In the words of writer Rod Mackenzie, "Singapore is undergoing a creative revolution."

I wholeheartedly agree.

Rod asserts, "This isn’t a country normally associated with sudden spontaneity or letting rip.  Efficient, safe, clean, somewhat maiden-auntish and rule-bound -- these are the words people tend to use when describing this little diamond-shaped island."

However, in the three years Rod has lived here -- and most certainly in the 15+ years I have called it home -- Singapore has "undergone some significant changes.  Glitzy Vegas-style casinos, groundbreaking modern architecture, Formula One races, cutting-edge arts festivals, pleasure gardens filled with 50-metre-tall neon-lit 'Supertrees' -- it’s all getting louder, brighter and much more interesting."

Land Rover recently commissioned Rod, myself and my friend and frequent creative collaborator, Mike Rogers, to document Singapore's transformation for their multi-award-winning travel and lifestyle magazine, OneLife.

So, for four days this past August, we traversed our tiny island home in a beautiful, brand new Range Rover Sport,

meeting a handful of entrepreneurs who are "rewriting the rulebook and fueling the economic future" of Singapore.

We interviewed and photographed a total of five independent business people who have chosen not only to make Singapore their personal home, but also the place where they chase their professional dreams: Ryan Lee, CEO of X-mini capsule speakers for mobile phones, Mp3 players, tablets and laptops; Lisa Crosswhite, founder of Gnossem, an online retailed dedicated to independent Asian fashion designers; Lawrence Koh, founder of iFly Singapore, Asia's only indoor skydiving wind tunnel; Violet Lim, chief executive of Lunch Actually, a dating agency that connects busy professionals in over lunch; and Loh Lik Peng, the hotelier behind Singapore's boutique properties New Majestic Hotel, Hotel 1929 and Wanderlust.

It was a unique way to observe Singapore -- through the windscreen of a Land Rover.  It was also an interesting way to learn more about Singapore -- through the eyes of these successful, creative entrepreneurs.

Watch Mike's short film about "Singapore's Creative Revolutionaries" here.

Browse more of my travel and lifestyle photography here.

This past August, I received a phone call from The Moving Visuals Company, a television and film production house in Singapore.  They were contacting me on behalf of The HISTORY Channel, who was searching for a photographer to host a TV series, and they wanted to know if I was interested in such a role.

I can honestly say I hadn't awoken that morning thinking I wanted to be on television.  However, as my father always says, "you never know if you never go", so I agreed to a meeting to discuss the opportunity further.

One thing led to another and a few weeks later -- following a screen test with the show's Creative Director and countless phone calls with the series' Executive Producer -- I learned that I had been selected as the program's host. And so began a three-month (and counting) adventure filming the television series Around The World With Voyager.

Sponsored by John Walker & Sons, and inspired by the rare 1920s travel guide Around the World -- a journal that documented cities and countries across the globe nearly one hundred years ago -- the TV show follows me on the 187-foot custom designed luxury yacht, Voyager, as I sail across Asia, from Shanghai to Mumbai, recreating the epic

journeys of the early 20th Century traders.  The series will comprise of five episodes, one created in each of Taiwan, Hong Kong, Philippines, India and Vietnam.

The show is one-half biography and one-half travelogue, as I disembark and meet with local icons -- a celebrity, an entrepreneur or an entertainer -- who define their cities as much as their cities have defined them.  Each personality acts as my tour guide, taking me to five different locations that represent significant milestones in his/her life and have helped shape his/her professional and personal successes.

As host and photographer, my role is to learn about the icons and their lives, while at the same time documenting their personal journeys by shooting a definitive portrait of them at each of their five milestone locations.

Historic yet contemporary, Around The World With Voyager strives to uniquely document the evolving history of modern Asia.

This is the promotional trailer for the premiere episode, where my first port of call is Taipei.  Here I meet Sean Anson Xu 徐安昇, one of Taiwan's most admired and ambitious entrepreneurs.

