I have reached and passed the halfway point for this amazing
adventure and the first thing that comes to mind...I am not ready to leave. So
much has happened in just 6 and half weeks. I have learned so much about
Cambodia, about this beautiful culture, about working and living abroad, about
COCD and working in a non-profit organization, and about myself. This
experience is changing my life.
This is not a countdown though. I'm not
thinking how many days I have left but instead I am going to think about now
and what I can do to make the most of every moment. When it comes to my
internship with COCD, up to this point I have been easing into the office
culture and finding my place. Now I am going to use this time to focus and
contribute as much as I can to support the staff and the clients. Also, I have
two big goals I need to cover: 1.) Learn as much of the Khmai language as I
can, 2.) learn how to cook some Khmai food. I'm sharing these goals with you
all so you can hold me accountable! I can do this!
There is one very personal thing I want to
share about what this trip has meant to me so far. My home back in Oregon is
wonderful and I love and miss all my friends and family so dearly. At the same
time, I have never felt more accepted and happy in my life then how I feel here
on this adventure. I have met some wonderful people who have made me feel
incredibly loved and fulfilled. Some things in life are meant to be and I KNOW
I am meant to be here. I feel as though I have found a place where I belong and
this trip is definitely going to have a huge influence on what happens next in
my life after I graduate from Oregon State. I still don't have any idea what
those plans will be though. I'm just going to have to wait and see!
So as usual, lots of exciting things have
happened in the past week. Within the past 8 days I have:
- dressed up as a lion for Halloween
dodgeball (rawr)
- joined some of the staff from COCD on a
full day visit to the Pursat Province to observe a meeting and discussion about
a new project proposal
- ate some fried crickets, worms, frogs,
AND TARANTULA!
- hiked 7 kilometers around the Anloung
Chen Island with a group of 60 people
- went on a 3 day trip to the beautiful
beaches of Sihanoukville
- Joined a van full of teachers to the
beach, and on the way, got stuck in the most ridiculous 40 kilometer (24 mile)
traffic jam you can image. Somehow we managed to get out of it in about 4 hours
(doesn't sound all that bad but there was definitely potential for us to be
stuck there for days)
- spent a couple nights in a hostel
literally ten steps away from the Gulf of Thailand waters
- Made some new friends with people from
all across the world (Spain, England, Cambodia, US)
The past week there was another holiday here in Cambodia, Bon Om
Touk, also called the Water Festival. This holiday is a very exciting, popular
celebration here in Cambodia, with 2 million people flocking into Phnom Penh
this year just for the occasion. The festival involves boat racing, fireworks,
carnivals, and other festivities. This is the first time though in 4 years
that the Bon Om Touk festival has resumed. It has been canceled the last few
years because of a horrible tragedy that occurred in 2010. 378 lives were lost
here in Phnom Penh in a freak accident. With over a thousand people gathered on
a footbridge, something sparked panic that rippled through the crowd. Many
deaths were caused by suffocation from being crushed under the stampede of
frightened people. It's an awful tragedy and I'm sure a lot of caution was
taken this year.
Here's a link to an article about the 2010
event if you would like to learn more about
it: http://www.theguardian.com/world/2010/nov/23/cambodia-stampede-phnom-penh
I took this holiday opportunity to do some
traveling outside of Phnom Penh instead of sticking around in the city (my trip
to Sihanoukville). But I am back for the weekend so we will see what the next
couple days have in store for me!
I'll make sure to have pictures up of this past week in the next couple days :)
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