The bag that went missing

See the end of this post for a news flash on the bag!!

I was in Battambang for most of last week with my NGO. We visited a number of other organizations to learn about income-generation and microcredit programs. I had a good work visit plus I got to see the orphanage run by Colin’s NGO and to hang out with the three Canadian volunteers working there.

I decided to leave Battambang early because the conference I was also going to attend turned out to be all in Khmer and I didn't want to monopolize my counterpart by getting him to translate everything. (Also I wasn’t convinced that the content was relevant to me.)

Through the orphanage I arranged to get a taxi to Phnom Penh rather than take the 5-hour bus ride. The price was right at $10 and the driver was really good, got us there quickly and even spoke decent English. He had some other people in the back seat - a Cambodian family. He dropped them off first in Phnom Penh where they apparently were to take another taxi to their village (some 80 km away). Unfortunately, when he got to my apartment, my duffle bag had mysteriously disappeared from the trunk of the car. He drove back to try and catch the family but they were gone.

You will understand better how devastated I felt by the loss of the bag when I tell you that it had two camera lenses in it, about third of my clothes, my work notebooks, my wash kit and makeup, my new $50 swim goggles, a pair of shoes, my bathing suit, a bag of gifts etc. etc. However, I quickly began to rationalize that those people probably needed the things more than I did. The next day I did a little retail therapy- 3 pairs of used capris for $7, 3 new shirts for $12 and best or worst of all, new goggles and bathing cap for $11 and we went for a little R. and R. at the beach in Sihanoukville.

The taxi driver kept phoning me to reassure me that he was going to get in touch with the other taxi company and try and track down the village where the people lived and find my bag. I figured there was about a 10% chance of me ever seeing that bag again... BUT two days later he phoned me to say he had found it and the camera equipment and everything else I had identified as missing, was still inside. I know it sounds like a scam but I think this guy honestly regretted his mistake in not looking after my bag and was worried about his reputation with the orphanage people in Battambang. He had driven the 200 km from Battambang and the additional 80km to this village – so I guess you could say he was really motivated. Getting the back back cost us a little in ‘Lexus money’ including $10 to the family who had so kindly been ‘looking after’ my bag for me.

I wrote this when I hadn’t actually seen the bag itself. Now that it's in my hands, I’m not feeling so mellow because the family who stole it, took a bunch of personal stuff before returning it… mostly cosmetics and things that I can’t replace in Cambodia. I’m still glad to have the bag and camera gear back, but I must admit I’m not happy about the missing items…

Believe it or not… this story goes on. Now the driver is determined to get back the rest of my stuff and says he can do it the next time he is in Phnom Penh.. in a couple of days. I must admit I would be happy to see the rest of it... I go back and forth between thinking that I'm incredibly petty to let the driver keep trying to get things like makeup back, and feeling like he shouldn't have let someone steal it in the first place. When I tell this story to Cambodians, they look almost blank, as if NOTHING about this surprises them.... You'll get the rest of the story if I get the rest of my stuff!!

Today, December 20th, I got a few more bits and pieces back - none of them valuable, but all with value to me because they aren't replaceable in Cambodia. Whoo hoo!! What's more, we've decided to go to Singapore for a few days over Christmas so I'm sure I can replace the rest there. Good ending -- very appropriate to this happy season. Enjoy the holidays one and all... :)

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Photo Blog Update: And if you're at all interested, I have posted a few of my very favourite pictures from our travels on my photo blog. Click here.