The Backstreet Academy - cooking tarantulas and more!

The Backstreet Academy is a social enterprise that exists throughout Asia to connect tourists with a local person skilled in cooking, dancing, music, art, fishing etc. We have taken part in 3 of these courses so far and found them a great way to not only get exposed to a new skill but also to meet local people and learn more about their culture. In exchange, we paid a fee with most of the fee (about 70%) going directly to the teacher and translator. 

The first course we did was aptly named "Fear Factor". Danny and I have watched a show before about the future of eating bugs - so we thought it was time to try it out. We cooked (and ate) crickets, silk worms and ... Tarantulas!  

Beyond overcoming our fears and learning that crickets are delicious, one of the things that we liked the best was that the course took place in a local Cambodian's home. His 4-year old son was there too and Zac and him had fun picking flowers and playing with balloons. In fact, I think the reason why Zac was willing to try so many of the insects was because this little boy obviously obtained so much pleasure from eating them. 

Our second course was "Coconut carving". Zac and I spent 2 hours learning how to carve coconuts - and it is difficult!  Zac seemed to excel at this more so than I as two of my carvings broke so I was relegated to simple designs where he was quite successful at designing and cutting his own unique shapes. 

I needed a lot of help:

Our third course was "Dessert Making". Zac and I both having sweet tooths, we jumped at this opportunity, and Danny came along to take photos and chat. Again, one of the best parts was that this course took place in our teacher's house so we talked, cooked, and ate while surrounded by multiple generations of Cambodians. Our translator was a university student who was also very interesting and provided insight into what Cambodia needs to move forward as a country. If this young man is an indicator of the country's youth then Cambodia has a much improved future ahead. 

We made four different desserts and they were delicious - all based on varying forms and combinations of rice, coconut, green bean, tapioca, and sugar.  I took detailed notes so hopefully can replicate them when we are back in Canada, or maybe even here in our AirBNB house. 

Sticky rice with coconut custard: (Mmmmmm - much better than tarantulas!)

Backstreet Academy courses are also offered in Laos and Vietnam so I just might have to compare dessert making in all three countries, and learn some other new skills too. You can find out more about the Backstreet Academy by visiting backstreetacademy.com. 

Angkor photos

We spent 2 days touring Angkor, one with a guide and one on our own. Angkor was the city built by the Khmer people during the 10th - 12th centuries, a period in which they were the largest and most developed civilization on earth. It is considered the 8th wonder of the world. 

Photos from our 2 days:

Zac got a lesson on carving sandstone. Don't worry - he's not making graffiti in 1000 year old carvings!

Hanging out in Siem Reap

Today was one of those days where we had nothing planned but a lot happened. 

Danny got up early and went for a bike ride around the city and came home energized, and with new ideas for places to check out. We spend a LOT of time together and the opportunity to go off and do something on our own is relished!

Zac and I started the day a little slower with our usual breakfasts - a bowl of Khmer noodles for me and banana pancakes for Zac. 

We are staying at the 7 Candles Guesthouse, which is a family run place by Ponheary Ly, who also runs a foundation and registered charity to support 2500 rural children and 600 kids from the city streets to attend school. (www.plfcanada.org). 

This morning, we visited one of the local schools that was putting on a music concert. We sought out the grade 4s to see what their class was like - Zac would be one of the taller kids. Some of the kids were brave enough to say hello and practice their English. 

Grade 1's:

On the walk home we stumbled on the local wat (Buddhist temple) and cemetery. There were also many monks but I didn't feel comfortable taking their picture. 

We continued our walk and found the local soccer pitch, where we sat and enjoyed a game by a group of young men. 

Danny and Zac went home and I continued my walk to some nearby gardens where many people were having their wedding photos taken. 

After visiting a few art galleries and a stop for an iced americano, the morning was complete. What else might the day hold?