Candidly, stepping out from behind my lens to host a television series has been quite a journey in its own right for me personally.  It has been a challenging transition, but it has certainly been a rewarding opportunity.  And although making television is a completely different endeavour from my world of still photography, I have absolutely enjoyed the experience of bringing these two worlds together in Around The World With Voyager.

Around The World With Voyager premieres on Monday 26 November at 11pm on HISTORY and HISTORY HD.

There are many wonderful technological benefits to being a photographer in the Twenty-first Century, but none greater than the ability to easily connect and communicate with clients, both existing and potential, all around the world.  Developing these relationships, however, still requires personal effort, a little luck and some human kindness.

Last year I was contacted by the Photo Editor at Condé Nast Traveller (Russia) and we ended up working together to illustrate a Cambodia story, 'АнГкор, еще анГкор!' (translated as 'Angkor, More Angkor') for the February 2012 issue of her magazine.  Following this collaboration, and despite having never met in person or even spoken on the phone, we have developed a long-distance, electronic friendship.

So when she reached out again recently -- this time seeking photography for an upcoming CNT (Russia) feature about Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam -- I was only too happy to oblige.

I used to live in Saigon in the late 1990s and have returned to Vietnam's commercial capital numerous times over the past dozen years to witness and document the hyper-frenetic, ever-changing city.  I, therefore, have a deep reservoir of imagery from Vietnam to draw upon.

The result of my most recent collaboration with Condé Nast Traveller (Russia) is the feature 'НА СУП ФО к дядюшке Хо' (roughly translated as 'Go To Uncle Ho for Pho') which appears across a dozen pages in the November 2012 issue.

Recalling from our previous work together that I had a large library of stock imagery from Cambodia -- and in the spirit of both friendship and partnership -- my CNT (Russia) contact kindly introduced me to the Photo Editor at GQ (Russia) whom she knew to be searching for photographs to illustrate a story about Cambodia's capital city, Phnom Penh, for her magazine.

'БУДДА-БАР' (meaning 'Buddha Bar'), featuring a handful of my Phnom Penh photographs, appeared in the October 2012 edition of GQ (Russia).

Neither of these connections would ever have been made without modern technology.  But I am also acutely aware that neither of these relationships would ever have flourished without both a personal touch and a kind gesture.  And isn't that what partnership is all about?

See more of my work with Condé Nast's international magazines, VOGUE (China) and Condé Nast Traveller (India).

A little more than two years ago, my friend Peter invited me to join him for a road trip along Australia's southeast coast in his beautiful Aston Martin DB9.  With an offer like that, how could I possibly refuse?

All told, we drove about 2,500km from Sydney to Melbourne and then along the legendary Great Ocean Road, before returning to Sydney one week later.

It was an amazing experience, and a road trip that I won't ever forget.

Which is why I was so happy to stumble across this photograph I made at the Twelve Apostles in Port Cambpell, Victoria while tidying up some folders on my laptop recently.

This image reminded me of that wonderful week away and, in particular, the breathtaking natural beauty of Australia's Great Ocean Road.

Visit my website to see more of my landscape photography, and see more of my "From the Vault" series of imagery here.

"It’s the perennial, as it were, dilemma of urban landscape architects everywhere.  How to create a grand, public park, with immediate impact, when the essential star attractions, the tall trees, can take decades or even longer to mature," states Sydney-based writer and friend, Anthony Dennis, in our most recent collaboration, 'The Ultimate Tree Change' published in The Australian's July 2012 issue of WISH Magazine.

Anthony continues, "It was this problem that confronted an impatient city-state with ambitions to cement itself as the pre-eminent tourism and investment destination in southeast Asia -- not in the future, but now.  Singapore, which in recent years has embraced architecture and design as drivers of its national goals, devised a unique solution to the slow-growing tree problem for its new Gardens by the Bay development.  It has built 'Supertrees' that form a sculptural garden, an amalgam of the architectural and the organic."

