Well, I promised to blog daily…so here goes:
Friday, October 31st
7:30 AM
Well, we’ve survived over 24 hours of travel with only 2 hours left to go.
The trip began with an intense game of UNO sitting in the McDonalds at DIA. I totally kicked butt by the way! J
The first leg of our trip was Denver to San Fransisco…easy…non-eventful! I, however, began to notice some of the cultural differences as we stood in line to board our flight to Taipei, Taiwan. Americans, by no means, are generally polite and friendly, but we definitely have a greater need and respect for personal space! Please remove yourself from my “little bubble” NOW! Holy shoving matches!
I couldn’t help but giggle because though we were being boarded in order of our rows from back to front (United Airlines should take notice of this very smart practice) and were all headed in the same direction…and leaving at the same time…over half of the passengers forgot that we were not running a race. There was no prize for first place! The pushing, shoving, and occasional running over my toe with a suitcase wheel was at the very least irritating at 1:00 in the morning! And…I’m not sure how many times the airline personnel had to say “now boarding rows 40 to 63…no sir, we’re not boarding 32 yet. Now boarding rows 40 to 63!” REALLY? Wow…saw at least a dozen people struggle with that instruction! J
About 14 ½ hours, 2 full meals, 3 fairly lengthy naps, 100 dirty looks from the elderly gentleman in the seat next to me, and at least twice as many smiles and giggles (shared between Sonja, my dad, and me) later…we landed in Taipei! Oh, and we can’t forget the oh so critical Tylenol PM! Can’t imagine that flight without it! Sonja decided it was probably a good thing that my dad decided to change seats with her because he ended up having to deal with the crazy, pushy woman who felt it necessary to literally CRAWL over the top of him to get into the aisle so she would be able to get off the plane faster. She then ended up practically sitting on his lap with her bags because there wasn’t any room for her in the aisle! Sonja surely would have decker her at this point! God bless stupid people! J Ha ha!
I was so relieved to get that not-so-fresh…feels like someone slept in my mouth….feeling gone! I’ve never been soooo excited about brushing my teeth! We browsed the “duty free” shop briefly…gotta love the NO TAX concept! Apparently…the current exchange rate for Taiwan is 32.41 = $1. Pretty sure I’ll have to pick up a thing or two on my way back home that says Taipei! Not sure when I’ll be back in Taiwan again! J
It’s crazy because we are in to our last hour in the air – and as I sit here staring out the window at all the cool cloud shapes – seeing castles, turtles, dancing bears, and back-floating frogs hanging high above the ocean – I can’t help but be awed by the fact that I am actually on this trip! I’m not sure that it’s really hit me yet, but guess what…I’m going to Cambodia! Oh, wait…I mean…I’m almost in Cambodia!
I am so grateful for this amazing opportunity, and am praising God ahead of time for what He’s going to do in and through my life in these next 10 days!
11:50 AM
Well, so much for an easy, uneventful trip! I had an odd feeling that things were going too well – and boy was I right! None of our luggage made it to Phnom Penh from Taipei…so we have NO clean clothes. And, we’ve been told we won’t get our bags for a minimum of 24 hours. Good times!!
Sonja and I are both showered now – sitting in our nice clean robes…waiting for the latest possible moment to get back into our dirty clothes. Keat Cove, a local pastor here, is coming to pick us up to take us to the Central Market to buy some clothes to get us through a day or 2.
On a positive note, our hotel…The Phnom Penh Hotel is absolutely beautiful! I just read through the hotel directory and a 2 hour massage is only $20. That would NEVER happen anywhere in the USA! I can’t wait to book one!
Well…better put those dirty clothes back on…we’re off to the market!
Saturday, November 01, 2008
3:00 PM
I was too exhausted to write last night when we got back to the room…but we had an interesting time at the market. The Central Market takes up about 2 full city blocks…one half is food (bread, raw meat, fish, veggies, etc…) and the other is all clothing, jewelry, and everyday living items. I can’t begin to explain what this was like. We walked through tiny little alleys that had shirts and pants hung from floor to ceiling. Each “vendor” bringing us items they’re just sure we want/need! The kicker for me was when I showed them a shirt I wanted…but needed in a larger size…the woman said to me…”we no have you size…just small size like you friend…no big size for you!” TOTALLY made me giggle! I’m not a huge woman…but compared to this very small, petite people….no big size fo you! I loved it!
Well, we finally did find an outfit…and a few little gifts to bring back home before retiring to the little lounge area on our floor where we drank hot tea and played yet another round of UNO before heading to bed!
