Kristin in Cambodia

2011-04-21T22:05:00.000-07:00

I just realized that I have not blogged since February. I'll try to give you a brief update:

1. Health Camp Glow: At the end of April, the 5 volunteers in my province had a girls' camp for 25 of our female students (5 from each district) and 5 of our teachers/or midwives. We brought everyone into the provincial town for a weekend of fun and sessions about leadership and health. It was an amazing success! The girls learned a lot and had so much fun (none of them wanted to go home)! As volunteers, we were excited to see that something we've been planning since September actually happened and finished without any problems. The last stage of the project will be completed this month as our girls plan a community activity to educate people in their respective districts about the issues they learned at the camp. If you have any more questions about this, please just send me an email...I'd love to share more!

2. Dengue Fever: Right after Camp Glow, I biked the 2 hours home and then later that night began to not feel so well. I just thought that because I had been so busy and because I biked both ways I was just exhausted. However, the next day I felt worse...my bones ached and I was tired. However, because I was leaving for vacation to Indonesia that Friday, I had so much to do, I just took some un-asprin, and tried to get stuff done. Then later that night I had a high fever and when the un-asprin wore off, my bones would ache- even to the point that it would wake me up in the middle of the night. Then on Wednesday, when I arrived in Phnom Penh (we flew out of PP) I realized I had a rash all over my body. Then I was certain I had Dengue Fever. So, the nurse took my blood (I was also anemic) and I was ordered to rest. I wasn't sure I was going to be able to even go on my trip. However, they were able to move my flight to a day later and I was able to get on the same flight as my friends who were leaving a day later. For those of you don't know about dengue fever, it is a mosquito borne illness that you contract from mosquitoes that carry the disease. There is no medication to cure dengue fever, just un-asprin to numb the aches and lots of water and rest. Dengue is very common in SE Asia and Cambodia, specifically. A lot of volunteers get it; however, no one in my province had gotten it yet.

3. Sumatra, Indonesia: Northern Sumatra was AMAZING! There were 7 of us (all PC volunteers) that went, which turned out to be the perfect number because we could rent our own van making travel very, very easy. Also, we are all really good friends so it was so much fun to travel with everyone.
Bukit Lawang: The first destination was Bukit Lawang. There we went on an overnight jungle trek to see orangutans. We saw lots of mother orangutans with their babies. Some were so close we could have walked up to them to touch them. We also saw different types of monkeys and a monitor lizard. Trekking through the jungle was intense (the Dengue probably didn't help). It was very mountainous and difficult because it was muddy from the rain. When we arrived at our camp for the night we all went swimming in the river and relaxed. We then hiked 3 hours the next day and then rafted the river back to town. It was amazing.
Berastagi: The second place we visited was Berastagi. There we stayed in a cozy guesthouse outside the city at the foot of a volcano. Here we all froze because it was high in the mountains and we came from Cambodia where it is eternally hot. The next day we hiked the volcano and then after our descent went to some hot springs to relax!
Lake Toba: Our final destination was an island called Lake Toba. We had to take a ferry to get there. Lake Toba is the largest lake in Southeast Asia. While the rest of Sumatra is very Muslim with mosques everywhere, Lake Toba is almost entirely Christian. Moreover, these Christians used to be cannibals (before they were Christians). You could see the mixture of their animist beliefs with with Christianity. Anyway, we had a great time relaxing at our guesthouse overlooking the lake and the mountains, going off the diving board, and exploring the Island. The second day there, my friend Kellee and I randomly discovered a German bakery/guesthouse that had the most amazing food- and freshly roasted Sumatran coffee! We went there one to two times a day until we left! I also bought some of the coffee and have been enjoying it here in Cambodia ever since. There are coffee plantations all over Sumatra and it is really some of the best coffee in the world!
I was catching a flight a night earlier that everyone else, so I headed by myself to the airport in Medan to catch my flight back to Cambodia. I had a layover in Malaysia where I drank Starbucks coffee twice! Definitely an amazing vacation. I had never considered going to Indonesia; however, it is now a place I MUST return after I'm done in Cambodia. The food is amazing, the people are nice and it is absolutely BEAUTIFUL. I also want to visit Java, Jakarta and Bali. Indonesia has over 17,000 islands so there is not a shortage of amazing sights to see. If you want to read more about my trip, check out some of my friends' blogs which give much more detailed accounts: http://cambodiandays.wordpress.com/, http://dispatchesfromdeltas.com/, http://tenthingsithink.com/, kelleeincambodia.blogspot.com

4. Khmer New Year: I planned my Indonesia trip so that I could return to Cambodia before Khmer New Year per my Khmer family's insistence. Khmer New Year was a lot less busy this year than it was the year before. I only went to the pagoda one day as opposed to last year where I went for 4 days! However, there were still lots of parties to attend and games to play. Overall, it was good and I'm glad I was able to celebrate with my family and community for the last time. Usually, Cambodia's New Year is all about being with family, going to the pagoda and parties! Last year, I celebrated for about 15 days in a row. However, this year because I was in Indonesia and am now in Phnom Penh (finishing a Health Manual I'm writing) I reduced it to 5 days.

5. Life these Days....My time here in Cambodia is coming to a close. It is absolutely crazy to me that I've been here almost 2 years. It has gone by so fast. I have applied to help with the training of the new volunteers which if I am selected I'll be here until October. This also means that I am done living in my village at the end of May and will move to Phnom Penh for a month or so and then to the province where the new volunteers will be doing their training. Until then though, I have weddings (my host sister's included), traveling in Cambodia (hopefully) and our Close of Service (COS) Conference in Phnom Penh. In the meantime, I'm just going to try to enjoy my last month as a volunteer in Cambodia in a small village on the boarder of Vietnam! Definitely, lots of hanging out and eating!

About three months to go....

2011-02-21T20:53:00.000-08:00

Sorry for not posting in such a long time. My previous excuse was that the government blocked blogspot, but it is now working again...so, I decided it's time to post again after a VERY long time of not.
Things here in my village are starting to wind down. I actually have only about 3 months left! It's completely crazy for me- and, actually, VERY sad. The month of June I'm thinking about doing an internship (not sure where yet?) so I'll be done here at the end of May. My host sister gets married then so I thought it a good time to finish up- since they will share the room next to mine.
I've heard rumors that they are going to replace my site with another volunteer and it made me sad because the reality of me leaving is so much more of a reality. I mean, I don't really want to stick around another year, but I've really just started to become very comfortable with my life here. People understand me when I speak and I understand them. People know my habits and aren't scared to talk to me. I love riding my bike around town and hearing my students ask me "teacher, where you go?" It truly will be bittersweet to leave this place I've lived at for 2 years.
Despite being almost finished here I'm still keeping very busy. Next month we are having a girls' leadership camp that Peace Corps volunteers do world-wide called Camp Glow. We will focus on leadership skills and health issues. It's been a lot of work organizing and getting proper approval, but we're all looking forward to it (and hoping we can pull it off). I'll post more about this later. I'm also helping write a health manual for current and future volunteers. This, too, has kept me very busy. Other than that, I've been going to weddings and house parties. It's funny because if I've not gone to a wedding in a week or two I get really excited to go to one. It's always something to do and you get to see tons of people outside of school, the health center, or their work. Who doesn't like parties??

Blonde, Again

2011-01-08T00:54:00.001-08:00

Yesterday, while visiting my market ladies (something I do daily here at site), one asked if I wanted to change my hair color. Now, I REALLY did not want to change my hair color- especially, in a small village in rural Cambodia. I especially didn't want to because I have finally arrived at the stage of hair growth where I have discovered my natural color- after years of not knowing. Now, I've been asked before if I color my hair and if I want to here, but always I've said "yes, I did in America, but here I don't want to change it to black. I like my hair its natural color". This has usually satisfied people in the past. However, yesterday all my usual excuses did not work and it became clear they weren't going to take no for an answer. Also, I'm going to a wedding with them on Tuesday and, apparently, you must color your hair for weddings. So, after insisting that I was "scared" to color it black or red, they found two boxes of "blonde" for me in the back of the shop with dust on them. Both had hair samples attached so I could see the end result. One had a greenish tent and the other looked blonde. So, I let them do it. I let them color my hair blonde right there in the market. I was a bit apprehensive at first because the bowl and toothbrush that they used had leftover dye that was black. As I was sitting there, I was thinking about how disastrous-not to mention stupid- this truly could be. However, luckily enough, all went well and I am- once again- a blonde. After I washed it out I returned to the market and everyone loved it. When I went this morning they have already begun asking when I'm going to color my hair red. I think I'm going to hold off on that as long as possible. Another woman who was there yesterday when they were coloring my hair, stopped by this morning with cool-aid colored red hair (apparently they had talked her into going red after they got me). She was buying black dye to cover it up. I think her "fire colored" hair was too much and definitely a lesson for me to not venture into the realms of red hair......

Harvesting Rice

2010-12-11T22:43:00.001-08:00

This year some of the ladies from my market invited me to harvest rice with them. Last year I rode my bike to the rice field, took a few pictures, then got outta there once it started to get hot (so a half an hour later). This year if only I'd been so lucky. I really wasn't too keen on going in the first place, but because they are so kind to me I just couldn't say no. I asked what time I should go and they said "when the sun starts to come up." However, this morning when the sun came up I decided to finish drinking my coffee and listen to NPR (I love having Internet all the time). So, I arrived at their house around 6:30 am ready to harvest rice. Ready in that I was wearing my ridiculous bear pajama pants (gift from first host family and COMPLETELY socially acceptable to wear anywhere in public), a tee-shirt, long sleeve shirt and hat. Entirely too hot. However, they don't want you to turn dark .

Now, in my mind I was hoping that by "harvesting rice" they meant I would show up, they would teach me how to cut a few stalks of rice, we'd take some pictures, then they would send me on my way home. In fact, this is what all volunteers I know have done when they have "harvested rice." However, no such luck for me- they really wanted my help harvesting rice(probably because it was only 4 women harvesting a huge plot by themselves) . We cut rice until 12:00. It is such hard work. A couple hours into it I could barely stand up (to which I took a water break and secretly popped some IBUPROFEN.)To make matters worse, there has been entirely too much rain this year so most of the rice has been blown down and is in standing water. So, we were all cutting rice in water above our ankles. Additionally, there are leaches. Which is the main reason I didn't ever want to harvest rice. I cannot tell you how many leaches I or someone else picked off me (it's because my skin is white and my blood is sweet that they bit me everyone said). Then you pick them off and you're bleeding everywhere. To which they told me to wash it in the water. Yes, the water I was wading in that is brown from dirt, water buffalo droppings and who knows what else. Despite the backbreaking work, heat and general difficulty of the task it was a lot of fun. Everyone that passed got a kick out of me harvesting rice. They would yell, "The American knows how to harvest rice!" or "Does your back hurt yet?" In a way it was a unique way to bond with my community and to better understand them. It once again gave me a greater appreciation for the bowl of rice I daily eat knowing that it came at the expense of someone's very hard work.

Thanksgiving, Running and Babies Being Born

2010-12-07T04:49:00.000-08:00

I am definitely overdue on posting. My apologies.
Thanksgiving:
This year I was able to celebrate Thanksgiving twice. The first time was a celebration involving all members of my province. We ended up making tacos (yeah, not Thanksgiving food, but easy to make and so tasty). Jac and I made the homemade tortillas (using beer bottles as the rolling pins) and everyone else worked together to make the salsa, meat and veggies. We then made two homemade pecan pies and brownies. We of course didn't have an oven (because no one here uses them) so we made friends with the only family in town that sells bread and has an oven. They tasted AMAZING.
My second Thanksgiving was at my wonderful friends Tim and Jess's house (along with their son Ian). We made omelets for breakfast then ordered a traditional Thanksgiving meal from a restaurant in town (it included everything important: turkey, stuffing, potatoes, green beans, cranberry sauce and PUMPKIN PIE!) for dinner. It all tasted so good! We also made coffee cake and lemon bars. All the while a year old football game was playing in the background! I even took a nap mid-afternoon and complained a couple dozen times about how full I was. Thanksgiving in its truest form.
Running:
Since being back from America I've attempted to train for a 1/2 marathon. It's been difficult to train due to the rain, muddy- and sometimes impassible- roads, dogs, Cambodians thinking I'm from another planet and constantly asking me if I'm "tired", etc. However, this Sunday I finished my second 1/2 marathon. The race was in Siem Reap province at Angkor Wat. There were a few moments- those precious few when I wasn't thinking about how stupid I was for running a 1/2 in Cambodia, talking myself out of stopping, or generally thinking about how much pain I was in- that I was struck by how beautiful and surreal it was to run in the temple ruins of an ancient civilization. It was also fun to see so many Cambodians come out to cheer us on and have little kids give us a high-five (which I did a few times but then decided against it for various sanitary reasons). Also, it was encouraging to see Cambodians, who had been disabled by landmines, participate in the race (maybe it was 3K). That was truly inspiring and made me realize how lucky I was to have a body that was healthy and able to run so far. Overall a good experience and many of us are looking for another one to run in the near future.
Babies, Babies, Babies:
I FINALLY got to see a baby born at my health center! I've missed about 3 births thus far so I was very excited when the midwives invited me to come after lunch to see a birth. I showed up at 1:00 when they told me to come; however, she had already "crossed the river" as they say here! I couldn't believe it, but then they told me not to worry because there was another woman in labor. At one point during the 3 hour adventure, the midwives told the woman that the child would come out with a face as white and beautiful as mine saying "bonjour" (the slang word for foreigner is French, thus, why the baby would say "bonjour" instead of "hello").
My conclusions I hear you ask? First, I will hopefully NEVER have a child in rural Cambodia. Second, the woman barely made a noise. Pain medicine you ask? Nope. No pain medicine. What happens when the head is too big to exit? They take scissors and make it bigger. Then they sewed her up and she didn't make a peep. I couldn't believe it. The baby didn't cry for the first 5 minutes. I, in my inexperience, didn't think she was going to make it and thought that if that happened I'd never see another birth because I'd be bad luck. The baby was so white and clearly lacking oxygen. Finally, after rubbing the baby, blood started to circulate and she began to whimper (because she couldn't cry). The whole time the midwife kept telling me that I was never going to want a husband after watching. To myself I was thinking maybe I'll adopt. The other midwife asked if I wanted to see another birth- which, I answered yes. I thought all the blood would freak me out, but it didn't in the least. I just kind of stood there in awe of what was going on. Furthermore, what I liked most was that the mother, sister, and aunt were all there encouraging her and helping her with the birth of her first child. The men were sitting in the next room looking nervous (or possibly drunk?) I felt so lucky to be a part of it. The new mother even thanked me (in English) for coming. I definitely want to see another.

