Today we left our hotel in Phnom Penh and traveled to Siem Reap. On the way we visited a reading room and had a really amazing time. As with yesterday, the kids were there to greet us when we arrived, hundreds of them, lining the path to the schoolyard. We were greeted by lots of local officials, including the government official in charge of schools for the province, the school director, a monk involved in the community and a man in charge of communication with parents. We then went into classrooms and got to see the kids studying and doing their lessons, and then we went to the Room to Read library. There was a class of kids enthusiastically reading when we arrived, and we stood at the outskirts watching for a while, but soon we were all interacting with the kids, reading with them and, of course, showing them the marvels of digital photography. They loved to pose for the camera and then come around to see themselves. It was a really amazing experience and I feel like we really bonded with them. They all ran out and surrounded our bus as we left, cheering and waving. I could have stayed there all day. But, instead we took a several-hour bus ride to Siem Reap, where we will be until the end of the trip. It was a long bus ride but we saw a cool bridge on the way and were greeted on our arrival here with a traditional dance and some chilled tea.
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