Today was a casual, fun-filled…but humbling day! We enjoyed a Cambodian attempt at an American Breakfast at 6:30 AM…it was mostly good, but Sonja did suffer a few gag-reflex induced moments caused by unidentified local fruits…which we now describe as the ‘stinky feet fruit.” They apparently taste like dirty feet smell! You figure that one out!
After breakfast (about 7:30 AM) we descended up on the streets of Phnom Penh in the back of a Tuk Tuk (a 2 seater cart pulled by a motorcycle). Our driver, Chan, took us through this city so gracefully. One would never imagine, after sitting for hours in traffic in Denver, that you could move through such incredible mayhem so smoothly. My dad describes driving in this city as “a symphony of chaos!” We’ve seen a family of 5 on the back of a motorcycle….about 20 people in a small van…a group of people sitting on top of a load of goods in the back of a pickup truck…and brand new Mercedes and Lexus’ all competing for the same share of asphalt space. Oh, and they don’t have many stop lights here…so everyone moves slowly through intersections…often driving down the wrong side of the street trying to reach their destination!
We took a 45 minute ride (approximately 15 miles) out to the “Killing Fields” where we witnessed the result of the mass genocide of over 2 million Cambodian people in the mid-late 1970’s. Several hundred mass graves were found holding the bodies of educated men and women…doctors, lawyers, teachers…each grave nearly 6 meters deep. The skulls of the victims now lay in a memorial on the grounds. This was the most humbling experience…standing on the dirt containing these victims’ teeth and clothing left laying on the ground as most were stripped naked before being beaten, stabbed, bludgeoned, or beheaded. The families of these educated victims were hauled outside the city limits and left to die of starvation.
This history is only 30ish years old…I can’t even fathom this type of genocide…especially in this century! It’s amazing to think that every grey-haired man and woman that we meet here has such an amazing story to tell about all they witnessed and experienced during those devastating times in the late 1970’s.
We then spent the remainder of the morning at the Palace of the King of Cambodia! What an amazingly beautiful, grand place!
Friday, October 31st
7:30 AM
Well, we’ve survived over 24 hours of travel with only 2 hours left to go.
The trip began with an intense game of UNO sitting in the McDonalds at DIA. I totally kicked butt by the way! J
The first leg of our trip was Denver to San Fransisco…easy…non-eventful! I, however, began to notice some of the cultural differences as we stood in line to board our flight to Taipei, Taiwan. Americans, by no means, are generally polite and friendly, but we definitely have a greater need and respect for personal space! Please remove yourself from my “little bubble” NOW! Holy shoving matches!
I couldn’t help but giggle because though we were being boarded in order of our rows from back to front (United Airlines should take notice of this very smart practice) and were all headed in the same direction…and leaving at the same time…over half of the passengers forgot that we were not running a race. There was no prize for first place! The pushing, shoving, and occasional running over my toe with a suitcase wheel was at the very least irritating at 1:00 in the morning! And…I’m not sure how many times the airline personnel had to say “now boarding rows 40 to 63…no sir, we’re not boarding 32 yet. Now boarding rows 40 to 63!” REALLY? Wow…saw at least a dozen people struggle with that instruction! J
About 14 ½ hours, 2 full meals, 3 fairly lengthy naps, 100 dirty looks from the elderly gentleman in the seat next to me, and at least twice as many smiles and giggles (shared between Sonja, my dad, and me) later…we landed in Taipei! Oh, and we can’t forget the oh so critical Tylenol PM! Can’t imagine that flight without it! Sonja decided it was probably a good thing that my dad decided to change seats with her because he ended up having to deal with the crazy, pushy woman who felt it necessary to literally CRAWL over the top of him to get into the aisle so she would be able to get off the plane faster. She then ended up practically sitting on his lap with her bags because there wasn’t any room for her in the aisle! Sonja surely would have decker her at this point! God bless stupid people! J Ha ha!
I was so relieved to get that not-so-fresh…feels like someone slept in my mouth….feeling gone! I’ve never been soooo excited about brushing my teeth! We browsed the “duty free” shop briefly…gotta love the NO TAX concept! Apparently…the current exchange rate for Taiwan is 32.41 = $1. Pretty sure I’ll have to pick up a thing or two on my way back home that says Taipei! Not sure when I’ll be back in Taiwan again! J
It’s crazy because we are in to our last hour in the air – and as I sit here staring out the window at all the cool cloud shapes – seeing castles, turtles, dancing bears, and back-floating frogs hanging high above the ocean – I can’t help but be awed by the fact that I am actually on this trip! I’m not sure that it’s really hit me yet, but guess what…I’m going to Cambodia! Oh, wait…I mean…I’m almost in Cambodia!