Water Festival Tragedy in Phnom Penh

2010-11-23T03:59:00.000-08:00

In Phnom Penh last night there was a massive stampede that left some 378 people dead (as of the latest count). It was the last night of Water Festival which celebrates the end of rainy season. During this festival, massive amounts of people come to Phnom Penh to watch the boat races. Most of the people that visit are from the countryside and make the journey to town to watch the races and take part in the other festivities going on around the city. I know everyone in my village wanted to come and everyone constantly asked if I was going. They would say, "There are so many people there and it is so happy happy." To which I'd respond, "There are too many people and so many thieves." The thieves part usually stopped their asking. I was there last year for a night and swore I'd NEVER go again because it's so crazy, expensive, and, like I said, full of thieves. This morning at the market everyone told me how lucky I was that I didn't go to Phnom Penh!

It all took place on an island close to the shore near the Royal Palace. There was a concert and a lot of people showed up. There were way too many people on the island and somehow (accounts vary) someone got scared and started to panic causing everyone else to seek the only exit- a small bridge- off the island. Some jumped or were pushed off into the water, but most were packed together so tightly they couldn't breath. It has been horrible to see (the Khmer don't seem to mind too much..but then again they lived through Pol Pot) the graphic pictures and filming of it all unfolding. At one point I saw a police officer pulling a person from a mass of people squeezed together so tight on the bridge no one could move.

Here is a link from the New York Times with some pictures:
http://www.nytimes.com/2010/11/24/world/asia/24cambo.html?_r=1&hp

In my province about 30 people were killed (if I understand correctly, the most from any province). This includes a student from my school and two from the village next to mine. I didn't know them, but it's still horrible. The newspapers report that some people thought the bridge was collapsing which is what sparked the panic. According to my cousin- someone saw a ghost.

One of the police officers from my town, who is also my neighbor, phoned me today to make sure I wasn't in Phnom Penh. I thought it so thoughtful. All that heard the story can rest assured that I'm safe and sound in the middle of nowhere!

Water Festival

2010-11-22T00:53:00.000-08:00

I guess you're probably thinking that there sure are a lot of holidays because the last time I posted was a holiday. Well...you're right- there are and I love it. It means no school for me and tons of time to do whatever I want. Last year at this time I would have been rather annoyed (thinking "what, more free time?") but this year I've gotten a lot busier and used to not teaching for 4 months. So, now I rejoice at the thought of no school and days of leisure doing whatever I want. Already I've read 3 books (in 4 days), started planning a girls' conference for March, wrote lesson plans and started translating a health presentation were giving at the Department of Health next week. Not to mention, I've ran (even a 12 miler which is terrible here with it still raining and REALLY muddy roads), downloaded new books for my ipod and spent countless hours wasting time online and listening to BBC. It's the life- one I'm sure I'll never experience after this. Other than that there is not too much going on here. However, I do have some random encounters I'll leave you with...nothing overly exciting, but enough to keep me entertained here.

* While at the Health Center the other day one of the doctors turns to two patients waiting and says "You're pregnant, what do you want?"I started laughing for it's absolute directness (which could be a language thing because everything is said very simply and directly here which is not how we approach things). The doctor then started laughing, too. One of the girls you couldn't even tell was pregnant. They looked at each other and then responded that they were waiting for the pharmacist, who had previously been in a meeting, but was now smoking a cigarette.

*It's party season again at the pagoda. My host dad, uncle and I were forced to go, despite the fact that it was clearly going to rain. I think my host mom didn't want to cook dinner. My dad said, "It's going to rain" and she said, "Go shower". My dad doesn't move. So, she tells me to go change. Which of course I do. Then when I return my dad has showed and were off. The road is HORRIBLE. It does start to downpour 1/2 way there so we stop at some random house and talk to an old guy who is blind in one eye. Then because the road is practically impassible (some are doing it, but clearly struggling and getting REALLY muddy) we start making our own road through people's yards. Such a hassle traveling can be in this country sometimes.

*I was at school the other day and sat down to a new female teacher at the school. This clearly makes her nervous. She then says, "teacher is fat." I respond with a very fake smile and sarcastically respond "yes". This is getting so old....yet, I'm sure she just didn't know what else to say.

Independence Day

2010-11-08T20:39:00.000-08:00

Today is Independence Day in Cambodia and so there is no school. This is just one of many, many holidays celebrated here in Cambodia. However, I did not mind the day off. I somehow caught a cold so definitely needed a day off to rest and do some much needed visiting of people around town (and laundry, but I always have that because I'm lazy). The wheel on my bike is also broken so I've had to do some walking to get places which has commanded many varied responses. Most people stop and insist I get on their moto- which is very nice, but I cannot ride motos, so I have to tell them I like the exercise. I also cannot get anywhere fast because everyone thinks I'm "so tired" that they make me sit down and rest for a bit. Which has been fun to sit and chat with people I usually speed by. I also have been able to walk home with some of my students which has been good because I get to know them better and they get to ask me questions or practice their English or I get to practice my Khmer.
Today while visiting the market I was at my favorite dessert stand when someone I didn't know brought over some money from Guatemala. Due to the fact that I'm the foreigner, I'm the de facto expert on all things foreign. Then I had to explain that the money is from central America. However, they then wanted to know why it wasn't a dollar. So, I had to explain America the country vs America the Continent. I thought seeing Guatemalan money in my little Cambodian market quite random...it would be interesting to know how it got there? I asked the lady but she said she found it on the ground.
Then on my way home I was chatting with some of my students when a fortune teller approached us. My students told me he was crazy. He was telling my students how old they were and some other stuff I couldn't understand. He did tell me that I should marry someone who is the year of the cow and that I will have good luck in the future. But then again, he is crazy...

Kampot

2010-11-04T05:37:00.000-07:00

My weekend trip to Kampot (which is in southern Cambodia on the Gulf of Thailand) was a nice mini-vacation. It was nice to get away and play tourist for a while. We ended up doing an all-day hike up Bokor Mountain which I've wanted to do since last year when I was in Kampot. It was worth the $18 -for the whole day, lunch included...and the people at the hotel apologized for it being so expensive. A van came and picked us up from our hotel at 8:00 and us and the other foreigners went to the ranger station where we were all loaded into the bed of a truck. We then were dropped off somewhere and were told by our guide that "because of corruption we could hike the mountain." Translation: we were not legally supposed to be there but because of some shady deal the guide had some type of agreement allowing us entry. He then said if something happened to us, it wasn't his fault. Also, he told us not to complain because the hike was kind of hard. It wasn't bad, in my opinion. An hour and a half up a mountain to the truck (why it couldn't take us the entire way was lost in translation). At the top of the mountain was an old, deserted former-French town. We walked around it for a bit and then ate lunch. There was an AMAZING view of the Gulf of Thailand and the forest (landmines included) leading to the beach. This was also inhibited by the Khmer Rouge during the war. Our guide told us that after seeing his parents killed in front of him, he fled to the forest where he lived for 3 years by himself, before joining a faction of the Khmer Rouge that then fled to Vietnam to join their army in overthrowing Pol Pot. He also, sadly enough, talked about building bombs and killing his own people. I was shocked by his honesty and bluntness. We were then taken to a waterfall and when we arrived back in Kampot Town we went on an hour long boat ride down the Kampot River. Definitely a full day worth the $18.
After dinner with some of the people we met on the hike I realized how I've lost many of my manners (this I've suspected for a while, but rarely am I confronted with people who make me see this). We were eating with some Canadians and Australians, when one of the Canadians was telling us about how he got really sick when he was in Indonesia. Then- not thinking- I asked if he had diarrhea and what kind (I think I actually said, "was it a rice stool?" Appalling I know). He was shocked and looked visibly embarrassed. I then, of course, had to apologize. Need to remember that next time I meet nice travelers.
We then stayed at a really nice hotel (it had a pool) that was about 2K from town and on the Kampot River with Bokor Mountain in the background. It was absolutely beautiful. The owner of the hotel invited us (we were practically the only ones staying there) to go for a boat ride to the sea where we watched his son and the owner of a bar/guesthouse kite. For those of you who don't know, I'd never seen it before either, it is a board with a huge kite strapped to their torso and they use the wind to jump and go across the water- it looked like fun and dangerous if you've never done it before. Definitely random. Later we ended up watching a ridiculously stupid Halloween movie (the only movies the English speaking channels were showing because they love ghosts here) with the owner and his son. Definitely random, again. Yet, it was a very relaxing and enjoyable weekend.
Now I'm back at site. I did get new Internet so I now have it everyday. If something random should happen again soon, I'll post again....hope all is well there.

Language problems....still

2010-10-26T04:37:00.000-07:00

So, while my language has progressed to a point where I feel comfortable using it everywhere and teaching lower-level English by myself, there have been times when I wonder if I'll ever really understand all that is said to me. Usually, I can pick out the main point of the questions or statement when people are trying to talk to me. Or, if it's something talked about a lot- farming, weather, the new road, weddings, deaths- I understand easily. However, I have two stories that might highlight my confusion here, still, despite my progress.
Last night I was watching tv with my host dad under the mosquito net- because the mosquitoes are terrible right now being that it's rainy season and I don't want dengue. So, this program comes on TV- which I'll note that TV is usually hard for me to understand. They talk really fast and if it's the news or something they use words I don't understand. So, this program comes on TV and I have no clue what's going on because they are talking about words I don't understand. They are showing these teenagers (and I hear the word teenager) and some younger men doing exercises. I understand that they are talking about their daily activities. They are all wearing the same clothes- pants and a shirt (well..usually a shirt). There is a guy with a military uniform bossing them around. Then they switch to a doctor whose talking about I have no idea what. Then they pan the camera to these boys (maybe 13, 14 years old) who are hooked-up to an IV (which I'll also point out is no big deal- probably if I complained of a stomach ache they'd hook me up to an IV)- yet these boys were really skinny and looked sick. Then after this they go back to the boys exercising and playing soccer. Then back to the sick kids. I just keep thinking "what the heck do these two things have in common? What's the link? What are they talking about?" Finally, I ask my host dad, " what are they sick with?" He tells me but I don't recognize the words he's using. Then he explains to me that they are trying to make "bad people" into "good people"...then it makes since- they are drug addicts and they are at a recovery center. This is how I learn here- and how I'm confused a lot of the time-- still.
Today, I had language lessons with my language teacher. At the end of our session I was asking about using pronouns and if it was rude to use them. In the example I used, I told him in Khmer that "I wanted to meet with my friend in Svay Rieng." He corrected me and said that instead of using "I want" I needed to use "I want give". Now, this might sound like not much of a mistake, but according to him if I leave out the "give" it means I want to meet my friend for sex. Yep. And, I'd like to point out that I say "I want" rather than "I want give" ALL THE TIME- especially, in relation to meeting up with people. I'm hoping people just know I'm speaking incorrectly, or they think were all meeting up for a lot of sex- which of course were not. It seems like I should have learned this before being here over a year....
Other than that, I'm about to head down to the beach for the holiday (it's the Kings Birthday and Independence) because we have Friday and Monday off. It's going to be amazing...I'll post pictures. Also going on here is that my sister, who is the oldest, left last week for Phnom Penh to study at university where she got a full ride because she's smart. However, she is really, really homesick (has called everyday crying my mom told me tonight) and wants to come home. I'll probably see her next week- unfortunately. In May, she went to study in the provincial town for the grade 12 exam and lasted 2 nights. I thought this would be great in that I'd have the entire upstairs to myself. No such luck. My neighbor- who is marrying my sister sometime- has moved into her room. This happens to be super annoying because there is no ceiling and I can hear everything. Privacy seems like such a luxury.

Bats!

