The longest Monday of my life...
San Fran was fantastic. the journey between there and Phnom Penh, not so much. But I love this country. It is a strange mix of poverty and vibrancy. I'm still not sure what to make of it. Phnom Penh is filled with color, and also sobering reminders of the past. We hadn't left the airport ten minutes before I saw a landmine victim. Here in Kamong Chhnang, the pace is a little slower. Weare revcieving training before we meet our host families on Wednesday. I'm ready to go. I still am a bit nervous about the language, but I'm good at charades so I should do okay. Some interesting thigs about this place: People shower with their clothes on (most showers are outside). A single moped is capable of transporting five people and pig at almost 60 miles an hour. In Phhom Penh, people take their elephants for walks, and don't clean up what the elephant leaves behind. The huge nationwide elections left things relatively unchanged, Cambodia is fill with plastic chairs, and the people are some of the nicest I've ever met. So far it has been relaxing. In Phnom Penh we had a dance party. Here, I've spent many mornings reading at sunrise while being serenaded by the Cambodian People's Party, and many afternoons lazily sitting about in the rain. I'm ready to get to my host family, to have my own space. I love the other trainees, they are all fantastic people. We've been getting a lot of help from some of the current volunteers, who are helping to calm many of our fears as well as laugh at us when we try to order food in Khmer. I ordered scrambled eggs and coffee with sweetened condensed milk all by myselft. I was quite proud. Wednesday we move to training villages, from then til october we will wait and see where we are placed. Until then, I love and miss you all!
28 July, 2008
21 July, 2008
Guess What!?! I can get calls for free! So feel free to call as much as you can afford. On Thursday I will be getting a phone. To call me, dial 011 855 17 790 246. The 011 part gets you out of the
PCV
Peace Corps (
Not to fear, anything sent to other address will find its way to me, it just might get there a little faster with this new one.
Other things of note, most vendors would rather be paid in US dollars than Cambodian riels, so no inconvenient currency conversion. All volunteers will be at least 50 miles from
It has really been a whirlwind. I forgot my phone, so I’m sorry I haven’t been able to call any of you. I just want you all to know that I love and miss you already. It might be while before you here from me, be assured that I’m eating strange food and sweating and learning a lot. I will get in touch as soon as possible.
Love again,
02 July, 2008
My plan is to travel the world in a panda suit
1 July, 2008.
My diploma finally arrived yesterday. It is the most expensive sheet of paper I am ever likely to behold. But it’s official, only two months after I walked across the stage. But two months of unemployment lead to boredom, and no money with which to alleviate said boredom, so thankfully I will start work soon. I’ve spent the last two months visiting people, and twiddling my thumbs. The frustrating part of boredom was that I knew there were things I had to do. However, the Peace Corps hadn’t given me any clue as to where I would be spending the next two years, making preparation next to impossible. I do, however, know where I’m going now. After being told I would be placed in Latin America, then the Middle East, then Eastern Europe, the Peace Corps has finally made up its mind. Cambodia. I couldn’t be more thrilled or freaked out. At the moment, I’m vacillating between “I’ll be in Cambodia in three weeks!!!!! *high pitched happy voice*” and “I’ll be in Cambodia in three weeks!!!!*super stressed out voice*
Most of the stress has to do with clothes. Boo. When I thought I was going to the Middle East, some of you might remember that I quite excited about the prospect of being completely covered. I mean, you don’t have to worry about clothes or hair, just roll out of bed, throw on a chador (the full body veil many Muslim women wear) and no one will know that you’re still in your pajamas. My mom said that if that happened, I would become a total slob. She didn’t want that to happen. So mom got her wish. Cambodia is a very formal country. I will be teaching in collared shirts in long skirts. These are quite possibly my least favorite items of clothing ever. Finding appropriate clothes has been pretty hard.
However, Cambodia’s other attributes far outweigh this challenge. Here are a few things I have gleaned from my research:
· RICE!!! Rice makes me happy. I will be expected to eat tons of my favorite food.
· A bike. I will receive my very own mountain bike. I don’t have to worry about buying gas or getting ripped off by local moto drivers.
· Hammocks. It seems that every home has a hammock, and that a great deal of time is passed reclining in them.
· Architecture. The Khmer empire was influenced by the Ottomans, Arabs, Chinese, Hindus, etc. Their buildings are a fusion of these styles, and they are magnificent. I can’t wait to see them up close.
