I am spending this month in Cambodia with Team Salt, because
all of the LO team members are working with different ministries.
The members of Team Salt (Morgan, Candice,
Emilie, Andrew, and James) are known for being a closely-knit group.
But, they have been so welcoming and
encouraging; I am grateful for the opportunity to spend a month with them.
Tuk-tuks are going to be our main form of transportation in
Phnom Penh.
A tuk-tuk is a motorcycle
with six seats in the carriage-like back.
The other form of public transportation is a moped.
For around a dollar you can ride on the back
of a moped to just about anywhere in the city; don’t worry Mom we will probably
stick to the tuk-tuks. I have seen as many as four adults riding the same
moped.
It is not uncommon to see infants
in the arms of a parent or small children standing on the seat.
Traffic patterns are rather confusing.
Intersections often have no stop lights or
stop signs. To an outsider it looks like mass chaos, but locals seem to know
and follow a system of right of way.
Because there are very few stop lights, crossing the street is not one
of my favorite activities in the city.
We look for a break in traffic then dodge mopeds and run as fast as we
can.
Sidewalks are not so safe either;
mopeds and bicycles use them for roads.
Prayers for safety in the city would be
appreciated during this month in Phnom Penh.
Bright and early this morning I joined Team Salt for a
tuk-tuk ride across town to our ministry site for the month.
Pastor Chay met us at the door and invited us
into a multiple story building.
We sat in
a room set up like a classroom with desks and a chalk board.
Pastor Chay explained that he allows any
college student to come to live at the house for a very cheap price.
The only requirement for the student is that
they attend devotional services in the morning and evening.
Many of the students come from villages
outside of the city and are not Christians.
Pastor Chay asked us to teach the evening lessons for this week.
He wants the lessons to last an hour and a
half.
We are also hoping to get to know
some of the students at the house.
I was feeling rather sleepy during our meeting, because it
was 7:00am.
As I was yawning, Pastor
Chay explained that he gets up at 5:00am every morning.
He goes to the morning devotional meeting, and
then he goes to work.
He works at a
public school as a math teacher.
He has
a two hour dinner break, but does not arrive back at the dorm until 7:00pm when
he does the evening service until 9:00 pm. Pastor Chay then told us his
sleeping schedule, “I go to bed at 1am and get up at 5pm.
I am used to getting very little sleep; I
don’t need much.”
I am excited to work
with Pastor Chay, but I hope he doesn’t expect us to change our sleep patterns
that much.
His life is an amazing
example of living in intense community and devotion to God.
This evening we moved into our apartment for the month.
We were able to get a really good deal on a
two bedroom, three bathroom apartment with a kitchen, air conditioning, cable
TV, and a work out area.
For a World
Racer it is paradise!
We have more
bathroom facilities here for 6 people than we had in Swaziland for 80
people.
I am excited to be in one place
for a whole month- no packing, and I am excited to get to know some of the
people in the apartment building and neighborhood.
It is so nice to have a place to call our own
for a portion of the Race.
We talked
about how it is probably a good thing to be eased back into civilization
through this month rather than being thrown into real life and all it entails
in November.
