Get creative
Organize your art supplies and get painting! Pick a particular location you’ll visit on your trip and compare your artwork to photos of the location when you return. Consider painting one of the many Angkor Temples such as Angkor Wat, Angkor Thom, Bayon or Ta Prohm, or the colorful boats and floating villages on Tonlé Sap Lake.
Not a painter? Check out these incredible overhead views of famous ancient Cambodian sites.
Pick a film
Watch a movie that relates to your destination. Some ideas for Cambodia include:
- First They Killed My Father (2017)*
- The Missing Picture (2013)
- Two Brothers (2004)
- Lara Croft: Tomb Raider (2001)
*Rated R (may not be suitable for all students)
Study some history
Dive deep into the history of specific sites you’ll visit on tour. Study the mysterious and beautiful temples of ancient Angkor Wat and learn about Cambodia’s colonial connections to France. Although it’s a very difficult subject, it is also important to learn about this beautiful country’s recent dark history and the genocide by the Khmer Rouge. Then, tour some of Cambodia’s ancient history with this video.
Choose a book
Read and discuss a book that takes place in your destination or describes the local culture. Pick from titles like:
- First They Killed My Father: A Daughter of Cambodia Remembers by Loung Ung
- Survival in the Killing Fields by Haing Ngor
- When The War Was Over: Cambodia and the Khmer Rouge Revolution by Elizabeth Becker
- A Woman of Angkor by John Burgess
- To Cook a Spider by Mark Bibby Jackson
Fill up your plate
Arrange a potluck and encourage your friends to bring a traditional dish from your destination. Know a chef? Hold a cooking class with your travel group, or consider a group outing to a restaurant that offers your destination’s cuisine. Try fish amok (probably the most popular Cambodian dish), lap khmer, green mango salad, khmer red curry, or bai sach chrouk (grilled pork and rice).
Learn the language
Call up a friend and practice your language skills. It helps to make flashcards with common sayings to use on the phone or throughout your travels (think about ordering at restaurants, buying souvenirs, and chatting with locals).
Did you know?
The Cambodian flag is the only one in the world with a building on it!