Overall, I’m super excited. There are some things I will miss. I went to my hairdresser for the last time today. It was kind of sad. On the way back I had to slow down for the tractors and combines that are on the road, trying to get in the field and finish while the weather holds. I’m sitting in my mom’s garden as I write this. These pictures were all taken there. In a way, it seems like I’m crazy to leave my amazing family, but it’s definitely time to go. I’ll miss my dad singing along to the free credit report commercials and watching him scare mean cats with a nerf gun (don’t ask, you just have to know my dad, I swear, no harm came to the cats). I’ll miss hanging out with mom while she works in the garden and having debates with my brother.
It’s all a little overwhelming, but I think that’s a good thing. I know that I don’t really have a handle on it, and that the people I’ll meet in the next two years have just as much to teach me as I have to teach them. I’m not gonna lie, I feel kind of inadequate. While that expensive piece of paper says that I’m skilled in international relations, I’ve never really worked with SE Asia before. Latin America, that would be much easier (gracias a mis amigos bolivianos). I‘ve taught ESL for four years, but this is first time I’ve ever been out of the country. My family has been amazingly supportive, and school friends, I miss you guys like crazy. PLEASE keep in touch. I will try and get you all cool stuff from Cambodia, just tell me what you want.
My diploma finally arrived yesterday. It is the most expensive sheet of paper I am ever likely to behold. But it’s official, only two months after I walked across the stage. But two months of unemployment lead to boredom, and no money with which to alleviate said boredom, so thankfully I will start work soon. I’ve spent the last two months visiting people, and twiddling my thumbs. The frustrating part of boredom was that I knew there were things I had to do. However, the Peace Corps hadn’t given me any clue as to where I would be spending the next two years, making preparation next to impossible. I do, however, know where I’m going now. After being told I would be placed in Latin America, then the Middle East, then Eastern Europe, the Peace Corps has finally made up its mind. Cambodia. I couldn’t be more thrilled or freaked out. At the moment, I’m vacillating between “I’ll be in Cambodia in three weeks!!!!! *high pitched happy voice*” and “I’ll be in Cambodia in three weeks!!!!*super stressed out voice*
Most of the stress has to do with clothes. Boo. When I thought I was going to the Middle East, some of you might remember that I quite excited about the prospect of being completely covered. I mean, you don’t have to worry about clothes or hair, just roll out of bed, throw on a chador (the full body veil many Muslim women wear) and no one will know that you’re still in your pajamas. My mom said that if that happened, I would become a total slob. She didn’t want that to happen. So mom got her wish. Cambodia is a very formal country. I will be teaching in collared shirts in long skirts. These are quite possibly my least favorite items of clothing ever. Finding appropriate clothes has been pretty hard.
However, Cambodia’s other attributes far outweigh this challenge. Here are a few things I have gleaned from my research:
· RICE!!! Rice makes me happy. I will be expected to eat tons of my favorite food.
· A bike. I will receive my very own mountain bike. I don’t have to worry about buying gas or getting ripped off by local moto drivers.
· Hammocks. It seems that every home has a hammock, and that a great deal of time is passed reclining in them.
· Architecture. The Khmer empire was influenced by the Ottomans, Arabs, Chinese, Hindus, etc. Their buildings are a fusion of these styles, and they are magnificent. I can’t wait to see them up close.
Overall, I’m super excited. There are some things I will miss. I went to my hairdresser for the last time today. It was kind of sad. On the way back I had to slow down for the tractors and combines that are on the road, trying to get in the field and finish while the weather holds. I’m sitting in my mom’s garden as I write this. These pictures were all taken there. In a way, it seems like I’m crazy to leave my amazing family, but it’s definitely time to go. I’ll miss my dad singing along to the free credit report commercials and watching him scare mean cats with a nerf gun (don’t ask, you just have to know my dad, I swear, no harm came to the cats). I’ll miss hanging out with mom while she works in the garden and having debates with my brother.
It’s all a little overwhelming, but I think that’s a good thing. I know that I don’t really have a handle on it, and that the people I’ll meet in the next two years have just as much to teach me as I have to teach them. I’m not gonna lie, I feel kind of inadequate. While that expensive piece of paper says that I’m skilled in international relations, I’ve never really worked with SE Asia before. Latin America, that would be much easier (gracias a mis amigos bolivianos). I‘ve taught ESL for four years, but this is first time I’ve ever been out of the country. My family has been amazingly supportive, and school friends, I miss you guys like crazy. PLEASE keep in touch. I will try and get you all cool stuff from Cambodia, just tell me what you want.
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