:::: Rotaract Club of Phnom Penh: Culture Study Trip ::::

February 08, 2004
http://www.rotaractphnompenh.org


ROYAL PALACE Presh Keo Morkard temple Chann Chhay Cha temple Tea Vea Vinicheav temple Khem Rin temple Rrong Dom Ri museum .....
WAT PHNOM Phnom Doun Penh Pagoda on the mountain Statues .....
National Museum Statues Geography Khmer's History Brahmanism and Buddhism region...
ACTIVITIES Watching Entertainment Exchage Knowledge Partners .....

Khmer Cultural Study Trip Report

I. Background:

Rotaract Club of Phnom Penh, initiated in 2000, is a voluntary club of young men and women from 18 to 30 year old who come together to serve the physical and social needs for their communities, widen their friendships and professional contacts, and augment their understanding of the world. It has 3 core programs: Service Project Development, Professional Development, and Leadership Development. We have been providing free of charge English, Morality, Culture, Environment and Origami lesson to poor children in Koh Krobey village of Kandal province.

In response to the need of cultural knowledge among our students, Rotaract Club of Phnom Penh organized a culture study tour to Royal Palace, National Museum and Wat Phnom on February 8, 2004 with the support from our visiting guest, Mr. Sok Puthyvuth.

II. Activity:

On Sunday February 08, 2004 Rotaractors arrived at Koh Krobey at 8:00AM. Students were divided into 5 small groups before they were loaded onto the bus. During the ride from Koh Krobey to Phnom Penh, there were game, song, story, joke and question and answer for children.

At 8:45 the bus arrived at Royal Palace. Students were divided into 3 groups because there were only three tour guides available.

Stand in line before entering the Royal Palace

While touring the Palace, students had a chance to experience many temples and building inside the compound. With a brief presentation from the tour guides, students can understand the history and function of each building.

After spending two hours in the Palace, students arrived at Wat Phnom at 11:00AM.

Touring the National Museum

At National Museum

Having learned the history and fact about Wat Phnom, all students and Rotaractors had their lunch break on the tree-shade in front of Royal Palace before entering National Museum.

Touring the Royal Palace

At the Royal Palace

At 13:30, a program of workgroup for the children with the objective exchanging knowledge together was organized. Students were asked what they had learned during the morning tour.

At 2:30, the tour left the shade in front of the Royal Palace and continued to visit National Museum, which is located close by the Palace.

At National Meseum

At National Museum

Inside the museum, students had a chance to see many artifacts and listen to explanation of the museum guides. The tour spent another 2 hour in the museum before leaving it at 4:30PM.

III. Lesson Learned:

From this project, we have learnt the following lessons:

Request letter:

The fact that we did not contact with the authority at the Palace and Museum in detail before hand cost us some considerable amount of time and money. We should have informed the authority in advance if we want to have such a tour.

Proposal Writing:

Considering the limited writing ability and involvement from others, the proposal that we produced was not very detail and accurate, therefore containing some miscalculation of amount of money and time spend on each activity. Therefore, there should be more Rotaractors involve in each proposal writing to ensure quality and accuracy of the paper.

Overall management of students:

There were 120 students during the trip, but the number of Rotaractors who are responsible to manage them is not proportionate. For future preparation of such tour in public place, more concrete measure should be taken to manage the children in public, therefore ensuring that no problem with occur.

IV. Conclusion:

Overall, the project can be considered as successful considering the amount of knowledge and experience that our students have gained and lessons that Rotaractors have learned. It was a wonderful time together with our children and Rotaractors alike. Having achieved this type of project will contribute to the process of achieving our vision of a “better community”. Rotaract Club of Phnom Penh would like to express its genuine gratitude to our donor, without whose support this project would not be possible. We would also like to acknowledge the support from other people include royal palace and museum authority, who helped facilitate the tour as much as they can, Mr. Heng and family for his long lasting support to us at Koh Krobey, and many others.

Rotaract Club Movie

Project Manager and report by
Mr. Ly Sokunthearith,
Public Relations Director