I had the privilege of visiting Gardens by the Bay for an exclusive private tour and photoshoot this past May, a number of weeks prior to the park's grand opening in late-June.  In Singapore's typical fashion of 'Go Big or Go Home', it was simply awe-inspiring.  The 18 'Supertrees' towered between 25m and 50m overhead, and

their branches extended "like oversized spiderwebs", the primary focal point being a 128m-long aerial walkway, which connects the giant man-made structures in 'Supertree Grove'.

As Anthony goes on to explain, urban design "has evolved to fully embrace a multitude of disciplines, not just the horticultural but also architecture and landscape design and, in the Singapore example, structural and environmental engineering.  Gardens by the Bay -- and, indeed, Singapore's entire Marina Bay development, including Marina Bay Sands, the Esplanade, Singapore Flyer, ArtScience Museum and Marina Bay Financial Centre -- certainly exemplifies this forward-looking philosophy.

See Anthony and my other recent WISH Magazine collaboration, 'Penang's Time Capsule', published in the The Australian's May 2012 issue.  And browse more of my luxury lifestyle and travel photography on my website.

There is no Asian destination more in vogue right now than Cambodia.  "The Kingdom of Wonder" is on everyone's lips, and every major luxury travel and lifestyle magazine is bestowing the country's virtues upon their readership.

I have traveled to Cambodia on various photography assignments six times in as many months.  It is an extremely dynamic and exciting destination; an adventurer's paradise and a true photographer's delight.

And, as author Rodney Bolt writes in "A Homage to the Resurgent Phnom Penh" -- my most recent photography commission for the Summer 2012 issue of American Express' Centurion Magazine (UK) -- "[a]fter barely a decade of political stability, Cambodia's capital of cool bustles with an energy all its own; [a] heady mix of of youthful ambition, glorious architecture and bewitching cuisine."

For this specific feature I spent five wonderful days in Phnom Penh, visiting and photographing the city's most storied and luxurious hotels (Raffles Hotel Le Royal), new urban boutique resorts (The Plantation), popular eateries (Tepui), fashionable designer shops (Eric Raisina's Haute Texture) and magnetic personalities (celebrity Chef Luu Meng).

This type of editorial travel assignment is among my favourite to shoot since it allows me the time to truly experience a city, and the opportunity to creatively document whatever and whomever I encounter along the way.

Phnom Penh was a beautiful and eager subject for me -- a city steeped in colonial heritage but maturing in real time, the landscape and it's residents stylishly and visibly evolving from one day to the next.

Browse more of my recent work for American Express' luxury lifestyle and travel magazines: "Sleepless in Singapore" in Selects (Germany) and "A Tale of Two Cities" in Centurion (UK).

Last year I was commissioned by Condé Nast Traveller (India) to photograph a feature about "sexy, stylish, sophisticated Singapore".

The assignment had me criss-crossing Singapore, shooting more than two dozen locations for the story, from the tiny independent boutiques lining Haji Lane to the mega Marina Bay Sands resort and casino towering over the city's skyline.

It was a fantastic opportunity for me to explore further my own city and experience many of Singapore's best and brightest bars, restaurants and hotels.  It also gave me an opportunity to meet and photograph some of our city's more interesting finance, society, hospitality and culinary personalities.  It was a fantastic assignment, and one that I thoroughly enjoyed shooting.

The feature, titled "Singapore Grows Up", appeared in the August/September 2011 issue of CN Traveller (India).

Then a few months ago SELF (China) -- another title in the Condé Nast family of magazines -- reprinted the feature in their magazine (December 2011).

And very excitingly, just this month another Condé Nast title -- this time Vogue (China) -- reprinted the feature in their magazine (May 2012).  This is the Vogue (China) layout.

As the feature's writer, Puja Disha Bharwani, writes in the article, "Singapore is now becoming a sexy, sophisticated destination."  Clearly the Chinese agree.

It is always a pleasure to receive positive feedback on the work that I create, but none more than a situation where the client reuses my photography repeatedly across a variety of their titles.  And what bigger compliment than to have my photography appear in the prestigious Vogue magazine?

See more of my lifestyle and travel photography on my website.

