TheMekongRedDiary

By Socheata Sim While it is so hot back home in Cambodia, some days it can be cold and other day, heavy rains in Melbourne. Today is one of those days you woke up to find that the sky is going to cry and the evening filled in with pouring rain. The sky is cursing at the people as she keeps crying and her tears rolling down none stop on us. As I left the university library thinking to myself what a bad day I have gone through today, how disappointed I have been feeling, how guilty I am toward myself for not working hard enough, for not doing good enough, for not learning enough English, for not clever enough to be able to strife for what I am determined to do. At the corner of my mind, I am happy that the sky is cursing me at the right time with this cold pouring rain. While my mind forbids me from curse myself through the emotional feeling, the sky is doing that on my behalf. 7.30pm… I am on the tram coming home. As my mind blurs and no focus is given to anything happening on the tram,...

The Open Lounge By Socheata A group of undergrad students just finished their lecture and they are chatting warily and noisily while walking toward where I am sitting… An older couple walking, holding each others hands just sit down next to where I am sitting… One lady in a beautiful red jacket just look around before decides to sit and pull out her sandwich for her lunch… And an Asian-look girl, presumably in her undergrad study, sits alone for her lunch time while reading for the next move… Many passerby and the line goes on This is the scene I am seeing at the open lounge of the University of Melbourne. It is the popular place where student like to hang out, discuss, read alone, have lunch, coffee, or gather for relax, teasing, telling jokes, or what happen to them the night/day before, how horrible they experience during the class presentation and so on. Some people could be really loud and noisy while other stay calm and concentrate. The space itself is big so it doesn’t matter is...