I am so grateful for this amazing opportunity, and am praising God ahead of time for what He’s going to do in and through my life in these next 10 days!
11:50 AM
Well, so much for an easy, uneventful trip! I had an odd feeling that things were going too well – and boy was I right! None of our luggage made it to Phnom Penh from Taipei…so we have NO clean clothes. And, we’ve been told we won’t get our bags for a minimum of 24 hours. Good times!!
Sonja and I are both showered now – sitting in our nice clean robes…waiting for the latest possible moment to get back into our dirty clothes. Keat Cove, a local pastor here, is coming to pick us up to take us to the Central Market to buy some clothes to get us through a day or 2.
On a positive note, our hotel…The Phnom Penh Hotel is absolutely beautiful! I just read through the hotel directory and a 2 hour massage is only $20. That would NEVER happen anywhere in the USA! I can’t wait to book one!
Well…better put those dirty clothes back on…we’re off to the market!
Saturday, November 01, 2008
3:00 PM
I was too exhausted to write last night when we got back to the room…but we had an interesting time at the market. The Central Market takes up about 2 full city blocks…one half is food (bread, raw meat, fish, veggies, etc…) and the other is all clothing, jewelry, and everyday living items. I can’t begin to explain what this was like. We walked through tiny little alleys that had shirts and pants hung from floor to ceiling. Each “vendor” bringing us items they’re just sure we want/need! The kicker for me was when I showed them a shirt I wanted…but needed in a larger size…the woman said to me…”we no have you size…just small size like you friend…no big size for you!” TOTALLY made me giggle! I’m not a huge woman…but compared to this very small, petite people….no big size fo you! I loved it!
Well, we finally did find an outfit…and a few little gifts to bring back home before retiring to the little lounge area on our floor where we drank hot tea and played yet another round of UNO before heading to bed!
Today was a casual, fun-filled…but humbling day! We enjoyed a Cambodian attempt at an American Breakfast at 6:30 AM…it was mostly good, but Sonja did suffer a few gag-reflex induced moments caused by unidentified local fruits…which we now describe as the ‘stinky feet fruit.” They apparently taste like dirty feet smell! You figure that one out!
After breakfast (about 7:30 AM) we descended up on the streets of Phnom Penh in the back of a Tuk Tuk (a 2 seater cart pulled by a motorcycle). Our driver, Chan, took us through this city so gracefully. One would never imagine, after sitting for hours in traffic in Denver, that you could move through such incredible mayhem so smoothly. My dad describes driving in this city as “a symphony of chaos!” We’ve seen a family of 5 on the back of a motorcycle….about 20 people in a small van…a group of people sitting on top of a load of goods in the back of a pickup truck…and brand new Mercedes and Lexus’ all competing for the same share of asphalt space. Oh, and they don’t have many stop lights here…so everyone moves slowly through intersections…often driving down the wrong side of the street trying to reach their destination!
We took a 45 minute ride (approximately 15 miles) out to the “Killing Fields” where we witnessed the result of the mass genocide of over 2 million Cambodian people in the mid-late 1970’s. Several hundred mass graves were found holding the bodies of educated men and women…doctors, lawyers, teachers…each grave nearly 6 meters deep. The skulls of the victims now lay in a memorial on the grounds. This was the most humbling experience…standing on the dirt containing these victims’ teeth and clothing left laying on the ground as most were stripped naked before being beaten, stabbed, bludgeoned, or beheaded. The families of these educated victims were hauled outside the city limits and left to die of starvation.
This history is only 30ish years old…I can’t even fathom this type of genocide…especially in this century! It’s amazing to think that every grey-haired man and woman that we meet here has such an amazing story to tell about all they witnessed and experienced during those devastating times in the late 1970’s.
We then spent the remainder of the morning at the Palace of the King of Cambodia! What an amazingly beautiful, grand place!
2 comments:
WOW Jules- sounds like a fun and exciting time you are having. It's amazing how witnessing something like the Killing Fields can bring feelings of gratitude, anger, sadness and confusion running through one's head all at the same time. I hope God uses you for your intended purpose there and I would love to see you when you get back.
What an adventure already - and just barely left!! You are in my prayers! Love ya and look forward to more
forever HIS child, freedom
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