2010-10-21T04:31:00.002-07:00

Today I didn't have school so I went to the health center (my usual routine). It was a BUSY place to be- that's for sure. There was an organization there whose focus is on TB education (they are also funded by Angelina Joli interestingly enough). I asked them what they were doing there and they said "talking about TB." However, they were also generously dispensing other health information, too. Like one lady had a sick baby (diarrhea, fever- the normal). The TB lady was asking if she fed him solid food already. Of course the lady said yes- which, of course is the wrong answer because the baby was way too young to be eating solids. Then the lady shared with her about when she started to give her kids food and explained that they are fatter than normal kids their age because breast milk is enough for them to be healthy. Usually, if they are feeding them food, they are feeding them other stuff that uses unclean water or the food is not prepared in a way that is sanitary; which results in sickness. It was good to overhear this much needed advise. Anyway, I've seen the TB people there before, but have never really chatted with them. However, today the waiting area was so busy with patients I decided to kick it with them on the picnic table in the yard until things became a little more calm inside the health center. I also got to learn a lot about TB and TB in my district; which, it turns out there is a lot! I've been wanting to do some work with this organization for a while now, so it was good to make some connections with some of the people doing work in my district.
Also at the health center today, someone I know was going to have her baby. The midwife, who knows I REALLY REALLY REALLY (I tell them all the time:) want to see a birth, invited me to come back at 1:00 because that's when they thought she'd have it. So, I went home, ate, checked my email and then went back to the health center. However, when I returned she had already had her baby! This is the third birth I've missed. So disappointing. However, at least one person has a baby here a week...so me seeing a birth is bound to happen sooner or later. Despite missing it, it was a lot of fun to just chat with my midwives and the mother and her family- and of course to see the new baby boy who was so sweet! I definitely need to get more of my mornings off from school!
Finally, BATS, BATS and more BATS! When I was home I told some of you this story, so you can ignore it if I've told you already. It's just too funny not to share. So, a couple of months ago I was at the health center and when I got there the director was sitting on the bench playing with a sling shot. I thought it strange at first- a grown man fooling with a sling shot- but nothing too out of the ordinary. There was also a fishing net on the bench. This started a conversation about the net (or asking if I knew how to say it in Khmer)which led to the pharmacist acting out a turtle because I didn't know what the heck he was talking about- quite hilarious, really. The director then gets on his moto and returns 2 minutes later with a camo army hat on- so, he went home just for that hat which I thought funny in light of what he was about to do next. Then, he gets one of the other doctors who grabs the net and they leave for the other building. I didn't really think too much of it until I heard loud noises coming from the other building about 5 minutes later. So, I went over there only to see a different doctor on a plank outside the building hanging up the fishing net over a hole between the roof and the building. Now, in my mind I was thinking "what the heck is going on????" Then I hear shouting and a loud bang from the inside. Then out walks one of the doctors with a dead bat in his hand which he then places in a box. It's my guess that half the bats died due to the director's mad sling shot skills and the other half flew into the fishing net where another doctor beat it with a broom (kid you not)! As all this is going on- and more and more bats are being added to the already fallen- one of the sick ladies that lives in one of the buildings at the health center comes over and starts talking with me. She says, "Bats are so delicious." To which I respond, "No way, not delicious!" "Yes, they are so delicious." To which I explain that in my country we don't eat bats- or dogs for that matter. Now at some point during this whole ordeal my health center director is running around the health center building while smoking a cigarette and shooting at bats with his sling shot! It was the funniest thing (seriously, imagine an Asian male, with a camo hat, sling shot in hand, cigarette dangling from the lips, running around a building and stopping only to shoot at a bat with a sling shot- very funny stuff.) Then one of the midwives comes over and the doctor in the rafters tells her to go to her house and get a pan, oil, pepper, salt and MSG. That's when I knew they were going to eat those bats! Which, is also when I decided I needed to get out of there- and sooner rather than later. So, I said, "I've gotta go eat with my family." To which they told me to stay and eat at the health center. I politely refused, got on my bike and went home. The next day when I returned to the health center I asked how many bats they killed. 25-30. I then asked if they ate them. Yes. I asked, why they ate them. "Very delicious" and "important people eat bats." I then asked if they knew bats carried disease. Yes they knew and then listed some of the diseases, but didn't I know that they are delicious?!? Just when I think I've seen all the crazy stuff that is to be seen here.....

I'm Back

2010-10-17T20:17:00.002-07:00

I finally made it back! Sorry, I've not posted in so long. I finally just got internet back at my site. I had to make the long journey into town on my bike to download the software so that my internet phone could connect to my new computer I got in America. Thus, once again, from my small village I am connected to the world per internet. I must say, though, I did kind of enjoy those few weeks of ignorance and not feeling like I'm missing out on something back home because there was no way for me to know what I was missing!

The flight home went very smooth. However, at the Cedar Rapids airport I was not allowed to take on peanut butter (a gift for the new volunteers in my province), lotion (gift for people in my village) and toothpaste. Apparently, these are all dangerous liquids (yes, peanut butter is classified as a liquid) that should not be allowed on planes. However, I did get one tube of toothpaste through the security check, but I bet if they would have checked my bags for a third time they would have found it! At first it wasn't so great to be back, but that was when I arrived in Vietnam. However, once I crossed into Cambodia into my province it actually started to feel good to be back. I could then understand the language and the rice is so green right now making travel through my province absolutely beautiful!

Since I've been back everything has essentially fallen back into place. The comforts of home seem like a dream quickly forgot. It's amazing how easily you adapt. However, things like ants in my bed (and everywhere for that matter), constantly sweating, and doing my laundry by hand are still as annoying as ever.

School has started and I've established a routine similar to my routine last year. However, I wanted to go to the health center more this year so I asked the school director to schedule some of my classes in the afternoon. However, per usual, this didn't really work out like I had originally envisioned. I'm teaching 17 hours and my morning schedule makes it impossible for me to go the health center. So, I've decided to wait a bit and then rearrange my schedule so that it suits me better!

I've also started training for the Angkor Wat Half Marathon in December. Last time I ran a half I swore I would train for it. However, the last few weeks it has rained every day and pretty much all day leaving the roads a muddy mess and making it enough of an annoyance I haven't run. So, now I'm a couple weeks behind on my training, but I still think I'm going to try to run it. I ran this weekend and I was fine. So, I'll keep you updated about how that goes. I'm sure there will be some entertaining stories that will follow because no one runs in my village (actually, there is a teacher that I've heard runs, but I've never seen him doing it) There are 4 of us in my province running the 1/2 and some pretty funny stories have emerged. One of my friends was running- in his own little world listening to music and thinking- when a little kid with a plastic gun jumped out of no where and scared the living daylights out of him! He said everyone was laughing because he was so startled, but he was so angry that he started lecturing the kid as to why "foreigners don't like guns being pointed at them".....I thought it too funny because I could imagine how it all went down so clearly.

Well..I need to get going, but I'll post again soon. I have some really funny stories to post that I was too busy/lazy to post from before I left for America! Also, I do promise to post more per many peoples' request....new year resolution in September!

OH, I will leave you with a VERY funny Cambodia proverb I heard this weekend: "If you are shy with your teacher you will never learn anything, if you are shy with your wife you will never have any kids".....something to think about.....

2010-08-05T04:47:00.000-07:00

A few weeks ago, the new group of Peace Corps volunteers arrived in Cambodia. This is one of the main reason I've been so slow to post in a while- that and nothing is really going on here except me visiting and learning Khmer. So, after a busy two weeks in Phnom Penh and then in Kampong Cham helping the new group, I returned to site. On my way back from Phnom Penh on Monday I was talking to my taxi driver about where I've been and what I've been doing for the past few weeks. I then told him that there would be some new volunteers visiting my site and if he could bring them to my house. So, tomorrow they arrive. Everyone here is so excited. I needed to clarify travel arrangements with my driver because they changed a bit from our previous discussion so I gave him a call. Here is our conversation and I would like to point out why I'm always confused here (Oh, I'm going to literally translate..please don't think my English has digressed to such an astounding low- even though in many ways it has):

Me: "Hello, I kristin. Uncle go to Phnom Penh tomorrow, right?"
Driver: "yes, yes, go tomorrow"
Me: "New volunteers come visit me tomorrow. Can uncle get them in Phnom Penh instead of Prey Veing?"
Driver: "Go yourself (or sometimes this word is used as to mean alone, but in my mind I thought it meant are you going by yourself to PP)

(Here is where I am thinking to myself "what I go alone?" What is he talking about? Why would I go to PP? They are coming to me! So, I ignore it and push on thinking further explanation on my part would clear up what he was asking that I didn't really understand)
Me: "tomorrow volunteers come from Kampong Cham to Phnom Penh, can you meet them at Olympic market at 11?"
Driver: "meet at 5:30"
me: "Ok, good. Good -bye"
Drive: "Ok, bye bye"
(yes, I ignore the fact that he said 5:30- clearly not the time I intended or needed...I think "I'll figure it out later...maybe he forgot the say the five first (in Khmer the number 9 is 5+4)...yes, he did say five...but for some reason I was thinking 4...I really wanted it to work out..and I only had $.30 on my phone before I started talking so I was trying to be quick...I know..a lot of excuses)

Now, I hang up the phone and realize 5:30 really is 5:30. So, I go and ask my sister.
I told her, "he said 5:30, but I need him to meet them at 11:00."
She says, "did you ask him the morning or the evening,"
I reply, "I didn't ask."
My sister, " Why?" (she says this with a look that tells me she thinks I'm crazy)
Me, " I'm bad at talking on the phone in Khmer and I thought he was trying to tell me 9:30"
Sister, "But he said 5:30"
Me, "yeah, he said 5:30. That's a problem. Maybe he cannot drive the new volunteers"

After this conversation, I immediately ran to my cousin and explained to him in Khmer my problem. My host mom and dad were there, too, and we were all speculating to what the driver could have meant..yeah, they also asked if I asked in the morning or evening.

My cousin then calls the driver and turns out he thought I was riding to Phnom Penh with him in the morning (which he leaves at 5:30 am) to get the volunteers. Therefore, "go yourself" meant "are you going with me?" Yes, this is my life and why most times I'm in a constant state of confusion.

We then all had a good laugh and I now have $.05 on my phone. A lesson to be learned maybe? Ask more questions! I've gotten so much better at doing this because they shorten stuff so much here I NEVER am rarely completely confident in my understanding what they mean unless I've heard it used over and over again. Really, it is easier to just pretend that you know what they are talking about or remain silent with the forced half smile giving off the obvious response of "I don't know what the heck you're saying."

Oh, on a completely unrelated topic, I'm coming home in less than a month!

Summer

2010-06-17T20:57:00.000-07:00

I've not been the best lately with updating my blog-sorry. My internet phone has not been working so if I want to get online I have to bike 2 hours into town or go to Phnom Pehn. Lately a lot and not much has been going on. A couple weeks ago I met up with my friend Katie in Laos; which was AMAZING! It was good to leave the country for a bit even though she made me really homesick. I took a 24 hour bus to Vientaine, Laos (which included an overnight bus through Laos). I met these cute old Khmer men who I chatted with on the way there. However, once in Laos no one spoke Khmer. It really gave me more sympathy for tourists. Not knowing the language really makes it hard to get around (and you unknowingly get ripped off a lot out of pure ignorance). I then caught an 11 hour bus up north to Luang prabang! Luang Prabang was amazing and I definitely want to visit again. On my way back Cambodia I decided to fly home from Vientaine. So, I took the overnight bus from Luang Prabang to Vientaine again. The guy sitting next to me vomited in his plastic bag all night (and hung it from the seat in front of him...so gross). Just like Cambodia. I'll try to post pictures later. It was good to come back and speak Khmer again. My family and neighbors told me over and over how much they missed me and that when i go back to America they are going to miss me so much. It made me realize how lucky I am to have such a great family and community!

School is officially over for me. We just had exams this past week. This summer I plan on spending time at the health center, studying Khmer, and socializing. I think it's going to go by fast. Everyone at the health center is excited that I'll be coming everyday. Finally, here are a couple funny stories that happened to me this week. I've decided that my community eats a lot of dog (or special food as they say)....

School party:
We had a party at the school because the grade 12 exams were finished and the guy from the ministry wanted to have a party. So, of course, I was invited to stay for lunch. My options for lunch included: fried small frogs on sticks, cow intestine and stomach, and dog meat. I ended up eating the frog (which is good!) and the cow stomach (tolerable). I still cannot bring myself to knowingly eat dog (I have eaten it before but I didn't know it was dog...and yeah, honestly, it didn't taste that bad...)

Going away party:
My friend who is Khmer/American is going back to America so they had a going away party for him. For dinner we had dog (of course), but not just any stray dog (or stolen dog)- his dog. This was a puppy he loved and fed real food (not just rice like Khmer people feed dogs). He said when they killed it he had tears in his eyes! When I arrived at the party I actually saw the dog's paw in the dish with all the other edible meat!

Randomness in the Bode

2010-05-14T20:51:00.000-07:00

One night recenty as we were eating dinner we were swarmed by tons and tons of little flying bugs. So, what do we do, but move the table out from under the light and continue to eat as the bugs are flying all over us. Then, my dad and sister start catching them in huge bowls of water. My dad then bring out the broom and is hitting them down. It was quite a scene. Then after dinner I spotted my mom draining the bugs from the water. Sure enough, they then fried them up and we ate them. Not bad really. Tasted like grease.