Sydney-based writer Anthony Dennis and I have been friends for years, often partnering on features for various luxury travel and lifestyle magazines.  'Penang's Time Capsule', published in the The Australian's May 2012 issue of WISH Magazine, is our latest collaboration.

As Anthony details, in 2008 George Town "was awarded UNESCO World Heritage listing, granting it membership to an elite South-East Asian club that includes once forgotten but now fashionable old town treasures such as Hoi An in Vietnam and Luang Prabang."  Thus, in the past few years, "George Town has been undergoing a renaissance."

Indeed, it is an exciting time to visit Penang, as this renaissance lends itself to a rapid and real-time "rise from obscurity, recognition, revival, restoration and then a kind of gentrification.  The latter is driven by the arrival of enterprising Westerners, and then locals, to establish tourism businesses."

It was this hunt for George Town's flourishing dining, retail café and art scene, as well as its "sensitively designed boutique accommodation in traditional shop-houses" -- and the enterprising individuals behind these initiatives -- that lured us to Penang for this story.

"Typically low-rise old towns...lend themselves well to small-scale, boutique-style hotel developments", and Penang is no exception.  The old town is filled with "extraordinary and distinctive colonial architecture, street after street replete with rows of dilapidated but intact shop-houses", some of which notable conservationist entrepreneurs like Christopher Ong and Narelle McMurtrie have lovingly and beautifully renovated and restored.

Over the course of three days this past January, I visited with Christopher and Narelle, documenting Christopher's Muntri Mews guesthouse, a former stable and carriageworks, and Narelle's Straits Collection and China House, an eclectic mixture of retail spaces, restaurants, galleries and guest residences.  I also photographed Clove Hall, an Edwardian Anglo-Malay bungalow converted into a beautiful boutique hotel, and the century-old Eastern & Oriental Hotel.  In my spare time, I wandered the narrow streets, capturing images of "Technicolor shop-houses with multiple shuttered-windows and weathered terracotta rooftops."

UNESCO declares that George Town is among “the most complete surviving historic city centres on the Straits of Malacca with a multicultural living heritage originating from the trade routes from Great Britain and Europe through

the Middle East, the Indian subcontinent and the Malay archipelago to China...[constituting] a unique architectural and cultural townscape without parallel anywhere in east and southeast Asia."

But don't just take UNESCO's word for it.  Visit Penang and experience this glorious and colourful time capsule for yourself.

See more of my luxury lifestyle and travel photography on my website.

In the final installment of Sam McGoun's cross-Cambodian adventure, our hero -- whom over the past few weeks has had time to reflect on his epic adventure -- pens an open letter to his friends, family and supporters.

Dear friends,

It is with the deepest heartfelt gratitude that I thank each and every one of you for supporting me and the students of Sala Bai Hotel & Restaurant School over these past several months.  Your messages of encouragement gave me the strength to continue in my physical challenge, and both your time and financial contributions will power us forward well into the future.

As I reflect upon my journey across Cambodia to benefit the students of this special school, I am often overcome with emotion -- all very positive and all very powerful.

Today, as I will do for many days, weeks and months to come, I am attempting to process these emotions.  That is, I am attempting to draw out the deeper meaning -- a conclusion or revelation, perhaps even a philosophy -- that I can use to help guide me going forward.   As we all know, a profound life experience is often the best opportunity to learn and grow as an individual.

So what then, are the conclusions, revelations or philosophies that have resulted from my running, biking and swimming 670km across Cambodia to benefit the students of Sala Bai?  There are many; below I share two.

True happiness requires a purpose and passion in life

From my perspective, the only definition of success is true happiness.  And while true happiness eludes many of us, I am pleased to share that I’ve found it with the help of Sala Bai and its inspirational students.  My true happiness is knowing that I have both a purpose and a passion in this life much bigger and far more important than me.

My purpose is helping others -- giving more in this world than I could possibly ever take.  My passion is Sala Bai, and more specifically, giving young Cambodian women access to education and employment in the hospitality industry.

My true happiness, therefore, is the result of helping others, and in particular, the students of Sala Bai.

