What can I say, I 'm a pretty lousy blogger. In my defense, I'm a better blogger than any of the other 3 people on the masthead (that would be one Krasovec and two boys for those slow on the uptake). I still have a lot of stuff from Kathy's and my trip to S.E. Asia and China to post, including some truly cool pictures from the Olympics (Usain Bolt is fast even in tourist photos), but for now you get my first posting from Phnom Penh, my current location and our future home.
To bring you all up to speed, I have left my job with the Elizabeth Glaser Pediatric AIDS Foundation and gone to work for a non-governmental organization called University Research Company, LLC. Which is to say a consulting firm, or a beltway bandit, depending on your take. They clearly are a discriminating and intelligent organization, they hired me, after all. I am starting a job as the Chief of Party (United States Agency of International Development talk for boss) of the Health Systems Strengthening Project - Cambodia 2 Project (HSSC 2). I am actively working to come up with a new name - I don't do sequels.
The project works to support the health system in Cambodia, primarily by focusing on the quality of care and the support structure for peripheral service delivery for the government health system. We also work a bit with other NGOs and private providers. I have a projected staff of 60 (which seems a bit much), 40 of whom currently work on the current project.
From my first week here this seems like it is going to be a nice place to live. I am here for two weeks (one week down, one to go), after which I'll return to the (currently freezing) Shenandoah Valley to pack up, after which Kathy and I will move out here for the next 5 years. Phnom Penh is a much more vibrant place than our previous overseas postings. It is full of restaurants, lots of night life, and there are a lot of interesting places to visit in the immediate vicinity.
I have taken some photos (I can't say that I have strayed far on my photojournalism, other than the first photo, these all come from the grounds of my hotel). This first photo is taken from the window of my current office. It shows life in downtown Phnom Penh. However, we are about to move offices. And, luckily for me, it is an upgrade. My new office will look out over the royal palace. But in the meantime, this is what I see. As you can see, not too many high rises.
To bring you all up to speed, I have left my job with the Elizabeth Glaser Pediatric AIDS Foundation and gone to work for a non-governmental organization called University Research Company, LLC. Which is to say a consulting firm, or a beltway bandit, depending on your take. They clearly are a discriminating and intelligent organization, they hired me, after all. I am starting a job as the Chief of Party (United States Agency of International Development talk for boss) of the Health Systems Strengthening Project - Cambodia 2 Project (HSSC 2). I am actively working to come up with a new name - I don't do sequels.
The project works to support the health system in Cambodia, primarily by focusing on the quality of care and the support structure for peripheral service delivery for the government health system. We also work a bit with other NGOs and private providers. I have a projected staff of 60 (which seems a bit much), 40 of whom currently work on the current project.
From my first week here this seems like it is going to be a nice place to live. I am here for two weeks (one week down, one to go), after which I'll return to the (currently freezing) Shenandoah Valley to pack up, after which Kathy and I will move out here for the next 5 years. Phnom Penh is a much more vibrant place than our previous overseas postings. It is full of restaurants, lots of night life, and there are a lot of interesting places to visit in the immediate vicinity.
I have taken some photos (I can't say that I have strayed far on my photojournalism, other than the first photo, these all come from the grounds of my hotel). This first photo is taken from the window of my current office. It shows life in downtown Phnom Penh. However, we are about to move offices. And, luckily for me, it is an upgrade. My new office will look out over the royal palace. But in the meantime, this is what I see. As you can see, not too many high rises.
This next picture is taken from the back of the hotel where I am staying now and we will be staying until we find a house. Just to the left of the photo the Mekong and Tonle Sap rivers merge, this is the picture of the now larger Mekong as it works its way down to Vietnam and the South China Sea. The Tonle Sap is one of the few rivers in the world where the current changes direction. Most of the year is flows into the Mekong. However, when the Mekong floods during the peak rainy season, the Tonle Sap reverses direction and it fills the Tonle Sap Lake (which is huge, on the banks of which sit Siem Riep and Angkor Wat). During the rest of the year the lake slowly discharges into the Mekong.
This next photo shows Phnom Penh from my hotel room window (opposite the river view of the previous photo).
Another view from my window, showing three Wats (Buddhist temples) in the foreground and the distance. They take Buddhism seriously in this part of the world).
All for now, more later.