On my way to Phnom Penh a few weeks back I saw a grown man and a small boy riding in the trunk of a car. The trunk was being propped up by a stick. The trunk was full of stuff, too. I wasn't even all that surprised when I saw them. I initially thought, "yeah, the fronts full...why not the trunk...there is room!"...then I realized I've been in Cambodia too long!

Yesterday, I went to a wedding in a village 20 minutes away with a man named Black Jack. Two days ago, I was riding my bike to a village 20 minutes away because last time I was in Phnom Penh I forgot my coffee mug french press on my taxi (which seriously almost brought me to tears). My student's sister was on the taxi and the driver gave it to her to return to me. So, my student invited me to his house to get it and to eat my favorite Cambodia food- Bon Chi'o. It's like a crepe but with bean sprouts and pork on the inside...it is so good...and they taught me how to make it and how to grow the bean sprouts. Anyway, on my way home from his house a man on a moto told me in english to follow him to his house. So, of course, I did because that is what I do here. Well, turns out he is Khmer American and visiting to see a doctor here for a stomach problem. He then invited me to a wedding in the village the next night. So, of course I went because what else is there to do! At the wedding I got to hang out with Black Jack and the pharamist at my health center (who is WONDERFUL and introduced me all night as his friend). It was a good night. Then my cousin stopped by to take me home because he was in the area at another party. So, him with his moto and me on my bike we went home! The slightly funny thing was that that morning I was complaining to my mom on the phone that I was bored because there was no school and no one had invited me to a party.

(pictures: left to right: Kellee, Jeremy and I at a party for Jeremy. His school director didn't get to see him on Khmer New Year so he threw a party for him and we were invited....seriously, boys have it so easy here! Next: My aunt, my host mom and the neighbor lady. Next: Co-teacher pouring rice wine into a tea kettle for consumption- seriously...no sanitation in this country Next: Me and Kelle at Jeremy's party)

Khmer Weddings

2010-03-25T06:09:00.000-07:00

In order not to put off talking about Khmer weddings any longer than I already have, I will FINALLY tell you about them. I have two classifications of weddings that I’ve been to here: rich weddings and poor weddings. Usually, the traditional and ceremonial structures are the same, but the food and drink will vary depending on which category it falls into.
This wedding season I have already been to 9 weddings- most in my village. Usually, this involves me biking, either by myself or following my family as they lead the way on their moto, about 5 to 10K into the distant parts of my district (and yes, I’m absolutely certain it looks as ridiculous as you imagine it does). Usually, when I arrive I am covered in sweat and dirt. People will then ask, “are you tired?” and “why don’t you ride a moto?” Always. Then I sit down with someone I know and we wait for our table to fill so that we can be served our meal. Now, at poor weddings, usually, the meat is beef and pork, rice (always!), and vegetables(there is a dish called “luc lak” that is lettuce, pork, a dressing of sorts, peppers, and has crushed nuts on top..it is my favorite). There is also a noodle dish that is very delicious. At poor weddings you are also served

copious amounts of rice wine. Now, there is a special person at weddings whose sole purpose, I’m convinced, is to get everyone drunk. I like to call them the “alcohol pusher”. Furthermore, I am CONVINCED that if my brother-in-law PJ were to live in this country, he would be that person. I’m absolutely certain he would be invited to all friends’ and family members’ weddings for this sole purpose. Anyway, there is a shot glass at each table that is filled up and circulated and does not stop- even when the used water bottles filled with rice wine are empty because somehow new ones mysteriously appear. The “alcohol pusher” will make sure the glasses circulate as he walks around with his own water bottle full of rice wine to pressure people to drink increasing their consumption even more, thus, ensuring that most people are completely TRASHED when they get on their motos to drive home. However, I have learned that women in this country are truly superior in common sense compared to the males living in this country. When the glass is passed to them they will pretend to drink and then pour the entire contents of the glass on the floor! Brilliant or, as they say here, ‘very clever’.
Rich weddings aren’t really too much different except for their food and drink, as previously stated. Usually, there are a lot more courses of food at rich weddings. The wedding I went to in the provincial town last weekend had appetizers of cashews, something almost like chicken nuggets and a tofu thing (not sure what is was…someone said tofu?). They then had AMAZING fried chicken and grilled fish. Finally, then served us bread (which to all the ‘barangs’ was EXCITING, no rice!). It was absolutely amazing. OH, and they had cake! Furthermore, these weddings do not serve rice wine, but beer.
All weddings ALWAYS have very, very loud music to which everyone dances Khmer style and “hip-hop” around a table. It’s quite entertaining and fun. Moreover, this music can be heard for miles and miles and will succeed in keeping anyone in the surrounding neighborhood awake until way past their bed time. Everyone also wears Khmer traditional clothes to weddings. Usually, this is a silk skirt and an 80s style top (pictures on top). Also, many younger girls wear dresses like you would wear to a prom. Men wear whatever they want (typical to Cambodian dress code). Furthermore, it’s very stylish to get your hair and make-up done. The bigger the hair and the brighter the eye shadow the more “Sa’at” or beautiful you are. A couple of my friends and I went to the wedding of a fellow volunteers’ co-teacher a couple weeks ago and we decided to “make our face” as it translates. It was awesome and we looked like we walked out of the past. Someone remarked to me, “your face looks Khmer, but you’re American.” I just had to laugh at the accuracy. EVERYONE loved that we “made our faces.” The bride at a Khmer wedding will also change their clothes numerous times. Furthermore, there is still a dowry for a bride. The wedding of my friend’s co-teacher paid $3,000 for his wife (my friend asked).

2010-03-03T00:19:00.000-08:00

So, two weeks ago on a Monday I was at school waiting for class to begin. My host mom comes up to me and asks if I want to go to Siem Reap (a very famous tourist town up north). I said yes, thinking that when she asks if I want to go it means in the distant future because EVERYONE asks if you want to go to Siem Reap. She then responds, “go ask the school director.” To which I said “What!? When would I go?” She says, “tomorrow.” Um…ok. So, I ask the school director and find out that a “car” will pick me up the next day between 4 and 5 am. They said they were going because the school director’s daughter (?) was getting married. So, the next morning as I was expecting a car with 5 people in it, a van shows up at 6:30 with 28 people in it. I kid you not, 28 people. I thought to myself, “I bet not everyone in this van is going to Siem Reap.” Oh, but they were. We even managed to shove another person into the van about 4 hours into the trip. I personally didn’t think it possible, but I guess after you have 28 people, what’s one more? In the van were people I know from the market, my school director, the police chief, the health center director, and many other people I didn’t know. About 6 hours into the trip, we stopped for a picnic lunch of rice and meat. There was cooked rice in coolers and meat already cooked. I felt bad for not contributing anything, but how was I to know rice was picnic food? About an hour from Siem Reap town everyone was getting very excited! The police chief was playing games (much to many peoples annoyance). At one point he caught me sleeping and yelled my name saying “Kristin, we’re in Siem Reap, you can’t sleep!” Then a kid vomited all over him! Not many people here own cars nor ride in them often so vomiting is VERY COMMON (and the roads are HORRIBLE). At many points throughout the trip bags to vomit in, stuff to smell and eat were circulated for all those who felt the need to vomit or prevent its occurrence. Even after being puked on, he was still extremely excited to be going to Siem Reap!
Once in Siem Reap, we all went to a house that was lived in by police officers (yeah, the guns on the walls gave it away). Honestly, I have no idea who they were, but they were police. The first night I stayed at the house of the former Commune Chief of our district. It was a nice house. The second night I stayed at the police house in my own room.
Usually, here in Cambodia, anywhere I’ve been there has been that one person who knows a little English. However, on this trip that person didn’t come! I realized how little Khmer I know once the basics are out of the way. Somehow it all worked out. I understood enough. The second day we were there we visited Angkor Wat, the famous temple ruins from the Angkor period. It was amazing. Seeing Angkor Wat with Cambodians is the best. Not only are they like kids in a candy store, but they are so proud of their history. We rented a tuk tuk to drive us around all day looking at the different temples. These are some of my favorite moments:
1. A lady from my market asked me if seeing all my “brothers and sisters” made me happy, happy! There are tons of foreigners running around the place. I told them I didn’t know any of themJ
2. I was exiting a temple and there was a huge crowd of South Koreans huddled around something and taking pictures. I thought maybe they had spotted a monkey or a famous statue. No, it was a French couple with a white baby. Asians love white babies. My friends told me over and over how much they wanted one! I said foreigners want their little brown babies!
3. My Khmer friends stopped three female British tourists to touch their skin, hair and comment about how beautiful they were. The men pointed out how big their breasts were! The girls were a bit freaked out. I told them they thought they were very beautiful…they were grateful for the explanation.
4. There was a beach we ate near for lunch. They asked if I wanted to "take a bath." Everyone swimming at this lake rented shorts and a shirt to swim in unless they were kids then they swam in nothing. They also gave you a sarang (similar to a towel but you wear it as a skirt here) to use to change into your shorts and shirt. I decided to sleep in the hammock!
It was a great trip. I never went to the wedding either. I asked, “Are we going to the wedding?” Someone said, “oh, no, it’s too far.” I thought that funny since it took 9 ½ hours to get there in the first place…what’s another hour or two? Oh, well…you couldn’t have paid me enough to get back in that van again! Needless to say, my next mode of transport was an air conditioned bus! After Siem Reap I had to head to Phnom Penh for a meeting and I must confess it was a nice escape to speak English again. It was quite the adventure. When I got back home this week my mom asked if I want to go to the beach with them over Khmer New Years. I said, "sure"....

Kellee Comes to Visit and getting sick in Cambodia....

2010-02-11T05:51:00.000-08:00

While life here in Cambodia has become pretty mundane with the day-in and day-out routine of teaching, there are times when the reality of where I am catches me by surprise.

Last week my friend Kellee was extremely bored (and broke) so she came to visit me. These are my top favorite memories of her visit.

1. Kellee told my family in Khmer that she could not eat the vegetables they wanted to put in her soup because they made her "Sh**". One word makes the difference between poop and sh**. Kellee didn't know that. It was awesome. EVERYONES face fell and became silent. I might tell them that next time I don't want to eat something.....

2. Kellee ate dog. We were invited to bike 3K (and in the dark) to another Aunt's house to see a cousin's new baby and to celebrate. We are sitting on the table with everyone drinking rice wine and EVERYONE is- of course- trying to make us eat even though we just ate a HUGE meal. Kellee decides to try some of the meat that is sitting in front of us. Then before eating, she brilliantly asks, "what kind of meat is this?" To which my grandpa responds, dog. Kellee says, "oh". Then they somehow convince her to try it! They then tried to convince me to eat it to which I said "no way, I'm full." Kellee is obviously way more fun than me:)We told them we never eat dog in America. My grandpa responds, everyone in Cambodia eats dog.

3. Kellee and I visit my health center. Now, the doctors at my health center love me. I've not quite figured out why because I only teach them English, but they do. Because Kellee came they thought it a good reason to have a party and eat soup. So we go eat soup and they teach us new Khmer words....like fall. Kellee fell off her bike on the ride into town and has a HUGE bruise on her leg. At lunch, she lifts up her skirt to show them this massive bruise on her leg. I think Kellee is the doctors new favorite. Oh, and some teachers joined us after we'd been there for 2 hours. One of the teachers told us that he was never going to marry because he was ugly and poor. What do you say to that?!? We gave him our sad faces.

It was fun to have Kellee visit. I really felt that everyone I interact with in my village went out of their way to make my friend's visit good and by extension showed me how much they appreciated me and liked having me live in their community. Khmer people really are the kindest and most generous people. What little they have in material wealth they'd give to you.

I then decided I would go visit Kellee. This did not go so well because I ended up getting sick. Kellee and I ended up taking a taxi from my site to the Provencal town and then did the 40K bike ride to her site. while her road is 3/4 of the way paved...40K is FAR! In the morning when I woke up I didn't feel well at all. My body ached all over and I felt like I was going to vomit. We then went to breakfast where I couldn't eat anything...even the coffee I couldn't get down. We then said hi to her health center folk and i went back to her house and slept the rest of the day. I did start feeling a little better that night which was good because we had dinner plans with her co-teacher and his friends. I made it through dinner but when we went home I started feeling worse. Then the next morning as I was leaving to head back to the Provencal town I got the worst case of diarrhea I've ever had in my life (disgusting I know). To make matters worse, her bathroom is downstairs, like an outhouse, and the toilet is a hole in the ground. I will just say not good. Later that morning I caught a taxi back to the Provencal town and decided I COULD NOT do the 2- 2 1/2 hour bike ride home so i checked into a guest house. This was wise. The next morning I was feeling a little better and decided to try to bike home so I could skype with my family. However, I was a bit nervous about how the trip would go since the D was still with me. Now, there is this Peace Corps Cambodia story that has trickled its way down to my group of volunteers. There was a girl in Peace Corps who was biking home and felt that she might have diarrhea within the next minute. So being the quick witted PC volunteer that she is, she rode her bike into a rice patty, did her business, and told her family when she got home that she crashed her bike. If true, BRILLIANT. luckily I made it home safely and the D was gone 3 days later. I'm pretty convinced I had giardia. It's common here and I had all the symptoms (diarrhea, sulfur smelling burps...). I'm now feeling much better. Next post I fully intend on telling you about weddings here in Cambodia...

