I sit in an IKEA-like lounge chair with blue cushions and foot rest. Relaxing music plays in the background and the scent of fresh jasmine flowers fills the room. Blue and green-flowered cotton drapes cover the windows. I have come to the OASIS for a pedicure.
Two teenage girls approach me with their plastic bowls filled with needed pedicure supplies. This is my first experience to have two estheticians work on my feet at the same time. As I sit, I wonder what the stories are of these young women. How have they come to work at the OASIS in Phnom Penh, Cambodia? As I look around the room I notice the handmade cards with crosses displayed on the card rack. Perhaps this is a training centre operated by a Christian organization? How did they choose these young women for this opportunity?
I feel a certain sense of uneasiness and wrestle with the injustices in this world. I am a white female with enough disposable income for pedicures and freshly squeezed cold lime drinks, and it is obvious these young women have very limited resources. I reflect back on previous pedicure experiences and remember being introduced to pedicures the summer of 1997 by a dear friend in Edmonton.
What will be the future for these young women? Will they eventually have their own small business and earn enough to support their families? What story have they created for me?
Without a common language, they have forms for me to mark the services I want and laminated cards with images to request the nail shape I prefer. I try and smile frequently and express appreciation and gratitude through my body language. They paint my nails a Cambodian mangosteen (purply-red) colour.
After the paint is dry, I leave the OASIS to further explore the fair trade shops and unique coffee shops in the area.
2 comments:
Ah, Wendy. I'm there with you. It's hard, isn't it to be a tourist in a country, after you've worked / volunteered overseas? You can't just "enjoy" the tourism experience. You wonder at the people's stories how they got there, what they go home to. At least you think about this and are so aware of this in your journey. Are you on your holiday now with visitors? I am excited for my trip. I think I will also come for longer now ... and extend my trip to Cambodia and perhaps Vietname. BTW, the pictures of the reflections in the rice paddy waters are beautiful!
Yes, it is definitely worth extending your trip, if you have the time!!
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