Some names have been changed to protect the innocent…
Apparently, my last name isn’t pretty enough for Cambodia. Sorry mom and dad. On the official school flow chart I will be listed as Bri “Rowat”, the Khmer word for state. At first it was an honest mistake, and when I corrected the pronunciation, they told me their way was prettier. So I am now the state of Bri. It kind of pleases me to think that I comprise my own state.

Things are still going well here. On Sunday, I went with a friend to visit her grandmother, who literally lives in rice paddy, about 20 minutes past the middle of nowhere. It was so cool! First of all, surrounded by the green of rice, with palm trees and mountains on the horizon, I just couldn’t imagine anything more beautiful. Or more muddy. I fell into the waist deep water twice. It was good times. Oh, yes, and there are leaches. There are very few physical objects that scare me. But leaches definitely fall into that category. I can almost feel their desire to drain me of blood. If you think I exaggerate, I invite you to join in a rice paddy expedition. Yes friends, they are six inches long and you will scream like a little girl.

On a more positive note, it was really awesome to spend the day in such a rural area. I live literally down the street from everything I need in my town, these people live miles away from a market. My family is technically “middle class”, but the middle class here is considerably smaller than in the US. Compared to a lot of rural people, my family is really rich. Many of the people in the rural areas don’t even have their own wells. But they are super warm and generous. While I was at my friend’s aunt’s house, a guy came over who looked really familiar. It turns out that he was one of the guys who helped me when my bike broke down. He stayed behind (and got really wet cause it rained) While his friend took me and my bike back to town. He did three things Khmer people rarely do:1) he spoke slowly. Most of them have never tried to learn a language, so when you don’t understand they tend to speak more quickly and yell, as though that will help. 2) he told me how everyone was related to everyone else. People here just kind of come and go, leaving you to guess who they are, and why they are at your house. 3) he actually explained words I didn’t know, instead of just laughing. Overall, it was a good day. My family and school staff are still overbearing, but I love them and I think we are working it out.

Also, I am planning on giving my students names of famous people, since I can’t remember the real names of six hundred people. So if anyone have any suggestions, I could use all the creative help I can get. And a special thank you to Ruth Ann, Nanny Joni, Nanny Jan, and Mom. I got your packages and they were awesome!!!! It was definitely the highlight of my week.I got them all at one time, when I got to the office. So I shared some of the food with the other volunteers. Eddie, Whitney, Mitchel, and Jason all say thank you!!!!