Christmas in Cambodia

2010-01-27T01:35:00.000-08:00

Sorry it’s been a long time since I last posted. I’ve been waiting to get internet at my house and instead of taking a week it took a month! Welcome to my life in Cambodia…everything takes at least 5 times longer than you plan!
This year just didn’t feel much like Christmas. I think it was mainly the 90 degree temps making it feel more like summer than the wintery Christmas I’ve always known. Moreover, it was hard being so far away from family. However, I must admit, once Christmas was over I sure did enjoy lying by the pool drinking the best mango smoothies! I ended up heading into Phnom Penh for the holidays. Much of the weekend was full of eating and schedules revolved around it. For Christmas we ate Lebanese which was amazing. One of my friends remarked that it’s probably closer to what Jesus would have eaten rather than what we usually eat for Christmas. I can imagine Jesus loving Falafel. Seriously, who doesn’t? We ate copious amounts of cheese. You definitely cannot get cheese in my province. I miss dairy. Next to eating, I did a lot of shopping. Shopping here is done in Markets and involves a lot of haggling. I wanted this really cute shirt and the vender said $10. To which I responded “oh, too much” and walked away. He said, “for you Madame, I will only charge $2”. Seriously, from $10 to $2! Bargaining stresses me out! It’s hard to know if you’re getting ripped off and cheated or they are truly giving you a decent price. Some people love it; I’m one that hates it. You bargain for everything: rides around town, fruit, van fares, clothing, food…… I long for the days when there are price tags on items.
For New Years I headed to southern Cambodia to the beach! It was amazing! First, my friend Jac and I stopped off and visited some other volunteers at their site. They are married and so graciously hosted us and cooked us the most amazing spaghetti meal and carrot cake! And no, they do not even have an oven either. It inspired me to start cooking my own lunch. Which, I’m sad to say has not happened yet…but I hope will soon. Next we headed to Kampot town. It was absolutely beautiful with the mountains in the background. I’m definitely coming back to do some hiking. Jac and I joked that we were content in our province because we didn’t know Kampot existed! The mountains and beach would have made it a great place to spend two years. However, as our friends who live there say, their town is just like every other small town in Cambodia. Finally, we headed to the Island. It was so relaxing because there was little to do other than lie in the sun, play in the water and eat. One morning I did do a hike around the Island. It ended up taking a couple hours. It was interesting to see the small villages where people live, mostly as fishers. So, despite a sad Christmas, New Years was wonderful! I’ve also posted pictures so you can all see it….also, now that I have internet I hope to post more regularly! Hope you all are enjoying the snow…..

(Pictures clockwise: Kampot with the mountains across the river, our huts on the Island, the beach in the morning, me and the girls who went and finally, sunset on the Island)

Thanksgiving and Other Randomness....

2009-12-18T18:15:00.000-08:00

Thanksgiving and other Randomness….
Sorry, this is old. Christmas is a week away, but I thought I'd share what I did for Thanksgiving here in Bodia. For Thanksgiving my province had language training in the next province over. It was absolutely wonderful. We were able to have chicken (Turkey or “foreigner chicken” here is VERY expensive), mashed potatoes, green beans, spaghetti, and other amazing food! I even got to do a little baking. I made my mom/grandma’s apple cake which tasted almost as good as it does at home. I baked a pumpkin pie (my friend Kellee’s friend, who is awesome, sent us pumpkin pie filling). Normally, I’m terrible at making crust, but somehow even using rice flower and only having a toaster oven, it all turned out amazing! On Saturday, we ate tons of jelly beans (or at least I know I did! Thanks grandma!! I finished them off the next week) and watched James Bond and then the Sound of Music. We all questioned why Peace Corps didn’t send us to Eastern Europe! (In the pictures is Kellee and Jac eating breakfast near the Market in Prey Vieng and the second is Jac riding Khmer style while Kellee is attempting to maneuver the bike. The first attempt was jac straddling the bike backwards while Kellee almost crashed. I almost wet my pants laughing so hard- I’m sure all the khmer watching were, too. I’m sure they’ll be talking about it for years. They all thought it was the funniest thing…foreigners trying to ride on the back of bikes! CRAZY Barangs!)

Other than that, not too much else is going on here. Still trying to get my schedule down and making enough free time to read and learn Khmer. I do have a couple funny stories to share. The other week I was making students write what they did yesterday in order to practice using the past perfect tense. One kid wrote that he went swimming. I was trying to get him to make his sentence longer so I asked him who he went swimming with. Of course he didn’t understand my question in English. So, I thought, sure I’ll give my Khmer a go. So, I said in Khmer, who did you swim with? Did you swim with a water buffalo….or so I thought that was what I said. He gave me a really funny look (which is not at all an uncommon response to my Khmer). My co-teacher then said, “Do you realize you just asked him if he wanted to go swimming with a bomb”? Oops!
In my 12th grade class I do the pronunciation of the new vocabulary words. This involves me standing in front of the class saying the word slowly, carefully enunciating all syllables, and then having the class repeat after me multiple times until I think they’ve pronounced it correctly or until I’m convinced they will never pronounce it correctly no matter how many times we say it together. We were covering a section titled “Protect the Baby”. One of the words the book (and the teacher) thought the students should know was “breast feed”. And why not, if they were in an English speaking country or chatting it up with a foreigner, breastfeed would be an important word to know. Seriously. Repeat after me class, “BREASTFEED, B-R-E-A-S-T-F-E-E-D………"and I’m supposed to be a health volunteer…….

The other day I was in the provincial town with the girls from my province. We were biking home from eating dinner at the river. As you can see from the picture (picture of water) that it is absolutely beautiful! Anyway, the four of us were riding our bikes home in the dark and I was on the back of Jac's bike because Suzannah cannot bring hers because she takes a taxi. Anyway, were riding down this dark side street, trying to see the road and attempting to avoid being attacked by REALLY scary dogs, when Jac notices that Kellee has stopped in the middle of the road. Jac then swerves and we literally run into a tree head-on! We were okay, but thought that it was the funniest thing. This tree incident left no marks on either of us, luckily. Apparently, there was a huge hole in the road causing Kellee to stop!

Finally, one of my co-teachers told me this week, in all seriousness, said to me that if it snows in Cambodia- he’s moving! If it snowed in Cambodia, it would only be foreigners left.

Rice Harvest

2009-12-11T19:50:00.001-08:00

Last weekend my family harvested their rice plots and they invited me to join. Now, I must confess up front that when I say join, I mean I watched, took pictures and then rode my bike home when I got hot. I maybe stayed an hour. The part of the harvesting process I "participated" in was the threshing. A day or so before I showed up, they had already hand cut the stalks of rice. My cousin had invited me to help assuring me that there were no snakes. I told him I would be willing to try as long as there weren’t snakes. He said no snakes, but there were leaches and they hurt when they bite you. I was going to give it a go, but he went ahead and did it without me and told me the next day that he had already cut the rice. I was pretty tore-up about it (here you read loads of sarcasm). Actually, had he invited me to go that morning I probably would have. However, I’m sure he realized how much more work it would have been to invite me and show me how to do it. It’s definitely hard work. You have this hand tool -not sure the technical term, but my vocabulary would describe it as a skinny machete that looks like a hook(?)-and you are bending over cutting the rice stalks down. Now, as I’m sure you’ve ascertained from this blog, it’s freaking hot here. While it’s "cold" season (don’t believe it folks- it’s not cold) the rice fields seem to absorb the heat and hold it in. So when you’re in the field and there is a cool breeze you’re still hot because you can feel the heat from the rice escaping the stalks. Then, the sun comes out and it’s really hot. Being a rice farmer is hard work, which is almost the sole reason why I’ve decided to like rice.
This was the first year my family (that is my aunt and uncle, I’m not sure my parents grow rice- or at least I’ve not been invited to the field yet) used a machine to thresh the rice. It took them all morning to run it through the machine, can you imagine doing it by hand- I can’t?!? Harvesting rice takes a lot of people. As you can see from the pictures there are a lot of people involved. It was not only my dad, aunt, uncle and cousins, but neighbors and friends. Everyone helps everyone. Even with a machine it’s a lot of work- and that’s just the threshing!

Houses in Cambodia

2009-11-25T19:26:00.001-08:00

My dad was asking about houses in Cambodia, so I thought I would post some pictures of my house and houses that you typically find here in "Bodia". My house is the one that is cement (I am now exposed because I'm not really roughing it too much here)! My house is VERY nice by Khmer standards- as you can see from the other houses. The other picture next to my house is our kitchen. It is located in the back of the house. This is done because my family cooks with wood over a fire pit and it prevents the house from burning down completely should there be a fire. We also eat out back off to the right. My family eats at a table, but usually families eat on benches (larger than a bench but the height of one). You can see one in the picture of the kitchen to the right.

The picture of the house that is made of wood is probably the most common type of house here in Cambodia. It is a traditional house Khmer house. The housees are raised off the ground by stilts and have stairs to get into the house. These houses usually have a livingroom and two bedrooms. The family usually sleeps in one or two rooms upstairs or below the house when it is hot (which is pretty much year round). It's not uncommon for most of the family to sleep in the same room. My family is sort of an exception. My sisters and parents all have their own room. However, when I was in training, I had my own room and the rest of my family slept together in the front room.

The final house is made of thatched roofs with bamboo walls. On my way into town this morning I saw one that used cardboard for the walls. These are the cheapest houses to make. I will note that because I'm close to Vietnam and electricity is very cheap, it is very common to see TVs playing in these houses and electricity. However, this is mainly due to the close proximity to Vietnam.

2009-11-14T01:47:00.001-08:00

There are a few funny things that have happened to me since I last posted that I thought I would share.
1. My sister went to a party the other night and when she came home I swear I thought she said they had dog for dinner. Dog is a pretty common dish here- even though I have not been lucky enough to eat it yet. This is not as bad as one of my friends who, when he was at training, came home to a lot of people at his house because the family dog had been hit by a car. The celebration included dog curry per the beloved family dog. Actually, not many dogs here are “beloved.” I personally cannot stand any dogs here. They are all bones and half starved, they bark all the time, they carry disease, and they have fleas. I would also not pet one for $100. Ok..since writing this two days ago I actually pet a puppy. Now, it was a puppy and healthy adn loved and I immediately washed my hands and arms where the dog touched. Despite this, 99% of dogs here I would not touch!

2. Since I am on the subject of eating dogs, another funny conversation was when a neighbor girl and I were talking about how we both do not like to eat dog. She said it is chewy and does not taste good. I’m hoping word gets around that the "barrang" or foreigner/French does not like to eat dog.
3. My friend Dillion, who lives in the town closest to me, came to bring me my mail last week. I thought it a good idea to introduce him to the neighbors because they really like that (even though Dillion has way better Khmer than I do and I figured that would be a source of many a conversations revolving around: “why does Dillion have such good Khmer and you don’t?” To whichI responded, “Dillion is smart.”) Anyway, so I took Dillion next door and what do we see? Tons of SNAKES. Yep, my neighbor gets them in Vietnam (not sure how) and then sells them. He also sells frogs. They are stored in huge burlap bags or buckets. Dillion and I did not stay long. Oh, yes, people here eat these, too. I will add that frog legs are very delicious. Also, Dillion added to my vanity about being "hard-core" because he confirmed that my road is totally Peace Corps. He thought it would take him a 1/2 an hour, but it took him over an hours (it takes me that long, too).
4. On a walk the other night I stopped to chat with an old yay (they are pretty inescapable). Anyway, I answered a couple of her questions, but then she asked me something I had no idea what she was saying. So, I said, “Sorry, I don’t understand.” To which she proceeded to act like she was nursing from me! I kid you not! Maybe she was saying, “Do you miss your mother?”

People here are also incredibly nice. The other day while on a bike ride a man asked me to join him for my favorite noodle dish. I had already eaten, but I think I will go to the restaurant next weekend. Also, my neighbor lady brings me fruit which is so kind because I know they don’t have a lot. One of the fruit sellers at the market gives me her best apples. My co-teachers are constantly buying me food or sweets. Thier generosity can be overwhelming knowing that they have so little. Even in the markets we always say that we are volunteers, thus, people should not rip us off just because we are white or foreign. However, the reality is that even as volunteers we make more than them.

