From 3rd July to 14th July I volunteered at a school in Samraong, Cambodia, helping to construct a drainage system and garden for one side of the two sides school. The side I worked on was considerably under-developed compared to the other side. We also helped build stairs for a new toilet block as well. Please view my presentation for photos and descriptions of my experiences.

1. Day 1: Drainage System
• Previous week: trench was dug
and some of the brick retaining
wall had been built
• Image to the left is the work that
had been completed before my
arrival at Greenway School,
Samraong, Cambodia

2. • Concrete was made using a cement mix bag
containing cement and rock, 5 parts of sand,
and water
• The sand and cement mix was first mixed
together using shovels and once this mix was
evenly spread the water was added.
• The sand, cement and water were mixed
together using shovels until a thick, buoyant
paste was developed.
• The concrete was poured into four individual
buckets with a trowel and given to use to use
for the day
• The first task involved concreting the rest of
the base of the trench (half of the concreting
had been completed in previous week)

4. • When the concreting of
the base was completed,
bricklaying was started
using the mixed concrete
and Cambodian style clay
bricks
• The image to the left
shows the progress of the
day
• The second retaining wall
was started throughout
the day
• The trench is
approximately 15-20m
long and runs down the
side of the Greenway
school

5. Day 2: Drainage System
• Bricklaying on the retaining wall
was continued
• A new batch of concrete was
made up at the beginning of the
day and after lunch
• Two brick layers were
completed, as seen in the image
to the left.

6. • The third layer of
the brick wall was
started closer to the
end of the day to
ensure the concrete
was used

7. Day 3: Drainage System
• On the third day of construction,
after making a new batch of
concrete, the third layer of bricks
was completed along the entire
20m trench
• We also added one more layer
to the initial brick wall (photos
for this can be seen over page)

9. Day 4: Drainage System
• Today, we added one more layer of brick onto
the initial wall. This layer was set further back
from the layers underneath to act as a buffer
zone for a future garden

10. Day 5: Drainage System
• Today we finished the trench
• We completed the buffer layer on
the initial wall and a concrete floor
was placed at the end of the trench
to allow water to flow out of the
trench without settling into the dirt
immediately (we all added a little
flourish to the concrete floor)
• The concrete floor is curved
upwards at its edges to ensure
water stays within the directional
flow we have created

12. Day 6 and 7: Weekend

13. Day 8 and Day 9: Garden
• The garden along the fence line behind the trench was started today
• This required us to build a small, one brick layer wall along the fence
line so as to avoid any landslides into the neighbouring yards as
Cambodian fences are made from tree stumps
• The toilet block that was built two weeks prior was also painted and
stairs were built for one side

14. Day 10: Garden
• A retaining wall was built at the
end of the trench in order to
keep the garden in – as the
school did not have much
money we improvised and used
a mix of broken and full bricks
• We started planting in the
garden
• The steps to the second side of
the toilets was also completed

15. Day 11: Garden
• The plants we used were taken
from the other side of the
school. The construction
coordinator many months ago
had planted approximately 16
plants in each bunch,
anticipating their use for future
gardens
• We dug out these clumps of
plants, separated them, cut
them to an appropriate size and
planted them

17. Day 12: Finalising Garden
• Today we finished planting the
plants and filled in the gaps
behind the walls
• As this was my last day (and a
Friday) the Cambodians like to
relax and I wanted to spend time
with the children at the school
and my fellow volunteers

20. • I will never forget my time
volunteering in Samraong, Cambodia
• The kids will always be in my heart
and my fellows volunteers, my friends
• I am grateful I got the chance to help
create a better school for these
children. They deserve so much and I
feel I have made a small impact on
their lives
Thank you so much, Greenway School,
Green Lion and Global Nomadic