To be clear, there are other core ingredients required for true happiness -- ingredients that I am blessed to already have present in my own life: my health, my family and my friends.  And indeed, while everyone is different, I feel confident that true happiness will continue to elude us if we

don't have a purpose or a passion or if we do not make these about other people or other things that benefit humanity overall.  For me, this is eliminating poverty and fighting human trafficking by educating and employing the students of Sala Bai.  For you, it may be raising your children with a value system that enables them to be good (and happy) adult human beings.

Two things are for certain:  one’s purpose and one’s passion are individual choices, and these are two ingredients required for our own true happiness.

Smiles have no language barrier

Smiles are universal signs of welcome and respect.  I speak exactly three words of Khmer (Cambodian).  Most rural Cambodians speak about the same amount of English.  Our ability to speak each other’s language has absolutely no bearing on our ability to welcome one another or show a simple sign of respect. Throughout my 670km journey, I was the beneficiary of literally hundreds of smiles.  Little did I know that such a simple gesture could have such a profound and positive impact upon my own outlook.

Without a doubt, the smiles of Cambodian men, women and children gave me the motivation and strength to finish my days' physical commitments.

The reality is that most of the smiles I received during my journey came from people who earn less than USD$50 per month, who barely have enough food to survive, who work in harsh conditions more than 12 hours per day, who have little or no education and who have little or no access to even the most basic healthcare.  These kind people welcomed me into their communities and respected me in the process with genuine smiles.

Truthfully, most days I’m so “busy” getting from point A to point B that I walk around with a blank facial expression that is so unwelcoming you’d think I didn’t have facial muscles to form a smile.  What’s my excuse?  Clearly, there isn’t one.  Enough said.

It is time to smile.  It will welcome others within your immediate surroundings and show them a sign of respect.  And if you need another reason:  I promise it will make you much happier in the process.

My journey has just begun

While I have completed the physical journey of crossing Cambodia to benefit the students of Sala Bai, the emotional journey and my lifelong commitment to fighting human trafficking with education and employment in hospitality has only just begun.  You can follow and join this journey

by 'Liking' Touch Sala Bai on Facebook, by visiting the Touch Sala Bai website or by writing to me directly at smcgoun@touchsalabai.com.  We will ensure that you receive periodic updates from Touch Sala Bai about upcoming events, important developments on the fight against human trafficking and the progress of past, current and future Sala Bai students.

And while I have several more reflections that I look forward to sharing with you in the future, it's time to bring this chapter to a close.

I would like to thank the three people who have given a voice to this cross-Cambodia journey, and more importantly, the students of Sala Bai: Scott Woodward, Mike Rogers and Meghan Shea are the truly gifted professionals who lent their talents to giving voices to those individuals who do not have them. Through their still and moving images, they have told a story that connects not just our minds, but also our hearts, to something far more important than ourselves.  Without them, none of this would have been possible.  Scott, Mike and Meghan, thank you for following your own dreams -- you continue to inspire me, and others, to do the same.

And finally, on behalf of Jean-Paul and Emmanuelle

de Thomas, the students of Sala Bai and the members of Touch Sala Bai, I thank you all for making a difference.

- Sam

To help celebrate Sam’s journey and to support the fight against human trafficking, please donate to Touch Sala Bai today.  Donations to Sam's cross-Cambodian journey will close on Monday 7 May.

Did you miss our daily "Reports from the Road" during Sam's cross-Cambodian journey?  Catch-up on all of Sam's adventures and experiences here.

Kep to Sihanoukville

We spent last evening on the beach following a seafood barbeque, serenaded into dreamland by a local Cambodian wedding and a chorus of wild barking dogs.  Falling asleep after midnight did not keep Sam from setting out at sunrise on the final day of his cross-Cambodian odyssey.

Sam ran along the seaside in Kep, a sleepy coastal town once a glamorous resort destination founded as a French colonial retreat.  The town reached the height of it’s popularity in the 1960s, and today is dotted with the select few French-style villas which survived the Khmer Rouge regime.