The Tree

2009-11-02T01:11:00.001-08:00

Ok...so, I am unable to post pictures, but I have a funny story to share and a little time to write. Dad, I hope you can picture how this could happen. Maybe looking at the picture of the road I posted on the last post will help.
So, last week I ran into some trees on my way home from the Provential Capital. Peace Corps came to my site to visit and to make sure everything was going well and to fix anything with my schedule, etc. that they could fix. They then took me into the Provential Town where I had to stay the night because the ride was too far. So, early the next morning (think 6:00 a.m.) I started the 2- 2 1/2 hour bike ride home. I got to the site of my friend Dillion and then headed down the horrible road toward home. The day before I discovered that the other way is 37K whereas this way is 20-24K. About 15 minutes in, as I was riding on the side of the road because the real road was impossible to ride along, I saw trees (someone threw out the possibility that it could have been bamboo? not sure about that, just saw lots of leaves) in the distance covering the path. To myself I thought, Oh, I don't need to get on the road. I'll just duck a little and make it just fine. I think I did this last time somewhere along the road and it ended okay." So, I did. About mid-way through, as I was covering my eyes with my left arm, squinting my eyes, and peddling quite fast, I felt a sharp, piercing pain just below my eyes. Once I emerged I saw the blood. A lot of it actually. That's when I sort of panicked. I threw my bike to the ground and realized I was bleeding a lot and everywhere. As I was digging through my bag looking for my handkerchief an old "yah"(or grandma), I kind you not, she stopped, gave me a mango fruit rollup thing, pointed at the blood all over my face, said "blood" and then continued to walk away. It was bizarre. Anyway, I then called peace corps who was on their way to Dillion's site for his site visit. They had me bike to his moms house (who already is not happy I bike to my site and was very upset with my face). They then took me to the doctor/nurse that works at the house across the street. He cleaned up the blood and told me I needed stitches. I didn't think the cut was that deep (butterfly bandaide) so I said I didn't want stitches. Can you imagine? Stitches in Cambodia from some guy's house? That would definitley leave a scar. The peace corps nurse then suggested that we get a second opinion. We then drove back to the hospital in Svay Rieng where they said I didn't need stitches. However, they did put this nice "bandage"on my face. You would have thought have my cheek was missing. Peace Corps then dropped me off at the other, longer dirt road in which I rode the rest of the 18 K home-bandage and all. People gave me the funniest stares. It took ALL I had not to take the bandage off. Not only did it obstruct my vision, but I looked like a complete idiot. I decided to look like a really crazy foreigner rather than risk an infection. One funny bit of info the doctor gave me at the hospital was to not get the wound wet. I bet she did not factor in the 18 K bike ride at 1:00 in the afternoon in Cambodia. It's impossible. As for a scar? Oh, I hope not! It's scabbed over nicely. If anything it makes for a good story. Everyone, I mean everyone, asks about it. Ladies at the market, men in coffee shops, the list goes on. This weekend my friend Kellee and I were drinking coffee at a coffee shop in Svay Rieng and this nice man bought our coffee because we were Americans and we were helping Camboida. His friend had a huge gash/scar across his cheek and just under his eye. He said we were the same. I said "Jah, doit k'nea" or "yes, the same," but inside my head a loud, shrill voice was saying "I better not!!!" Sorry, I wish I could post my pictures...I guess you'll all have to wait in suspense until next time I bike into town. I'm actually going to be biking back to my site tomorrow pretty early and this time I PROMISE to be careful. However, I will let you know that after my accident I did do a couple hours of reading in "Where There Are No Doctors" and have an idea of how to splint my arm should I break it?!?

2009-10-28T21:53:00.000-07:00

Saturday 24 October 2009
Today I went to the Watt for a party with my familiy. I had assumed that it was the Watt in town or at least the one that is a 5 minute bike ride. Nope. It was the Watt that is 25 minutes away in another village and the only reason I thought I knew where it was is because I decided to go for a bike ride this morning and kind of happened upon it. Or, rather I saw the entrance to the Watt with a banner that said something in Khmer and had today’s date. Good thing I know enough Khmer to ask for directions and when I was getting close these “yays” or grandmas directed me in the correct direction. The family sent me first since I have to ride my bike and they came later on Moto. When I got there I saw a teacher at the school who I recognized. She took me inside the Watt complex where I kid you not there was a street fair ride (the one with the cars or motos that go in a circle), balloons, tons of loud music, people in the watt sitting down getting blessed, and tons of food. My teacher friend insisted I eat and then passed me off to some of her friends who I sort of recognized but could not place where. Anyway, so I sit down at a table with them and then people brought us food to eat. Two of the guys serving us actually spoke English very well. One said in English with a tone of voice that was somewhat disdainful, “Are you French?” To which I responded, “No, American.” Everything changed. He smiled and was visibly excited that I was American. Turns out he had a Peace Corps volunteer as a teacher in Prey Vieng (the province next to me). He’s a teacher in this village. I spoke to him for a bit and then it was time to eat. The rest of the night kind of felt like I was watching a foreign movie with no subtitles. I think that maybe that is the best way to describe being in large gatherings where you don’t speak the language, even though this is not completely accurate because you’re actually taking part. The entire time you have no idea what to do or what people are trying to say to you. You just sit there, smile a lot, eat what is before you and follow people when they motion you to go somewhere. Despite my inability to communicate, people here are extremely kind and generous. Like this family that allowed me to eat with them. I could barely say anything to them, but they clearly enjoyed my presence. You could feel their generosity. I so badly wanted to express to them how much I appreciated their kindness and tell that it could have been extremely awkward for me to wait alone for my family to arrive, but instead all I could say was that my family was here and “thank you a lot.” I then went and sat with my family and two other couples that I had seen before but couldn’t at first remember where. Then I remembered that they were both police officers and lived next door! I was then socially forced to eat another bowl of rice and curry. Then lucky enough for me it was time to go home. Good thing, there was a huge storm coming in and it was dark. I forget the statistic, but a lot of Cambodians die because of lightening. However, it’s not the lightening that kills them rather it’s the fact that no one knows CPR. My host parents then followed me home. Me on my bike and them on their moto. I tell you what, riding home in the dark on a horrible road with only the light of a moto was actually somewhat fun and sort of a game. Seeing how fast you can ride and all the while trying to avoid huge holes in the road, mud which will causes your tires to slide, people walking and occasionally livestock! Somehow I made it home. The whole time I was riding home I just kept thinking, “is this really my life?” This happens quite regularly still. Eating lunch and seeing banana trees, riding my bike through rice fields that seem to never end and of course being the only American for miles. I guess when I stop asking this question I could realize that I’m bored.
Wednesday 21 October, 2009
Tonight as I was going for a bike ride, I saw people standing outside the health center and one of the nurses that I know. I decided to stop in because I’m never really in any sort of a hurry here and dropping in never seems to be a problem. As I ride up I see a patient lying on a hospital bed in the front of the lawn. He wasn’t moving so I was uncertain, honestly, if he were dead or alive. I soon found the answer to that question as the doctor put a tube up his nose and the man moved only a little. That’s when I decided I should leave and would ask questions tomorrow. I couldn’t help but think about how awful it would be to be sick here. While my hospital appears to be run very well, there are few conveniences available for the possibility of comfort. Take a hospital bed as an example. In the states patients have beds that move, have a reasonably comfortable mattress, a pillow, sheets, and a remote to change the channel on the TV. Here they look like something you’d see from a movie set in the 1950s from a psych ward. Or, if you watch Alias (I’ve been watching Alias because I finished first season of 24 and am waiting for the second), the episode where Jennifer Gardner goes into a hospital in Bulgaria or somewhere, they have beds similar to those ones at my Health Center. Regardless, they are metal, rusted and lack mattresses. This is obviously one of the more trivial reasons why being sick in Cambodia- as a Cambodian- is not desirable.
Since I haven’t quite got this place all figured out, I’ve been trying to explore new areas. On Wednesdays I ride my bike; whereas, normally I go for walks. A good hour or more bike ride keeps me in shape for the long trip into the provincial capital which hasn’t yet gotten easier. I attribute that to the fact that I am fortunate enough to be hauling packages home full of wonderful things from America like books and peanut butter and candy! This last time home my bag actually fell in the mud. Before I left, my family insisted that I take the other way because the road is better. This other way ended up tacking 7K onto my ride. Now, when you are already going 20K, another 7 is pure torture (ACTUALLY, I wrote this last week, yesterday, Peace Corps came to pick me up and we drove into the Provential town this way and it measured 37K; which, is about 23 miles!!!!) So, on my way home I decided to take the shorter, but more bumpy and muddy road. All morning it had rained so I decided to spend a couple hours on the internet in hope that it would stop long enough for me to make it home. No such luck; however, it only sprinkled so I guess it could have been a lot worse. When I got to the cratered road I realized that if I made it home without falling in the mud a miracle would have taken place. About an hour of biking on that road I came to a spot in the road that was nearly impassable without going through standing mud; however, there was a ridge between the two huge holes in the road I decided to brave. Now, my bag was in the basket on the back of my bike with a red poncho protecting it from the rain. I had just said hello to the nice lady staring at the crazy foreigner riding her bike and wearing her bike helmet when I decided to brave the ridge. I got about half way through and I heard the splash! I quickly jumped off my bike and went to rescue my downed bag which had sunk to the bottom of the pond of water. If not for that red poncho everything would have been completely ruined. The thing that struck me as odd was that I wasn’t upset at all. As I got on my bike I kept thinking that this should really make me mad, but it didn’t. I guess I knew I was lucky because it wasn’t me sitting in that mud puddle. Then I would have been mad.
Anyway, my exploring tonight took me on an irrigation dam through rice fields. It was breathtakingly beautiful. I’ve decided I need to take a camera with me on these bike rides. I see some of the most beautiful scenes that I would love to capture despite a pictures innate failure to really capture what you see. Tonight I saw two teenage girls walking through the rice fields with hoes in hand headed to their plot, I suppose. One of my favorites from the other day was these two boys riding water buffalo through the fields. This reminds me, I want to ride a water buffalo. I just put it on my list of “things to do in life.” Right now the rice is a brilliant shade of green. It’s even brighter when a storm is coming in and the sky is a deep blue. I love the contrast. It makes each more intense.

Life in K Ro

2009-10-17T21:28:00.000-07:00

Sorry it's been so long since I last updated everyone with what's been going on! I thought I had internet, but the day I went to use it at school it wasn't working...whatever that means. So, I will try to catch everyone up to speed without being over boring or making this too long!
After going to Phnom Penh for swear-in I ended up riding with some other volunteers in a taxi to my Provincial Town where I hoped to be able to catch a taxi to my site. However, once I got into town I couldn't find anything going to my town for a decent price. So, I ended up staying in a guest house for the night and my friend Jacquiline's host dad knew someone going to my town the next day. Around 3, a husband and wife in a huge truck hauling bikes and other miscellaneous goods picked me up. They then took me to another town and a taxi took me home. At one point, we were waiting in front of this huge building that stores rice and then a taxi comes and they point that I should get in the taxi. I was so confused, but just did what they said due to my lack of other options. Both the groups of people knew the previous volunteer at my site so I felt completely safe. Getting to my site sort of stresses me out, but now I have a bike so I'm just planning on biking into the Provincial Town. I'm sure this will get annoying, but until my Khmer gets better it's easier.
The school that I'm teaching at is pretty nice. It's clean and very well run. The school director is extremely nice and genuinely concerned for the well being of his students- this is not always the case in Cambodia. I am teaching 16 hours a week, Mon.-Wed. and Friday. On Thursdays I volunteer at the health center. I will be teaching grades 7,9,10,11 and 12! Peace Corps recommends teaching only grades 10 and 11, but the teachers that need the most help with their English are in the lower grades so I think I will stick with my schedule. I guess if I don't like it, I'll change it later. Right now at the Health Center I just go and try to talk with people. I also started giving the doctors and other staff English lessons. I've yet to meet with the director to find out what he sees as my role there! It's on my to-do list for this week. The first time I went, I went by myself. I just showed up and tried to explain what I was doing there. I'm still not sure they completely understand, but it seems they are getting more and more used to me coming. I just kept thinking about how weird that would be for some foreigner to come to a hospital in America (and they couldn't speak English) and just kind of hang out and talk with the patients. Oh, well..it seemed to me that they thought it was the most normal thing that the foreigner should come and hang out at the hospital.
I really like everything about my site and have it pretty good. Last week I rode my bike to the nearest volunteer to get my mail and it took an 1 1/2 one way on a VERY muddy road. I wanted to post some pictures but this computer doesn't have a slot for my memory card...maybe next time! I almost fell in the mud 5 times! My feet and bike were completely covered in mud. I actually really enjoyed it. I also got about 3 packages with tons of candy and other wonderful gifts!
A week ago I walked into Vietnam! I go for walks every night and people around town think it's crazy! They even told my family that! Anyway, one night they had my cousin go with me. He took me to this Pagoda on the outside of town. Behind the Pagoda was nothing but rice fields and Vietnam. He showed me his house way across the rice fields. Then he gave me the option to walk home the way we came or through the fields (Vietnam). Of course I picked the fields. About half way through the fields he said, "ok, we're back in Cambodia." He also showed me his family's plots where they grow rice. It gave me a whole new appreciation for all the rice I eat. Really, growing rice here is such hard work (which is one major reason people think it crazy to walk for fun or exercise). My cousin is a teacher, but because their salary is so low (about $50 a month) all the teachers I know farm. I asked him if he enjoyed it and he said no, but he needed to help his family. I ate all my rice for dinner that night.
Well...I think that's it for now! I'll have access to the internet in about 2 weeks unless a miracle happens and the school's internet starts to work! I'm also looking into getting internet on my computer...we'll see!

