Hi to all, and many apologies for this late update.

The Cambodia trip has been one of the greatest learning experiences for me, and it was an honor to be part of the NGO HOPE International Development Agency and their actions.

I had a great time interacting with the local students, who ranged from around 13 to 16 year olds. Because we were around the same age, I felt that we were able to communicated regardless of the language barrier. While they helped us construct the school floor, they taught us how to count to 1 to 10 in Khmer, and we taught them English and Japanese. It was overall very fun, and it made us want to support their education even more.

Additionally, one of the biggest things I learned was the importance of access to clean water. Although I had prior knowledge about clean water, they were all because of research and my knowledge was quite superficial. However, during the trip we visited a two families on the waiting list for a well, and we came face to face with their harsh lives of having to get water (which was contaminated and unsafe) from a stream 1 km from their homes. This really was a moment when I realized the difference installing wells can make - it provides safety from illnesses such as typhoid, it allows families to grow more water rich crops which increases their income, and it reduces their labour from having to walk all the way to a river.

I've attached a video I made after the trip about the things we did. Kim Leng from HOPE is also (very briefly) in the video - it was such an honor to meet her and learn things about Cambodia from her.

Once again, thank you very much to all of you for supporting this cause with your donations!