WPM Domestic Violence Video

Many organizations in Cambodia collobrate with eachother to share knowledge and reasources. Recently USAID hosted a program to teach local NGOs how to create informative videos. Several of my co-workers at Women PeaceMakers joined this program and created (wrote, directed, edited, and starred in) this video about different types of abuse:

Koh Kong and Bangkok

MCC Cambodia Program Staff (and families). Photo courtesy of Binu Rai.

The other night, I was on the phone with one of my friends. I was telling her about all the things I've done in the past couple weeks.
She sighed dramatically, "Your life is just amazing isn't it." Of course, I denied it. "Oh come on, admit it. Your life is amazing."
"Well, I mean these past two weeks have been, but they aren't representative of my day-to-day life," I conceded.
"Yeah, but your life includes opportunities to do these awesome things. Just admit it. You get to do cool things."

While, I try to downplay it most the time, she has a point. I've been given amazing opportunities: to live abroad, to travel, to meet people and see things that I never would have otherwise. These past two weeks have been great reminders of all the things I have to be thankful for.

Standing near the top of the Tatai Waterfall in Koh Kong 

The week of November 19th, I went with MCC Cambodia on retreat to Koh Kong Province. The retreat was an opportunity to get out of Phnom Penh, to a part of the country I've never been to, and to spend time with the rest of the MCC Cambodia team. While we were there we took trips to Boeng Kayak Mangrove Forest in Peam Krasop Wildlife Sanctuary and to the Tatai Waterfall. We also spent time in a mini-workshop, discussing cross-cultural communication and relationships, including strategies, when it's difficult, and how we can work bridge cultural gaps.

View of the Royal Palace from the Chao Phraya River in Bangkok

The MCC team returned to Phnom Penh on the evening of the 22nd, I had one day in the city, and then boarded a plane to Bangkok, Thailand bright and early on the 24th for a vacation. I've done solo trips before, but this was my first solo international vacation. I decided that I wanted to stay in one place, so I just hung out in Bangkok for the week. I slept in and stayed out late, visited the National Museum, spent time in some of the parks in the city, visited a huge mall and watched a movie, did a canal tour, and, spent a lot of time relaxing and people watching. Bangkok is a huge city, and very developed, in comparison to Phnom Penh. It was amazing to see how different two capital cities in bordering countries can be so different. While I enjoyed my time, if/when I go back to Thailand, I think I'll hang out at the beach instead of Bangkok.

Sometimes, I have to admit to myself that my life is pretty amazing. And that I'm thankful and grateful for all of the opportunities I've been given, even if I don't always appreciate them for the gifts that they are.

Bangkok, Thailand

1 Year Down, 2 to Go

MCC Cambodia and visitors from the Board

Every time I was asked "how long have you been here?" this summer I always felt like it was a surprise to myself to reply "almost a year." Well officially, it has been one year since I came to Cambodia. A year ago today I said goodbye to my parents at the airport and got on a plane to the other side of the world. I remember being very excited until the plane was flying and it finally hit me that I was going to Cambodia, a country I'd never been to in a part of the world I'd never been too or studied in any significant way for three years. I remember sitting in the plane thinking to myself, "What have I done?"

Well, despite my fears, I'm still here and going strong. The year has had many ups and downs: frustration over language study, being driven insane by my host siblings, ice cream outing with the other Service Workers, sleep overs with the SALTers, lonely evenings in my apartment, parasites, colds, minor moto accidents, cultural misunderstandings, eating strange new things, falling in love with tropical fruits, movie nights with friends, delicious dinners and long talks, unexpected trips, beautiful places, and not so beautiful ones.

Reflecting on this past year, all I can do is smile and look forward to the unknown adventures that the next two years will hold.

Bat Phnom

View from my host family's house

Phnom Penh from the River

Royal Palace

Takeo Province

View from my apartment

Sunset over the Gulf of Thailand in Sihanoukville

Attending a discussion the Women's Rights with WPM

Khmer wedding with MCC Staff

Field visit with WPM

River dolphin watching in Kratie

Horseback riding in Sihanoukville

Airport goodbyes with the 2014-2015 SALTers

Taipei, Taiwan trip

Monks processing in front of the Royal Palace

Nyam Baay! Eat rice!

In Khmer, you would never just say "I eat" (knom nyam). "I eat" must have a food or drink attached to it, for example coffee, or cake, or fruit. If you mean to describe eating a meal though you say "I eat rice" (knom nyam baay), because it's not really considered a meal if there's no rice (rice noodles sometimes count). Breakfast, lunch, and dinner are, respectively, morning rice, afternoon rice, and evening rice. Rice dishes are typical eaten with a spoon. If you have a fork it is used only to assist in putting food on your spoon, it is not put in your mouth. I have yet to be given a knife to use during a Khmer meal. Noodle dishes, though, especially soups, are eaten with chopsticks. I have no ability to use chopsticks, so whenever I eat noodle dishes I end up using them like a fork. I think I'm getting better at controlling them though!