2009-09-25T19:08:00.000-07:00

So, it’s official, I’m a Peace Corps Volunteer. Last night in Phnom Penh we officially said the oath that the military takes swearing us to defend our country. It was actually a very official ceremony. The ministry of education and the US ambassador spoke, and the Cambodian Secretary of State was in attendance. A lot of old peace corps people came as well. I chatted a bit with a guy from USAID who works in Cambodia who was a volunteer in the 1970s. He told me I shouldn't have a problem getting a job after I'm done with my service. That was good to hear!
On Thursday of this week I took a language test and passed. This was such a relief. Basically, my Khmer is good enough to get me around. I’m sure it’s going to improve once I actually get to my site because very few people speak English- and my family pretty much speaks none. Nonetheless, it was such a good feeling to not have the pressure of a language test looming over my head!
Today I’m in Phnom Penh for one more night. I’m probably going to get some essential Western food to carry me through the first three months. I’ve probably not mentioned this before, but I’m not allowed to leave my Provence for the first three months of service. This for most people is not quite so bad because their Provincial towns have western food. However, mine does not. It has been rumored that there is a grocery store on the Vietnamese/Cambodia border. The only downfall is that it is a no mans land where you leave your passport at the border. I think some of us are going to go before Thanksgiving in order to cook Western food.
Well...that's it for now. I'm not sure when I'll be able to post again!

2009-09-13T02:00:00.001-07:00

This past week about 11 of us volunteers have been traveling around Cambodia in a bus meeting different NGOS and organizations working in the health sector. Pretty much we think we are the luckiest people because everyone else is eating fish soup in the village (and apparently it has rained everyday and almost everyone is sick…kind of makes you feel bad that you’re getting to see Cambodia, learn about the work going on here in the health sector, eating Western food, and having access to the internet!)

The first day we went to Phnom Penh and met with an organization doing water sanitation. We were able to see the different water pumps they install and also look at the water filters they produce. Their water filters were made out of clay pots that used rice hull to filter out the bad/dangerous bacteria in the water (brilliant). They were also producing education videos cautioning against drinking water out of wells due to the high levels of arsenic in the water in Cambodia. It was completely fascinating. One program they did targeted kids and was in a format similar to that of Sesame Street. I wanted a copy because it also teaches children the Khmer alphabet and how to write the script! The next day we drove north to Kampong Chnam Provence. Due to the heavy rain the bridge we had to cross was out, so we had to take the “bamboo train.” Sounds exotic, yeah? That’s how I imagined it. Something like old world Asia. Nope. Essentially it is four wheels, bamboo and a motor (picture to the right). Anyway, it was raining and about 20 of us squeezed on this train that took us through the middle of nowhere. Along the hour to hour-and-a-half trip we actually met a real train! However, not to worry, the “bamboo train” is very easy to disassemble. We disassembled it about 4 times total. It was actually really fun and a real adventure that is definitely off the beaten path. The train took us to a pretty remote village where we were able to observe some of the work an NGO was doing in the realm of child malnutrition. We got to observe a community meeting talking about healthy eating habits. That night on our way to Pursat at about 5:00 our bus started smoking about an hour and a half away. So we pulled over and it was decided that the bus was not going to make it any further. I tell you what, breaking down in Cambodia is an interesting thing. The new bus was on its way but was 2 ½ hours away. Thus, the other option became to try to flag down a bus or taxi from the side of the road and hitch a ride to Pursat…and that is what we did. We literally laid branches in the road and finally (in the dark to add) a tour bus stopped and had enough seats for us to ride the entire way to Pursat! We were all relieved!

Currently, I am in Battambang. It’s a semi-popular tourist town. It’s been weird to see so many foreigners walking around since normally we’re the only ones! It’s absolutely beautiful! There is a river running through town, Buddhist temples everywhere and the architectural legacy of the French. Additionally, we’ve eaten some amazing Western food (and ice cream and real coffee!!!!!) Yesterday, we toured an NGO/ social enterprise organization that train those who are poor, disabled, and women rescued from the sex trade in digitalizing documents. For example, universities will contract this organization to digitize books, journals, etc. The social enterprising aspect of the organization is brilliant because it’s a business that pays for the majority of its mission (e.g not completely reliant on private funding). This NGO trains individuals in computer skills so that they are able to get jobs and pays for 60-100% of the tuition for a college degree.
This morning was kind of our day off. We headed to a village about 10K from Battambang to visit another peace corps volunteer. Her host dad is a health volunteer in the community. We were able to learn more about his role in promoting help within the community and the health needs of his community. It was very helpful for us since a lot of our role as health volunteers is health education. Here many have little to no knowledge relating to health, sanitation and basic nutrition. Actually, only recently has there been a push from the government for women to have their babies at the health center. Many did and still do go to traditional birth attendants or have them at home. Or, I've learned that in my province women will not eat or drink much during pregnancy so that the baby is smaller and easier to deliver. I mean can you imagine? Even if they do go to a health center they do not do any surgical procedures (or only very limited ones) so there is no way to do a cesarean or deal with other complications that may arise.

Next we went to the Wat (Buddhist Temple) across the street to look around. Currently going on is one of Cambodia’s largest holidays that lasts 15 days. I’ll blog about this more since next week I'll be attending the celebrations with my family in my training village. Anyway, we arrived in time for the feeding of the monks. They actually let us “barangs” or foreigners participate. I've somehow figured out how to successfully post pictures on my blog so you can find them in the slide show. It was awesome. After we left the Wat we went to an Ankorian temple. This, too, was a lot of fun. It’s good to see the ruins from the Ankor era….they are everywhere around Cambodia but all are different. Anyway, things are going well. Due to my daily internet access I'll try hard to post more entries and pictures. Oh, and the Khmer Rouge trial post is coming...I'm still working on it filling in some of the blanks.

Site Visit

2009-09-01T15:41:00.000-07:00

I just got back from visiting where I will live for the next two years. It was great and I think that I am really going to love it! My family are the nicest people in the world. Also, I'll have two sisters who are excited for me to be living with them (despite me taking one of their rooms!) On the amenities side of things, I have electricity 24-hours a day (they get it cheap from Vietnam), my own huge bed, and my own attached bathroom with a western toilet! Before coming, I could not have even imagined that a house could have all these things, but they do...so, I'll take it! Also, the community has really welcomed me. Because they have had a volunteer before they know what to expect. It seems that this will make my transition as a community member a lot easier. I wasn't going to learn to write Khmer but the volunteer did, so I have a feeling I'll have to. Also, she LOVED Khmer weddings and Khmer dancing. I've already been attempting to talk myself into being open to the idea of Khmer dancing.
Oh, one kind of funny thing that happened with my family was that at dinner the school director came to my house for dinner because he is friends with my family. We're all sitting down to eat and my dad starts filling these shot glasses with what I assumed to be water because it was from a water bottle. He then passed the shot glasses around the table to all the men and me. I thought, "weird, why not just cups..oh well." Then he toasted to me in Khmer and we all took drinks. I tell you what, that was not water!!! It was definitely rice wine and it burned all sorts of pain going down my throat definitely making my face turn red and I thought I might start a coughing fit.

Getting to my village was kind of crazy. Literally, I went to this market with the name of my taxi driver written in Khmer on a piece of paper and showed it to some of the drivers in the market. They then told me where he would normally be. Oh, I should note that someone had arranged for him to meet me in the market, so I wasn't just showing up even though that's kind of what you do...you just go to the market where your taxi and buses leave from and try to catch one. So, I go to where he should be and showed the paper to a security guard of sorts. He then proceeds to communicate in very little English and then Khmer that he will be at that market tomorrow! To which I respond, "impossible, I need him to come today." Then my driver actually calls me. Now, I speak VERY little Khmer and even more little on the phone because I've gotten the whole routine down of reading lips and using hand gestures as cues for what is actually being said therefore making the phone impossible to ascertain what's going on. I then decided to just hand the phone off to the guard. He then tells me that my driver is in another market and that he will flag down a moto for me to take to get to him. I then have to tell him I cannot ride motos, but that a tuk tuk I can take. So, he gets a tuk tuk driver who for $3 takes me about 20 miles across town. The entire time I kept thinking, "this is CRAZY" and that you really have to be trusting of other people. Anyway, somehow it all worked out. I met up with my driver and made it to my village in about 3 hours. I've found that you get what you expect here of people. Also, once people know you are here to teach English and are a volunteer (no worries I tell everyone I meet this and can do it in Khmer) people want to help you and protect you because they know how much of a service you're doing to their country and practically everyone wants to learn English.

Today is my last day in Phnom Penh which is sort of sad because of all the Western luxuries.
I'm kind of ready to get back to the village and finish training. Today we actually get to go to the tribunal of a former Khmer Rouge officer. It's VERY, VERY exciting. The genocide here happened 30 years ago, so it's kind of crazy that they would finally be trying this guy. He was a higher up that was over a massive killing program. I'll try to post more on this next time because it's all so interesting.

The next two years I will be.....

2009-08-27T10:29:00.000-07:00

Greetings from Phnom Penh! So, I am totally staying in a hotel in Phnom Penh with AC and hot water! I hardly know what to think. It's funny how something so normal in my former life is such a luxury! Anyway, Phnom Penh is awesome. Last night I ate at an amazing Indian restaurant and tonight at a Thai restaurant...and I actually felt full. It's been nice escaping the village life for the big, crazy city!

Two days ago I found out where I'll be living the next two years. The town I'm afraid I cannot really disclose on this medium, but if you email me I can totally tell you where it is located. My village is on the border of Vietnam. Literally, the border is right behind the school I'm going to teach at. I've been told I can stick my hand across the border and technically be in Vietnam, not the most comforting news being that I'll be in the middle of what I consider nowhere! At first I was EXTREMELY disappointed. It's nothing like I requested (the complete opposite really) and the last place I wanted to go on so many levels. However, with a little sleep and thinking about the site, I'm somehow kind of excited about it. It's small and in the middle of now where and in a VERY poor Provence. Other teachers I met today in the distract have said its really hard to get to. Apparently, it's about a 2 hour bike ride to the provincial town (or I can catch a ride with a guy that drives a big blue tractor to the provincial town daily..seriously). I'm also replacing an AMAZING PC volunteer. Apparently, the entire town cried when she left. Moreover, the PC staff had a community meeting explaining that the new volunteer (me) is not going to be like her. I unfortunately knew all this when I found out my site which initially disappointed me because I know how I'll constantly be compared to her and expected to act just like her. This is a reality in Cambodia, there is not much diversity and they expect people to act like other people because they value conformity. Moreover, its a society that says what they see. They think you're fat, they will tell you to their face, or they think you have acne on your face or you're of Asian decent (even though your definitely American) they will tell you because its what they see. Despite this and upon further reflection, I think it's going to be fine. IT seems to me like while its in the middle of nowhere and a very poor Provence, there is tons of work I can do to help. Luckily, part of my position is as a health volunteer so I'll get to work in a clinic at least a full day a week. Also, because there are no foreigners doing work in the area, I could potentially get to do some really neat stuff; which, I'm very excited about. The doctor at the health center said there is lots to do regarding pregnant mothers, TB and dengue. These are all things I'm very interested in. Also, in about 2 weeks I get to take an 8 day tour around Cambodia looking at different programs ranging from malnutrition to aids to orphanages to water borne disease! It's going to be most helpful when I get to my site. On top of all this I have some of the best people in my site...people who are soon to be like family to me. Also, I hear there is somewhat of a church at my site; which, if true I know I'll make it the two years.
In two days I get to visit my site and stay with my host family. I'll be certain to post about how it goes. Other than this...there is not too much going on! It's been pretty busy for me and will be until I swear into PC at the end of September.
I just thought I would inform all of where I'll be in the next few years. If anyone is interested in meeting up in Ho Chi Mann city...let me know...I plan on going sometime in Feb....hope all is well....

