This week began with a lot of fun.  On Monday we took a Cambodian cooking class with our friends, Pat and Patrick from Saskatoon along with six others who are now a little more than acquaintances.  We met at the restaurant, Frizz, which puts these classes on and from there our instructor, a young (22)Khmer man, Heng, took us to the market to name, describe and give us the uses of all the interesting, beautiful fruits, veggies, herbs and spices.  As we looked with some dismay at the meats hanging in the heat, he was quick to explain that everything was fresh every day and the meat left over that day would be sold for sausage, mince and other meat products.  It was interesting to watch the women crouched on their seller's pallet filleting squirming-fresh fish.  Pictures were taken by all ten of us of the roasted cockroaches, tarantulas and other lovely, tasty insects waiting to be eagerly bought by Khmer, but not so by foreigners!

From the restaurant we went to a rooftop classroom with a roof but no side walls, so it was lovely and breezy for cooking on a warm day.  Khmer cooking is very labour intensive.  We had to mince our meat by hand - do you know how long it takes to mince enough chicken and pork for 2 sausages?!  We also used a mortar and pestle to pound our spices and herbs into a paste for curry.  However, the end result was worth it.  We made sausage wrapped in banana leaves for an appy, chicken curry and amok for the entree (Brian, next time you visit I will have to make amok for you!), pomello salad - I love it, but the first spoonful I took had ALL of the chili pepper in it, I'm sure!  Tongue, gums, lips, palate, throat were aflame! But it was tasty!  The crowning dish was pumpkin cooked with custard in it.  Yum!  It took all day to prepare, cook and eat.  By the time we got home, I could hardly keep my eyes open.

As I chatted with Heng, he told me that he was from Svay Rieng, a very poor province in the south-west near the Vietnamese border and his family was very poor.  His mother died when he was young and by the age of 12, he was living on the streets of Phnom Penh.  He was able to go to a British Academy to learn English for some time and then an NGO, "Friends" found him on the streets, took him in and began teaching him everything about the restaurant business.  This is where he learned to cook.  "Friends" is a thriving place with great decor and even greater food, all prepared and served by kids rescued from the streets.  Heng is now working full-time at Frizz instructing cooking classes for foreigners.  He is very good, lots of fun and knows how to keep us on track.  Heng is also going to university at night learning English and taking TOFEL so his English will be good enough to become a foreign student enabling him to get a better education.  His ultimate goal is to then return to Cambodia and help his people.  We really admire him for his work ethic, tenacity, good wit, knowledge of world affairs and ability to speak intelligently about many subjects, including the culture and politics of his own country.  I think he would be an ideal candidate for a Canadian university scholarship.