Sam departed Kep with his sprits high, pounding the pavement and making great time as he arrived 16km later in Kampot, a small city renown in couture culinary circles for it’s pepper.

Stopping for our last lunchtime picnic just outside Kampot, Sam was fueled-up for the final stretch of his race by indulging in bologna, cheese and jelly sandwiches. Seriously.

Sam brought a deep reservoir of focus and strength to the final segment of this journey, which included 80km on his

mountain bike followed by a further 20km on foot. Somewhat ironically, the steepest terrain of Sam's entire journey was to be found in the final half of today’s trek.

Our crew expanded in the final hours with the welcome addition of Sam’s mother and father who traveled from the States to help watch Sam complete his race and support his venture.

We arrived in the coastal city of Sihanoukville just as the sun began to sink into the sea, casting the city in a triumphant golden hue.  Sam was single-minded in his focus to finish his journey at the exact beach that the Sala Bai Hotel & Restaurant School students visit during their annual graduation celebration.  To reach this beach, Sam conquered seemingly unending inclines and deftly navigated streets packed with tourists, motorcycles, and touting restaurateurs.

At the brink of total exhaustion, Sam arrived at the waters' edge and dove into the Gulf of Thailand, still wearing his running shoes, Sala Bai shirt and a newly-born feeling of exaltation.

For Sam, diving into the ocean completed his circle: he had followed the actual journey taken by one recent graduate,

Khatna, from her floating village in Mechrey on Tonle Sap Lake to the sandy beachfront of Sihanoukville.

It was an emotional few moments after Sam emerged from the water and embraced his parents on the beach, remarking with conviction, “Anything is possible. We can do anything we put our hearts to; all we need is a little support from our friends and family”.  Sam is a proof that a committed individual can accomplish anything.  After these brief and eloquent words, Sam hugged each of his parents and left the beach for a well-deserved hot shower and comfortable night's sleep.

Over the course of seven days, Sam cycled 503 kilometers, ran just over four marathons, swam in one lake, and crossed one river.  Sam has completed his journey.

To help celebrate Sam’s journey and to support the fight against human trafficking, please donate to Touch Sala Bai today.

Did you miss our previous posts?  Read the first, second, third, fourth, fifth, sixth and seventh installments of Sam's adventure.

- Meghan Shea

Takeo to Kep

We fell asleep last night in a Takeo ricefield to the hums of the resident farmer tending to his fields perched atop his tractor (at 1am).  Joy.  Sunrise came quickly, and Sam took advantage of our auspicious location next to a pagoda by finding a moment to kneel, pray and reflect on his journey before setting out on day six of his cross-Cambodian adventure.  Following this brief spiritual reprieve, Sam bounded out of the campsite and into the town of Takeo. Scott and Mike were equally spry this morning and dove out of their tents to take full advantage of the beautiful golden hour sunlight.

After departing camp we explored Takeo, a lakeside city that was a stronghold for the Khmer Rouge Regime until 1996.  Sam’s route took him past the grounds of one of the most infamous residents of the city, former Khmer Rouge Commander Ta Mok.  Ta Mok served as the Khmer Rouge’s Chief of Staff in the 1960s and constructed a chilling Brutalist residence in Takeo surrounded by a moat and accessed only by a long, wooden footbridge.

Sam ran across the bridge and circled the property, now decaying and currently employed as a police training facility.  Behind Ta Mok's home we watched women

gracefully gliding across the property’s moat in their palm boats collecting lotus flowers; it was difficult to reconcile this serenity with the horrific atrocities committed by the home’s former resident.

Sam left Takeo, heading for the ocean village of Kep, biking in (literally) asphalt-melting conditions.  After nearly a week on the road, unrelenting heat, and countless kilometers, Sam has developed severe saddle sore on his backside.  It required immediate (and agonizing) attention at lunch to prevent infection.  We were in disbelief that, following a brief lunch break, Sam was ready to pedal for another 20km.

We took our question to the source, asking Sam where on earth his energy came from, to which he responded, “Honestly, I‘m not entirely sure where [it] is coming from.  It’s just kind like [I am] on a mission now; it’s uncomfortable but [I] just do it.”