Busy week of teaching

2009-08-22T17:13:00.000-07:00

I feel like so much has happened since I've last posted! Last week I went to visit a volunteer about 2 hours north of Phenom Penh. It was good to see the life of a volunteer in a small, remote village (and that I don't want anything quite that remote, hopefully). It was also quite an adventure. We actually arranged our travel from our training village all the way to Phnom Penh then to her village. Phnom Penh is CRAZY- especially, without a map. However, our functional Khmer and lots of walking, got us to the right market with the right taxis and we made it safely. On both trips there and home we drove about 75-80 mph, had people puking in the seat in front of us, and filled the van beyond its capacity. This I'm finding out is normal here. Oh, I saw an elephant in Phenom Penh..it was awesome!
Last week we had our teaching practicum. We taught Monday- Sat. for one hour. We also practiced co-teaching with a Khmer teacher.My teaching partner and I got really lucky because our co-teacher had taught with a peace corps volunteer previously. Also, we had really smart students...so, we both felt like it was an easy week. Two other volunteers had co-teachers who said to their face that they were bad teachers. Ryan and I felt very fortunate after hearing that. I also recieved gifts from my students!!! I got some beautiful cards of Cambodia with thank-you notes, 2 hair clips and a bag of amazing fruit we don't have in the states. It's called um kum. It's sweet and sour. Literally, it tastes like cinnamon apple in a way. I love it. Also, this week we had site placement interviews which definitely compounded the level of stress. We find out on Tuesday this week where we will be living the next two years. Since I'm a health volunteer I will be placed relatively close to another volunteer. I'm really happy about that. Also this week we are going to Phenom Penh to meet with who we will be co-teaching with at our site. I'm really excited to go and stay all night in Phenom Penh. Apparently, our hotel has air conditioning, western toilets and running water (rumor has it that its warm water, too!)- the little things that make me happy these days! After our conference we are visiting our site and the family we will live with. It's going to be a crazy week. I'm looking forward to going to the western grocery market in phenom Penh to buy milk and cheese and peanut butter, oh, and chocolate! I'm also going to get an hour massage for $10!!!! We also get to eat western food, like last week when I was in Phenom Penh I ate Mexican..it was so good..and no rice!
Now...crazy/funny stories:
1. Mom told me to post this one because it's pretty funny. I was at my sisters parents house and there was this drunk guy that kept bothering me. Since he was in the military, they could not do anything about it because they would "loose face'". So, grandma, took me to her house so I could rest. We got upstairs and she pulled out a mat and some blankets from a grain bag. So, I lay down to see ants crawling all over the pillow, blanket and now me! In my mind I was like, don't freak out...kill as many as possible. Then I noticed grandma was nearing me...on the verge of spooning me (if you don't know the word spoon ask someone young...). I could feel her breathing no me and getting closer by the second. Luckily, my phone rang and she rolled over! Personal space is not a universal concept, I'm learning!
2. My friend Philip just came back to Cambodia because about 4 days in he learned that his dad died. Now, he is back and lives with my sister's sister- so we're cousins. On Sundays I usually go to their house and eat coconut and stare blankly as the women in the family speak Khmer to me. Anyway, his family kept saying "wisten" which he assumed to mean "question". So, he had a Khmer staff come and find out what questions they had. The Khmer staff was confused because they didn't have any questions, rather found out that they were referring to me! They just cannot say Kristin. It was all pretty funny!
3. The other night I had to pee so bad I went in my pot I use for boiling water!!!!!!!! It happened last night, too!

Well...I think that's it for now! I'll write later this week to tell all where I'll be living for the next few years! Also, if anyone is bored, you can feel free to send me snail mail! I received a letter from my grandma and Linda who I worked with at KSB. I'm only letting myself open one a day..but it totally makes my day!

Host Family

2009-08-10T17:36:00.000-07:00

Hey all! So, I was able to catch a tuk tuk into town early before our all day training seminar (imagine motorcycle pulling a cart that seats 4-9 people...as in it seats 4 normally, but in Cambodia they cram as many people in as possible. This morning we had 9 of us!)
So, I thought I would describe my host family situation. I live in a store front house on the busy street. I live with my Bong Sereye (older sister), here 21 year old brother, and her two kids (7 and 4). My sister's husband lives (works???) in California. My sister does nails from her house and my brother works for an NGO (I think they do micofinance). The host family situation has gotten a lot better. My room doesn't have any windows, so after I got a fan it was much more comfortable.
On Sundays we go and visit my sister and brother's parents and two sisters. It is so much fun. They live next door to each other in the country near tons of rice patties. They also have more traditional Khmer houses. These houses are wood and built on stilts. The kitchen and bathroom are downstairs and usually not attached to the house. Under the house is a breeze way with hammocks! I love hammocks! My friend Meghan's family has hammocks and I'm making it a habit to go to her house and just lay in the hammock. IN fact, most Cambodians do this in the afternoon because it's so HOT! At my "parents" house we usually sit on this large table and they ask me tons of questions in Khmer. Normally, I respond "awt yul" or I don't understand or pretend I understand. This involves lots of smiling, nodding my head and laughing! ONe of my favorite things about sundays is that my parents have many coconut trees...so someone climbs the trees and gets the coconuts! I then drink its juice and then they chop it in half and we eat the fresh coconut with palm sugar (like brown sugar but more liquidy)! IT is AMAZING! They also had peanuts..however, they are not roasted so they are mushy. I did have them roasted the other day and they were good!
Overall, I''m enjoying my homestay. It has really helped me to understand Khmer better and to practice it. Here not many people have heard a foreigner speak Khmer so even if you say the words right they might not understand. That can be kind of frustrating, but understandable. One sort of awkward things is that my family is always telling me I should marry my host brother. That's VERY awkward. However, that will NEVER happen...so, next time I'm going to say I don''t want any brothers over 15! After my language training I will live with a family. I can understand why. It is a lot easier to get integrated into the community if you live with a family because you are part of their family. Their friends want to meet you, have you over for dinner, etc. I like that. The people across the street always feed me and let me play with their baby. It really makes you feel like a part of the community; which, is a huge reason I'm here! Okay...got to get to my seminar! Hope you all are doing well! I love hearing from your comments..keep them coming. Also, if there is anything you want me to post, let me know!

First Few Weeks in Cambodia

2009-08-07T22:57:00.000-07:00

Finally, I am able to post again. I am now in the village of Traing. As you can ascertain from my lack of posts, I don’t have internet. The group was split into 2 villages and mine lacks some of the nicer amenities life has to offer. The other village actually has the internet and a gas station dubbed “Club Tela” (actually, it’s called Tela, but a lot of PC volunteers go daily due to the air conditioning, beer and ice cream). Us in Training like to think that our “roughing it” will pay off when were transferred to our permanent sites which will likely resemble our current state. We all actually really like our village because it’s quite quaint. ANYWAY, life is good. I have had to make a few adjustments and things that were once shocking now cease to faze me in the least! Over the past week I’ve compiled a list of funny stories…here goes:
1. After doing my laundry (which is so HARD because it’s done by hand w/ a bucket on the ground where you literally scrub and scrub and you have at least an audience of three watching you, telling you you’re not doing it right! (They think it funny I’ve never washed my clothes.) Anyway, it was raining in the morning so my sister put them in the kitchen to dry. The sun then came out so while I was taking a nap, she hung them outside. After my nap, I went outside to wait for my friend Meghan to go to class and what do I see? Yes, you bet. All my clothes- this includes underwear, bras, etc..hanging for anyone passing through town to see!!! Literally, I grabbed all my underwear and bras and took them to my room to dry. This would not be a big deal if I lived in the country. But, literally, I live on the only major road going through town. It’s very busy. While most trucks neglects the speed limit- if there even is one- driving 50 mph…all passing could see!
2. I am officially used to taking a shower with a bucket and using a “squat toilet” (imagine: a ceramic hole in the ground). Oh, and they don’t use toilet paper in Cambodia. There is a tub (larger than a bathtub) filled with water. I’ll let you imagine how one wipes…….
3. At breakfast the other morning, my friend Abby informed me and my language group that during the night she peed in a bag then poured it off her balcony. To which we all responded, great idea, but you should really get a chamber pot. Yep, chamber pots are used here and brilliant for those with bathrooms not attached to the house.
4. At breakfast I told the waiter that I wanted coffee in my eyes! He laughed so hard! Khmer (say Kh-my) is so hard to speak…..
5. Jess, another girl in my language groups wakes up most mornings to the sound of rats running in her room. One morning she even woke up to one staring at her!
6. My little brother likes to smell me. One day he even smelled my feet. I knew this was sort of a sign of affection and didn’t think much about it- except it being kind of weird. However, the other day I was informed that sniffing/smelling someone is like kissing them! I now always wear my shoes….
7. The other day in the capital of our Provence a group of us ate dinner at a brothel. Yep, a brothel. The sad thing is we didn’t know it. The guys thought it was weird that the women were touching them and grabbing their chests and telling them how handsome and strong they were…but, yep, we didn’t put two-and-two together!
8. I ate ants the other day. They are so good!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Seriously, once you get over the fact that literally, there are ants in your rice, they are tasty! They are crunchy and salty. YumJ
9. Men here pee anywhere. Seriously, I’ve seen them peeing on walls or buildings on the sidewalks of busy roads. My little brother will pee off the cement slab during dinner.
10. Normally, when you meet someone new here these are the questions they ask you. In order: What’s your name? How old are you? Are you married? Do you have a boyfriend? How much do you weigh? How much money do you make?
11. Another volunteer was asked by her host family, “How many Kilos do you weigh?” She responds, “I don’t know how many Kilos I weigh.” Host family responds, “we have a scale.”
12. Another volunteer allowed a girl who he thought was his host sister was his clothes. Then she gave him a ring. Then one night he came home and his host family told him to go into the living room for dinner. When he gets inside, his “host sister” is waiting for him alone with dinner. She then offers him a bracelet (to which he declines). He now finds out that he is engaged to this girl who is NOT his host sister, but a neighbor!!!!!!! Opps!

I’m really enjoying my time here in Cambodia. Everyone is really nice. As I said earlier, I live on a busy road. One nice thing about it is that I’ve gotten really integrated into the community. Many people are friends with my sister and brother and just stop by to either look at the foreigner or to practice English. It’s nice because I see these people in the market, roads, etc. They will invite me to sit with them. That’s kind of a charades’ game b/c I don’t speak Khmer..or they don’t usually speak English. Despite this I feel welcomed and like we’re friends.
The food is good as well. I eat so much rice!!!! I’ve never eaten so much rice in my life. Also, they don’t think I eat enough. I cannot imagine how I could eat more. The fruit here is also AMAZING. They have so much I’ve never eaten in my life. It’s all very good.
If anyone has anything they think I should post about…just let me know. I feel as if there is so much to talk about; however, this post is already long enough. So, until next time……

I made it!

2009-07-23T22:08:00.000-07:00

I made it! It's been a long few days! I'm not a big fan of flying, but all the flights were great. Crazy? In San Fran, the PC put us up in a really nice hotel in Japan town. The girl that was supposed to be my roommate didn't come so I got upgraded to an AWESOME suite!!!! IT was so nice! Another guy, I guess, left mid way through training. So, there is now 45 of us. On the flight to Japan from San Fran I was able to learn most of the Khmer Alphabet (all 33 constanents). In Thailand we stayed at another hotel (last taste of luxury) which enabled us to sleep about 4 hours and shower- it was divine! Then this morning (or 12 hours opposite of the midwest) we arrived! About 6 people from the group got bumped (despite many, many attempts to get them on our flight despite our reserved seats) so they fly in tonight. I really feel kind of bad for them because they are missing out on all the Phnom Penh fun scheduled for today!
I will say its all I imagined! Ok...gotta go..I'm at this internet cafe and we have to go...post later!

Less than Two Weeks

2009-07-09T16:37:00.000-07:00

As of last Tuesday I have less than two weeks until I leave! I am flying from St. Louis on Tuesday the 21st to San Fransisco. I will then have orientation that afternoon lasting until that evening and then the next day I head out! We will be flying from San Fran to Japan to Bangkok to Cambodia. I am definitely not excited about all those flights, but excited to get to go....

Time seems to be going so fast. For the Fourth I was able to spend some time with my family at the Lake of the Ozarks enjoying the sun and some boating. I then made my way to Springfield to say some last good-byes. I ended up having to come home early because I had a spider bite on my arm that was making me VERY nervous. I'm now on something to clear it up. Other than that I'm trying to get my affairs in order. Today I almost got the paper work for my thesis finished. I had to do some last minute editing and I had to write an abstract. I'm sure there are still some errors in the text, but I am so done with it. Moreover, this medication I'm on gives you a headache and causes dizziness. Definitely I felt those side effects as I was trying to get it finished. Oh, well...it's printed on the expensive paper. I didn't make it in time to turn it into the archive department because I ended up having to manually feed 89 pages through the printer. So, tomorrow I will again be driving to Macomb to FINALLY be finished with my Masters. What a good feeling!

I'm also trying to decide what to pack. I did a trial run the other night. There are some things I packed that I've negotiated with myself all day to not pack. That's what's hard. There are things you want to take, but know you won't really use them that much. It seems hard to really know what I'll use and need. I guess it doesn't really matter too much. I can get almost anything I need there, so if I need something I decide to leave I can just buy it there.

I was also told that I will probably have Internet only about once a month. However, I do plan on saving posts on my flash drive and then when I get Internet posting it. So, while it will be updated once a month, I'll try to include a couple posts each time I can get the Internet.

So, that's it for now! Next post I'll be in Cambodia....

Cambodia, not China

2009-06-08T21:10:00.000-07:00

The goal of this blog is to keep family and friends updated when I am in Cambodia. I know many are thinking, "I thought you were going to China?" Well, I was. Apparently, the Chinese had problems with my X-Rays and most likely would not let me in. So, after declining my nomination to China I was offered a different post in Cambodia. This makes me VERY excited because it seems to be more of the experience I was expecting when I applied for Peace Corps.

Here are some of the brief details I know of my future. I'm leaving July 20th. I'll be teaching English and potentially doing teacher training. In China I was supposed to teach at the college level; however, in Cambodia those positions are few (and filled), so I'll be teaching 12th graders. It doesn't really matter too much to me. That's really about all I know as of yet.

With a little over a month left until I leave, I still have lots going on. I have one wedding remaining (Rachel's this weekend). I'll be spending the Fourth of July at my parents lake house with the entire fam on my mom's side. Then, hopefully, will get to meet my sister's new baby girl -Jordyn Anne- sometime around July 15th! Then off to Cambodia for 2 years! It seems kind of crazy, but what I want to do. Not sure when I'll post next, but hopefully once I find out more details (eg. where I fly out of, etc.). Until then....