download-1024x768.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-1139\" srcset=\"https:\/\/watopotians.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/download-1024x768.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/watopotians.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/download-300x225.jpg 300w, https:\/\/watopotians.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/download-768x576.jpg 768w, https:\/\/watopotians.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/download-1536x1152.jpg 1536w, https:\/\/watopotians.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/download.jpg 2048w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px\" \/><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n<p><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-medium-font-size\">And we had a slumber party with the ex-Wat Opot children who now live back in their communities. We started with an all-you-can-eat dinner, a Mekong River cruise, a sleepover, swimming at a sky pool in the morning, and a luncheon at a riverside restaurant.<\/p>\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-image\">\n<figure class=\"aligncenter size-large\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1024\" height=\"683\" src=\"https:\/\/watopotians.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/download-1-1024x683.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-1140\" srcset=\"https:\/\/watopotians.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/download-1-1024x683.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/watopotians.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/download-1-300x200.jpg 300w, https:\/\/watopotians.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/download-1-768x512.jpg 768w, https:\/\/watopotians.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/download-1.jpg 1200w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px\" \/><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n<p><\/p>\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-image\">\n<figure class=\"aligncenter size-large\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1024\" height=\"768\" src=\"https:\/\/watopotians.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/swimming-1024x768.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-1141\" srcset=\"https:\/\/watopotians.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/swimming-1024x768.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/watopotians.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/swimming-300x225.jpg 300w, https:\/\/watopotians.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/swimming-768x576.jpg 768w, https:\/\/watopotians.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/swimming-1536x1152.jpg 1536w, https:\/\/watopotians.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/swimming.jpg 2048w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px\" \/><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n<p><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-medium-font-size\">We also spent a day passing out milk cartons and 1,000 Riel (25 cents) to nearly 200 children. The milk was donated by the Cambodian Organization for Living and Temporary care (COLT) staff. The money came from SAHAKA funds.<\/p>\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-image\">\n<figure class=\"aligncenter size-full\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"2048\" height=\"1536\" src=\"https:\/\/watopotians.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/colt-milk.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-1143\" srcset=\"https:\/\/watopotians.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/colt-milk.jpg 2048w, https:\/\/watopotians.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/colt-milk-300x225.jpg 300w, https:\/\/watopotians.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/colt-milk-1024x768.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/watopotians.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/colt-milk-768x576.jpg 768w, https:\/\/watopotians.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/colt-milk-1536x1152.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 2048px) 100vw, 2048px\" \/><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n<p><\/p>\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-image\">\n<figure class=\"aligncenter size-large\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"768\" height=\"1024\" src=\"https:\/\/watopotians.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/02b1b8f6-30d5-4051-980b-eba930f714ab-768x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-1145\" srcset=\"https:\/\/watopotians.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/02b1b8f6-30d5-4051-980b-eba930f714ab-768x1024.jpg 768w, https:\/\/watopotians.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/02b1b8f6-30d5-4051-980b-eba930f714ab-225x300.jpg 225w, https:\/\/watopotians.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/02b1b8f6-30d5-4051-980b-eba930f714ab-1152x1536.jpg 1152w, https:\/\/watopotians.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/02b1b8f6-30d5-4051-980b-eba930f714ab.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 768px) 100vw, 768px\" \/><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n<p><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-medium-font-size\">We still do home visits to the families we support.<\/p>\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-image\">\n<figure class=\"aligncenter size-large\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"768\" height=\"1024\" src=\"https:\/\/watopotians.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/hv2-768x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-1146\" srcset=\"https:\/\/watopotians.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/hv2-768x1024.jpg 768w, https:\/\/watopotians.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/hv2-225x300.jpg 225w, https:\/\/watopotians.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/hv2-1152x1536.jpg 1152w, https:\/\/watopotians.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/hv2.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 768px) 100vw, 768px\" \/><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n<p><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-medium-font-size\">And often share a meal with them if we are far from restaurants. In the past, distance didn&#8217;t matter so much, but with the increased cost of fuel, we have to be more careful.<\/p>\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-image\">\n<figure class=\"aligncenter size-large is-resized\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1024\" height=\"768\" src=\"https:\/\/watopotians.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/17c282ae-8491-4641-bb7a-6f3a241c1624-1024x768.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-1148\" style=\"width:771px;height:auto\" srcset=\"https:\/\/watopotians.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/17c282ae-8491-4641-bb7a-6f3a241c1624-1024x768.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/watopotians.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/17c282ae-8491-4641-bb7a-6f3a241c1624-300x225.jpg 300w, https:\/\/watopotians.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/17c282ae-8491-4641-bb7a-6f3a241c1624-768x576.jpg 768w, https:\/\/watopotians.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/17c282ae-8491-4641-bb7a-6f3a241c1624-1536x1152.jpg 1536w, https:\/\/watopotians.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/17c282ae-8491-4641-bb7a-6f3a241c1624.jpg 2048w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px\" \/><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n<p><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-medium-font-size\">We are still in contact with authorities around the Wat Opot campus, and there is still an interest in having the SAHAKA FOUNDATION return. Although we have sufficient funds to continue what we are presently doing, for several months, adding something new would require finding new supporters. If that interests you, please get in touch with Mr. Dara for more information.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-text-align-center has-medium-font-size\">Thanks for stopping by,<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-text-align-center has-medium-font-size\">THE SAHAKA FAMILY<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>For the past 5 nights, this has been the scene below my bedroom window as literally thousands of people celebrated the extended Khmer New Year. Crowds estimated at 600,000 splashed water and dusted each other with baby powder as they walked down the designated streets. To my knowledge, there were no incidents of violence during&hellip;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":1140,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/watopotians.org\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1135"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/watopotians.org\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/watopotians.org\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/watopotians.org\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/watopotians.org\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=1135"}],"version-history":[{"count":4,"href":"https:\/\/watopotians.org\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1135\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":1153,"href":"https:\/\/watopotians.org\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1135\/revisions\/1153"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/watopotians.org\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/1140"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/watopotians.org\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1135"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/watopotians.org\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=1135"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/watopotians.org\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=1135"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}