So I wake up around 5:30 because of the sun shining in my window and the chickens that live under my room (houses in Cambodia are on stilts, where you sleep upstairs and hangout under the house during the day, the animals also hangout under the house) but then I get to lay in bed til around 6. That is when I get up and change into my sampot (which is like a dress that you shower in) and head out behind the house to the shower.
For my shower I use a bucket that I fill from a basin of water. In the morning I usually find myself showering with a large toad, a lot of mosquitoes, and the occasional spider. Then I go get dressed for the day. After I am dressed I get on my bike, bike through some rice fields, and go to “that place where we eat”. Where I get iced coffee and rice with egg and chicken. The iced coffees here are awesome! They make it with condensed milk, and it is the sweetest coffee ever!
Then it is time for language class. We are in small groups of 5 each with a host country national (aka a person from Cambodia who works for peace corps). My teachers name is Samnong, and he is awesome! After 4 hours of language I bike back to my host families house for lunch. But first I take a shower. In Cambodia you shower before each meal (the showers cool you off, and if you don’t shower you are “too hot to eat rice”).
Then after lunch I lie down on my bed in front of my fan (my best investment so far at a whopping $4.50) and read over Khmer vocabulary while listening to my ipod. This is generally a very happy and relaxing time of my day. Then it is time to bike to technical training. At technical training we learn about healthcare issues/practices/culture norms in Cambodia. Then it is time for dinner, so I bike back to my host family house, shower, and eat. After dinner my host family likes for me to teach them English because they do not speak any English. This involves a lot of passing a dictionary back and forth. But proves to be difficult when my host dad points to words such as “malcontent” in the dictionary then I have to try and explain its meaning…. If we aren’t having an impromptu English listen, I go read, listen to my ipod, or write in my journal. Then it is time to set up my mosquito net and crawl into bed.
Hope all is well back in the USA. I miss you all very, very much! I am going to try and put up some pictures soon!
i love that your sharing such wonderful details about your experience! xo
ReplyDeleteTAY!!! I shared with my class...They are sooo excite to keep tabs on you! Maybe we can Skype when you have more technology available. They even asked how they could follow you next year when they are in 4th grade =) Thanks for the easy lesson, talk to you again soon.
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Dear Best Friend,
ReplyDeleteI have so many questions and things to discuss with you. And, most importantly, I miss you a lot. Two pressing questions that would be great if you would answer in a future posting. 1) Do you dry your hair after every shower? 2) How do you shower with clothes on? 3) Have you fallen off your bike yet?
Love you lots!!
Jplesh
Okay, so that was three questions. :)
ReplyDeleteDear Best friend,
ReplyDeleteI miss you a lot a lot! to answer your questions...
1) I do not have a hair dryer here, but sometimes if i have time, i sit in front of my fan and brush my hair to dry it... 2) I have a showering dress that i wear to walk to the shower, but once i get in the shower stall its naked time with the mosquitoes... and yes that is when i get the booty bug bites! 3)I have not fallen off my bike yet, i almost did once when attempting to answer my phone while biking.
I love you and miss you! hope all is well! email me with a life update please!
Tay
Plesh, I love your questions. I happened to have been wondering the same thing... about the bike. Tay knows I want her to be safe and sound, but people falling down is funny, so I'm torn. Glad you've kept safe Tay!
ReplyDeletejust don't kiss any of those frogs in the shower...momma wouldn't approve! I haven't had a chance to read your blogs in a while and am catching up. I love the fact you do this - makes it seem like we are in person...and I can hear that sweet little southern accent providing all the details. Stay cool, healthy and safe but remember to have fun (if you can do all of that at the same time)! Love ya, Aunt Trish
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