We tipped our hats to Sam as he strode in Kep; six days down and one to go.

Our goal is help Sam raise USD$15,000 for Sala Bai Hotel & Restaurant School before his adventure is over.

As we write this, Sam has raised $10,245 with 24 more hours to go.  If you haven’t yet donated, please do so today.

Did you miss our previous posts?  Read the first, second, third, fourth, fifth and sixth installments of Sam's adventure.

- Meghan Shea

Sa Ang to Takeo

We picked-up where left off last night, grateful to be hosted in a local (and active) pagoda in Sa Ang.  Upon our arrival late last evening, Sam explained to the pagoda’s head monk that he was running across Cambodia to expose the risks of human trafficking, after which the monk promised to accompany Sam to the river's edge when he embarked on his swim across the Mekong River this morning.

We awoke at dawn amidst the hum of monastic rituals; the night rain had purged the air and for a few splendid morning hours we were dust-free, and the countryside was bathed in ochre-colored light.  We set-out early to meet the river that was our current-laden foe mere hours earlier. It was a quite a team that stood on the shores of the muddy Mekong, ready to support Sam’s swim: a scruffy-looking documentary crew, seas of curious onlookers, vans and pick-up trucks waiting in the wings, and a lone monk cloaked in a glorious orange robe, offering his blessing to Sam's journey.  Sam dove in and crossed the Mekong, keeping pace with a rustic plank-style barge, emerging on the other side strong and prepared to begin running, biking, and sweating.

For the second part of day, the photography and video teams split from Sam and headed back into Phnom Penh to

learn first-hand about the realities of human trafficking from survivors themselves.  Thanks to our friends at the Cause Effect Agency, we were able to connect with some incredible women who are part of the Voices For Change program with the Somamly Mam Foundation and AEFSIP.

As explained on her website, the Somaly Man Foundation is “modeled after Somaly’s life example...[and] Voices For Change is designed to give survivors an opportunity to help themselves by helping others, to have their voices heard in the courts of law and public perception, and to have influence and impact on effectuating change...Each one of these women has lived through horrific conditions, and has emerged as young leaders, for Voices for Change.

“Co-founded by sexual slavery survivor, Somaly Mam, the foundation works to eradicate human trafficking, liberate its victims, and empower survivors so they can create and sustain lives of dignity."

We were honored to have the chance to interview such courageous and strong women.  They have lived through unimaginable atrocities and have survived to inform and educate others on the realities of trafficking.  These interviews will feature in the forthcoming documentary by Persistent Productions about Sam's cross-Cambodian

journey, articulating why this cause is important and why Sam wants your support to help prevent sex trafficking before it starts.

Donate to support Sam, Sala Bai Hotel & Restaurant School and the fight against human trafficking.

Did you miss our previous posts?  Read the first, second, third, fourth and fifth installments of Sam's adventure.

- Meghan Shea

Skun to Sa Ang

Sam began his journey early this morning by running through the small village of Phao Chum in An Lon Chey Commune.  Local residents were curious about the blonde man jogging through the center of their kampong, but no one more than the community children.  Sam collected a small entourage of 4, 5 and 6 year-olds who joined him for a mid-race stretching session, followed by a heated foot race.  Arriving at the Mekong River midday, the wide water vista was a prelude for this evening's face-off with river.

We rolled into Phnom Penh at lunch hour and Sam was quickly bobbing and weaving through the web of urban traffic, running past grand French colonial architecture, local markets, Independence Monument and The Royal Palace, all the while encircled by the buzz that is Cambodia's capital.  It seems that every new day usurps the traffic insanity of the previous ones: exhaust, haze, dust and smog abound, causing Sam to exclaim mid-run, “I think I’ve eaten an engine today.  At least a V8.  On second thought, make that a V12”.

