So, this is Cambodia...

Well, here I sit. I made it to Cambodia.

I am actually surprised to be sitting here. "Talking" about going to Cambodia and "going" to Cambodia are very, very different. I found this out when the reality of leaving the country truly set in: walking out of my house, talking to my sister for the last time till, who knows when, leaving my parents in security at the airport. It's true, I am here. I can't go back now.

My parents were on the other side of the glass as I glided down the escalator at the airport. I sobbed uncontrollably as soon as they were out of sight. I waited for the train and sobbed. I boarded the train and sobbed. I rode the train and sobbed. I am sure most everyone around me thought my boyfriend had just broken up with me or something. I felt a little comfort knowing this was much, much harder.

Traveling was an adventure in itself. My first flight was to Los Angeles. From there, I flew 13 hours to Tai Pei, Taiwan. Then, Taiwan to Phnom Penh, Cambodia. It is very unnerving traveling around the world by yourself. If you haven't done it, I am telling you, it is hard. It is tiring and confusing and scary. What if I miss my flight? What if I lose my passport? What if I forget my name? What if I get lost? And even more realistic to girls; what if I get abducted or harassed? After realizing I probably had a terrified look on my face, I pretended to look confident. Inside, all I kept thinking was, "What the heck am I doing? Why did I ever think this was a good idea? Cambodia? You iddiot."

I met the other two girls I would be living with this year in Taiwan. Trina and Liz are both from Walla Walla: really normal and kind, down-to-earth and friendly. I had bad dreams about getting stuck with some girls who had mistakenly confused "student missions" with "student vacations". Not so. These girls are smart. My fears are at rest.

When we arrived at the airport and got through customs, we were met by Tim and Fay Scott, staff from the school I will be working at. I have emailed and spoken on the phone with them several times, so after arriving in a foreign land, they both got big, huge hugs! They are so sweet. Fay is basically the student missionary "mom". They are smilers, I like that. They welcomed us and instantly made me feel at ease. We (me, Trina, Liz) loaded up in the van and we headed onto the street. First observation about Cambodia: it is really hot here. Second observation about Cambodia: it is really dirty here. I don't want to sound so pesismistic but, I couldn't help but notice I was instantly hot and dirty. There is more direct sunlight than shade and more dirt roads than paved. If you watch the video on the sidebar in this blog, you can have a better feel for what it is like to drive here. There is constant, and very dangerous, traffic. Everyone seems to think they have the right-of way if you actually sit at the red lights and wait for the green lights, you may never move. No one obeys the stoplights, they are just for show, like pretty flashing lights to make the streets more interesting. There are more "motos" buzzing around than cars (small motorcycles, basically Cambodian taxis).

Friday, the first day, Fay said she was assigned to just keep us awake until atleast 6pm. Because if we fell asleep any sooner, we would go to bed and then wake up at 1 am, wide awake. She succeeded. We went out to lunch, we visited the markets downtown, we saw a few Buddhist temples, we people watched, we absorbed. Later that night, about 5 o'clock, we were zombies with no personality and only one thing in mind: sleep. Thus ended the first day.

It is thundering outside and the group I am with must think rain is poisonous or will hurt us in someway. So I gotta go. I will hopefully be able to write tommorow.

There