Kuy teav, picture from Wikipedia

For breakfast most days I go out to a haang baay (rice shop aka restaurant). Many people eat breakfast at restaurants here- because it's cheap and cooking breakfast is labor intensive. Common breakfast dishes include rice porridge, rice with pork (or chicken, or egg), ramen noodle soup, or a rice noodle soup (the soups can be with or without meat). I haven't gotten used to the idea of eating rice for breakfast, so I order the rice noodle soup, called kuy teav, without meat everyday. I told one of my Khmer teachers that I get it without meat and he told me that the staff at the restaurant must think I'm very strange. I really love this soup. It's a light broth, thin rice noodles, green onions, a little lettuce, bean sprouts, and something else that I haven't figure out what it is. Most mornings I add lime juice, sriracha, soy sauce, and fish sauce to it to add flavor. I've also seen people add hoisin sauce, salt, and pepper to it.

Lok Lak, picture from Joy Ceira Cooks

I generally eat lunch at the MCC office, with the other service workers and staff. The housekeeper cooks all of us lunch everyday. Lunch normally involves rice, some stir fried vegetables with either fish, chicken, or tofu (most often fish), a soup, and fruit. I have been unable to get myself to like the soups that aren't based around rice noodles, but I do enjoy the rice dishes. One that we had earlier this week, called Lok Lak, included beef, raw veggies, french fries, and an egg, all topped with black pepper sauce. To add any wanted flavor to these meals there is always soy sauce, fish sauce, hot chili sauce, and fish sauce with extremely hot chilis.

My host mom makes dinner in the evening. Dinner usually involves one or two stir fried dishes, normally veggies with a little bit of meat (usually chicken or pork). Often my host mom will also serve some shrimp or small crabs. We all gather on the floor of the main room in the house to eat. Everyone has a spoon and a bowl (well, I'm always given a spoon, a fork, and a plate), and we serve ourselves food. Since I am a guest, my host mom always insisting on serving me rice (adult women normally get their own) and serving me way more than I could ever eat. I always smile and laugh and tell her that she has given me too much, then I either give some of it to my host sisters or return it back to the rice cooker.

Bubble (Milk) Tea

Along with meals, I do a little bit of snacking. My host mom keeps fruit around the house and encourages me to eat it while I'm studying. The other week she was so concerned that I was hungry that she bought a bunch of banana's to keep in my room. There is also a shop around the corner from the office that sells deep fried bananas. I've also become a big fan of iced milk tea, with or without bubbles, so I end up buying it more than I probably should.

Knom reen Khmer*

Independence Monument

During the week I wake up around 6:30AM (when I don't over sleep). I roll up the mosquito net that goes around my bed, make my bed and go shower. As I get ready for the day I greet my host family. Once I am dressed and clean, I gather my school things and helmet and head out the door. This process generally includes a mostly mimed conversation with my host mother, her telling me that I need to cover my arms so I don't get dark and me saying that I'll be fine. I hop on my bike and head over to eat breakfast at a restaurant.

Tuol Sleng Genocide Museum

After breakfast, I head over to Khmer Friends, the school where I study reading and writing. There I sit with my teacher for two hours practicing reading and writing khmer letters. There are 33 original consonants, 11 added consonant, and 24 vowels most of which have two vowels. I have learned to read and write all 44 consonant, though I have a hard time remembering them, and I've learned 14 of the vowels. Though Khmer is not tonal, there are many sounds that don't exist in English. I spend most of class writing and reading the letters, and combining consonants and vowels.

On Tuesdays, I ride my bike across the city (~30 minutes) after Khmer Friends to go to a program called LINK. LINK is a natural language acquisition class. The teachers only speak in Khmer and the students are only supposed to speak English. This way we get used to the sounds.

On days that I don't go to LINK, I meet with the MCC Reps to go over MCC guidelines and get some orientation to MCC Cambodia.

Royal Palace

An hour later, I head back to the MCC office for lunch with the rest of the staff, made by our wonderful housekeeper, which also includes rice and some kind of soup. Later in the afternoon, I have an hour of speaking Khmer lessons with a tutor. We work on memorizing and pronouncing words, grammar, listening and forming sentences, with some Cambodian cultures lessons thrown in. When all of my Khmer lessons are done for the day I hang out in the office, write emails and do my homework.

Fridays are my break from Khmer lessons. Instead, I get to learn about Phnom Penh and Cambodia by doing fun tourist things. So far I've gone to the Tuol Sleng Genocide Museum, the Royal Palace and Silver Pagoda, and the National Museum of Cambodia.

Around 5PM, I head home. At home I study some more, play with my host sisters, laugh with my host mother, and eat dinner (which again always includes rice). My host sisters' current favorite thing to do with me is stretch. Around 8PM everyone starts getting ready for bed (most people are awake by 6AM). I brush my teeth, arrange my mosquito net, turn on my fan, and crawl into bed.

*Khmer for: I study Khmer.