Today Sam’s shirt reads “Stop Human Trafficking Before It Starts”.  He chose to wear this shirt while running through Phnom Penh as it is the destination for many

trafficked women.  Organizations like Sala Bai Hotel & Restaurant School aim to help prevent trafficking before it begins by giving young women and men the opportunity for an education and employment.  ECPAT Cambodia (End Child Prostitution, Abuse and Trafficking in Cambodia) reports that as many as one third of the trafficked victims in prostitution are children.  Learn more about the severity of human trafficking in Cambodia here and here.

The latter part of the day was spent battling the rain as Sam cycled out of Phnom Penh and headed for the river crossing where he planned to swim across the Mekong.  The showers were relentless, and soon it was thundering and the crosswinds were howling.  It was 7pm by the time Sam arrived at the river, and the mighty Mekong's currents were strong and the water was inky black.

Sam was determined to swim, but the risks were immense. Local boats refused to cross because of the strong currents, and the crew appealed to Sam to reconsider, expressing our concern for his well-being.  After a long and painful deliberation, Sam decided to postpone the swim.  The team will resume the river crossing tomorrow morning at dawn; this evening we are happy to report

that Sam is safe, and we’ll be counting our blessings as we make camp at a local pagoda in Sa Ang District.

Donate to support Sam, Sala Bai and the fight against human trafficking.

Did you miss our previous posts?  Read the first, second, third and fourth installments of Sam's adventure.

- Meghan Shea

Prei Kuk to Skun

We awoke by the river in Sambor Prei Kuk in northern Kampong Thom and spent the morning exploring 7th century pre-Ankorian temples before Sam hit the road.

He cycled through town, keeping a strong and steady pace, while the menagerie of traffic barreled past him.  Sam shared the road with apathetic cows, mobile farm equipment, scooters piled sky-high with bamboo and 8-seater vans carrying more than twenty people, including a half dozen travelers perched precariously on the roof.  In the midst of this controlled chaos was Sam’s bright orange shirt emblazoned with the words "Front Office", paying homage to the Sala Bai Hotel & Restaurant School student group he ran for today.

Following a brief respite at a local restaurant, Sam hit the pavement.  Steadfast in his commitment to the Sala Bai students that his running segment be at least 20km a day, he began his run at 7pm and was guided into camp by the beaming headlights of a motorcycle escort glowing softly through the dust.

After another long day on the road, Sam will curl-up under the stars, bedding down tonight in a rice field in Skun.

Donate to support Sam, Sala Bai and the fight against human trafficking.

Did you miss our previous posts?  Read the first, second and third installments of Sam's adventure.

- Meghan Shea

Kampong Kdey to Prei Kuk

Today day was filled with dusty roads, rural villages and a significant serving of determination.  We began the morning with breakfast overlooking the idyllic 12th century Kampong Kdey Bridge.  After dining in front of this ancient architectural structure, Sam set out on his bicycle.

Today’s ride took us past lively vignettes in the village of Khoum Damrey Slap: baths with water buffalos, rice farming, volleyball games and a most cinematic scene of village women and girls schnok-ing where they plunged fully clothed to the bottom of a muddy river, throwing down their nets and bamboo traps and, moments later, dredged-up their catch of trey phtok, a local freshwater fish.  This all-women group flowed rapidly down river and we found ourselves racing to keep up with this delightful cacophony of laughing, catching, and swimming.

Today’s physical journey was a testament to Sam’s will and resolve; a mid-morning routing faux pas had Sam riding an additional 30km in oppressive midday heat.  With temperatures high and a profound amount of dust on the road, Sam had to work hard for each kilometer.  Resolute in his commitment to physically power himself the entire way,

Sam pushed on until well after dark explaining, “What’s important is that I do the journey no matter what happens. Mistakes, incorrect [routes], it doesn’t matter.  Not everyone can just jump in a car and go.“

Sam was unwavering in his commitment to the students of Sala Bai Hotel & Restaurant School and is determined that this race help fundraise for their program.  He was on the road today for 140km over the course of 13 hours.  It was a powerful thing to behold.

Donate to support Sam, Sala Bai and the fight against human trafficking.

Did you miss our previous posts?  Read the first and second installments of Sam's adventure.

- Meghan Shea