Phare circus & eating bugs on Pub Street

Our jaws fell open multiple times at the Phare Circus performer's skill. They showed incredible artistry with limited resources. Acrobatics, dancing, music making, singing, juggling, trapeze and so much more! This show was about the interactions between locals and foreigners, a relevant topic for Siem Reap.

The circus association "was formed in 1994 by 9 young men coming home from a refugee camp after the Khmer Rouge regime. They were greatly helped during that time by an art teacher using drawing classes as therapy and wanted to share this new skill among the poor, socially deprived and troubled youngsters in Battambang. They founded an art school and public school followed to offer free education. A music school and theatre school were next and finally, for the kids who wanted more, the circus school. Today more than 1,200 pupils attend the public school daily and 500 attend the alternative schools."

Towards the end of the week with the worldschooling hub, the group went to "Pub Street" for a night of booze (for the adults) and weird foods (for mostly the kids). Thus began Judah's adventure in eating bugs of various kinds, which, continued throughout the rest of our time in Southeast Asia. Mathai sadly had to stay home for this one, but found his own bug-chomping opportunities at future stops.Read more