This month we are living in the countryside of Cambodia, 2 hours outside of Phnom Phen in Toch Village. Everyday we teach English class to 200 students. Cambodia definitely lands in my top 3 favorite months on the Race! I absolutely love everything about it, from the family to the ministry, to the food, and even the living conditions! Here are some random things I’ve done in Cambodia so far this month:
- Rented $1 bicycles and rode 20+ miles to/around Angkor Wat in Siem Reap
- Had my teeth cleaned and 2 cavities filled by a Cambodian dentist that didn’t speak English, without any Novocain. (not recommended…)
- Taught English and thanked God for my tyrant AP English professor my senior year of High School and the ability to remember grammar… sometimes i feel stupid.
- Prayed over a man and an old woman for healing in their bodies. Had so much faith that God healed them both. Still believe that he did.
- Gave two kids zeros on a test for cheating (am i really THAT girl?? eek!)
- Played in the rain with my students and got thrown into a muddy pond, then counted it as my shower for the day
- Laid in bed for two hours our second night in Toch Village pouring sweat and wondering how it could be possible to leak that much water from my body and still be alive
- Passed up that bed inside to sleep in a tent under the stars
- Stayed up having late night tent talks with Kacie Price
- Bought $5 hammocks and have “faculty meetings” with my team between classes (aka-Nap times)
- Took a “shower” fully clothed outside in the pond with Kacie after a long miserable run
- Drove on a motorcycle with Vuthy (our contact) carrying 2 dozen eggs, iced coffee, potatoes, bananas, and bread and still managed to stay on
- Read 520pgs of “The Help” in four days, then watched the movie that Sheila bought for a dollar at the market. Best book ever! (the movie just doesn’t do it justice)
- Drove four hours (although it was only supposed to take two) on our day off just to get to the city to sit in a coffee shop, drink cappuccinos, and play online–then thanking God for the luxuries we so easily take for granted
- Go on team walks/runs every morning at 6:30am in hopes that we can go home looking somewhat like we did before this year full of carbs and iced coffees.
- Planted rice in the rice fields one day (just to say we did) -thats hard work!
- Drank coconut juice straight from the coconut. A little sugar would have done the trick… but still good!
- Danced to the only song that has made its way to EVERY country around the world: “Baby” by Justin Bieber with Lucky and Petra.
- Celebrated my 25th Birthday with my team, who surprised me with an overnight trip to the beach to relax in a guest house with air conditioning, free wifi, and hot showers. Then, was again surprised with a nice traditional Cambodian dinner, eating squid and octopus in hammocks with 20 amazing people! Then, had cake smeared all over my face by the Light of Hope youth staff. Yummm! Couldn’t have asked for a better team, better friends, or a better 25th Birthday. 🙂
- Rode two hours to the lake on bicycles being pulled by little Cambodian girls because we couldn’t do it. (humbled. and slightly embarrassed.)
- Walked home from the lake in the pitch black, decided to take a wagon taxi until we realized he was intoxicated and ran out of gas… (don’t worry folks, the worst damage he could have done was hit a cow). So we walked the rest of the way home falling into mud puddles. Good times.
A special thanks to Sheila Yoder for allowing me to use a lot of the following photos! She is an awesome photographer!
Angkor Wat
At the beginning of the month, our squad had a 5 day debrief in Siem Reap. We had the chance to go visit Angkor Wat and ride bicycles through the ruins. here are some of the pictures from our adventure day.
Toch Village
This month we are living in the countryside of Cambodia, two hours outside of Phnom Penh. It is absolutely beautiful! I love it here. It is so peaceful and quiet. We wake up at sunrise (or shortly after) and go to bed around 9. The sun sets at 6, but we have a generator that keeps lights on from 6-9. But as soon as it goes out, its pitch black. So we usually just go to bed. We live on what we would call a farm. There are chickens and roosters, cows and pigs, lots of dogs and ducks waddling around. I love it-except for the rooster… he spoils my morning slumber.
On the left is a picture of our room, which is actually momma and poppas house, but they graciously moved out so we could have their house while we stayed with them. They are the sweetest people ever!! On the right is Ruth and Katherine doing laundry in our “pond”, aka-washing machine, bathtub, and swimming pool! Interesting experience, and actually enjoyed it! Second row left is the school/ church, and on the right is the dining area where we eat everyday, visit, and sometimes spend family time or watch movies. Bottom two pictures are of the market down the road that we go to everyday for iced coffee and breakfast.
Ministry
This month, we are teaching 4 English classes a day, Tuesday through Saturday. These are a few pictures of our students and our time teaching. On Sunday we have church in the school building for the youth that have accepted Christ or are curious about Him. On Sunday, we had 50 youth there! It was awesome to see that many young Cambodians praising the Lord. The boy on the bottom left is David. He is one of my favorites. He is super smart and continues to come to more beginner classes to refresh his English. He is so determined! I love it.
Meet the Family
One of the bittersweet things about the race is, you meet a family, fall in love with them and then have to leave them after only three or four short weeks. I have absolutely fallen in love with our contact’s family this month. So, of course I need to introduce you to them! On the top left, you have Vuthy, our contact, who started Light of Hope in his home about two years ago. He is awesome! On the Top right, you have Momma (Vuthy’s mom). She doesn’t speak too much English, but she is just as cute as can be and has given up her house so for us while we are here. Then on the left is Grandmama. The absolute sweetest Grandma of ALL time (minus mine of course)! She works harder than any Grandma I’ve ever met and is absolutely wonderful. Next to her is Weimean. He is the son of a relative in the family, but was taken in by Grandmother. He is a hand full-rambunctious! The other day we caught him stealing a kids bike and hiding it behind the house. Hilarious.
The bottom left is JonDia (aka-Sister). She is Vuthy’s sister and feels like our own! She is the absolutely the sweetest girl! Her and mother would cook for us every day, and they made the absolute best food! Including french fries and fried chicken. haha. They know the heart to the American ladies. 🙂 On the bottom left is Pappa cutting some coconuts. He didn’t speak much, but has such a sweet heart and a loving smile. He is like our own Pappa! I just love this whole family. Leaving them yesterday was so very hard for all of us. They will be greatly missed.
Some of my Favorite Things
One of my absolute favorite things in Cambodia are the .50 cent iced coffees. They are so good! I think I would probably lose a lot of weight if I cut them out… but its the simple pleasures in life, you know?? 🙂 Another favorite this month is Hammock time. We bought these hammocks for $5 on the side of the road. Most brilliant purchase YET! We usually have about one hour between classes, so we just chill in our hammocks, read and take naps. Love it.
The bottom two pictures are of our time spent with Sophia’s family (one of our students). We worked in the rice fields for an hour or so (just for fun… they didn’t really need us, although made us feel welcome, so that was nice), and then they invited us into their store to drink iced coffee and fresh coconut juice straight off the tree. It was awesome, and so generous. The family didn’t speak English, so we just smiled at each other and laughed together. Its moments like these that will stick with me forever. 🙂
