Christina's Cambodian Christmas Card

This is an email I sent to over 100 people around Christmas time. I think it only made it to a handful of people. Not sure if I should blame the Cambodian internet or the fact that I use AOL....

December 24, 2012

Hello from Cambodia!

This is my version of a Christmas card. Instead of distributing a picture of me in a Christmas sweater (because who wears sweaters in Cambodia?), you are receiving a reflection on my 15 weeks so far living in Southeast Asia.  This country is different than anything I’ve ever experienced (duh, Christina). Cambodian people are spectacular, the weather is almost unbearable, and the experience is something I never could have prepared myself for.  The email and evaluations you are about to read are far from many you will hear from backpackers who pass through or preteens here on week long youth group trips. I've far from experienced all of Cambodia, but here is a taste of my life and evaluations for the past 3 ½ months in a third world country. I've kept a blog (http://cambodianchris.blogspot.com) if you want to see some pictures and other stories I've posted while I've been here. 

 Cambodia is a rapidly developing country. Developing…but far from developed.  It is not for the faint of heart. This is not a ploy for you to pity me or scare you from venturing over here, but an honest assessment: it’s a real challenge here. The people I've encountered here are…interesting. I have had an unimaginably difficult time negotiating where I stand in the expat community here. There are 5,000 expats living in Phnom Penh. Many of these are who we refer to as “sexpats”, people who have come to Cambodia to engage in, and from what it looks like, sustain the booming sex industry.  It’s easy to identify a sexpat. They are middle aged to…well…old men, who walk with a leering, undeserved, confidence with a beautiful Cambodian woman on their arm.  This shatters my heart into a million pieces while simultaneously triggering my gag reflex. I’ve been on a constant search for other teachers like me: half Chinese volleyball playing girls with a deep love for ice cream and multicolored windbreakers. However, my search has surrendered no results. I’ve widened my search to young adults who are attempting to navigate their way through the transition to adult life, while barely remaining financially stable from our meager Cambodian income.  Unfortunately, this search has turned out to be only slightly better than the previous one. PEOPLE LIKE ME ARE HARD TO FIND!

 

It’s never really been hard for me to make friends in the US. Between captaining volleyball teams and 4 years in my sorority, Zeta Tau Alpha, finding friends has been quite easy.  I am constantly surrounded by amazing people when I’m home. That is no coincidence (I have excellent taste). I LOVE being in groups and socializing. I CRAVE constant human interaction and ALWAYS want company.  Knowing this about myself, 4 years ago I added to my bucket list (a list of things to do before I die...yes I have one…yes I’m serious…yes I love lists) “move to a place where I don’t know anyone”.  Holy Cow 18 year old Christina what were you thinking?! 22 year old Christina took it further and changed it to “move to a country where I don’t know anyone”. Okay seriously…who does this?! I guess I wanted a challenge. Wellp. I found one.

 Finding a niche here has been HARD. Finding friends has been HARD. Navigating my way through typical young adult tribulations here has been HARD.  People say they change over here. People say that with any extended trip abroad. Everyone says “I’m sure you’ve changed” blah blah blah. Have I? Maybe. I’m not sure. I do know that I have definitely grown up.  I’m maturing and attempting to pilot my way into adult life, much the same as my counterparts/best friends in the US. At the same time, so so so different.  Not harder, or easier…but different.

Ready for good things? I feel like I’ve finally got the hang of life over here.  I’ll never fully get how this country ticks, how everyone can possibly be so relaxed, how the traffic somehow continues to flow, or how I possibly safely transport myself via bike in this traffic. Somehow, not every day feels like a near death adventure anymore. Finally it just feels like life.

 My students are INCREDIBLE. My little kindergarteners are hilarious. They bounce back and forth speaking Khmer, Chinese and English.  The best thing they say is “5…6…7...A...9…10…elephant...” ummm now that I told y’all that I realize maybe we should practice counting more. Sometimes I feel like my kindergarten job is glorified babysitting, but my amazing TA makes everything much better. She is 29 and married with a child, and she’s one of my best friends over here.  She feels like my big sister, Dre, and has helped me understand this country more than I ever could have on my own. My college students are AWESOME (I just taught them that word last week). Honestly, I feel like teaching my college course makes teaching here worth it. I've formed relationships with my students, they have dreams and goals for the future, and I am helping them get there by teaching them English.  I’m fairly certain they think I’m a true basket case, and I’m also pretty sure they think I’m 18 years old. On the first day of class I fell out of my chair, and the second week I wrote on our dry erase board with permanent marker. Classic.

An amazing thing that I've observed about Cambodian people, is the balance they've found between maintaining a good work ethic, and the ability to relax 24/7. I've seen some of the hardest working people in this country, and I've also seen some of the chillest people in this country. It’s always impressive, and sometimes aggravating.  

It feels like Cambodia realizes the work that is left after their recent dark days of genocide, but that hasn't produced a rushed or panicked feeling like many would assume. Rather, it seems that they accept where they are, and they have a reasonable timeline and goals for their crusade to progress.  That being said, the government is extremely corrupt and paying off cops is as nonchalant as paying for a loaf of bread (I did it yesterday).  People have got plenty of horrible things to say about the Cambodian government, and believe me I could give you a laundry list. However, I think people sometimes forget how recently it was that this country had a massive genocide under Pol Pot and the Khmer Rouge. If we’re comparing how this country is being run now to how it was before, I think we don’t even need to have this discussion.  Cambodia’s progress is undeniable and encouraging for me to see. The food isn't especially great, the weather is especially sucky, the infrastructure is almost nonexistent, but it’s the Cambodian people who make this country worth a second glance. People here are very unapologetic about Cambodia. This is helpful when I get frustrated with minor things here. It is what it is. RELAX CHRISTINA.  

 

I've spent many days feeling lonely as I negotiate the difference between being alone and loneliness.  Luckily, this has also given me time to observe and think (and write this staggeringly long email).  I’m happy over here, but I’m also ready to begin my second adventure.  In 2 months I’m moving to China and I couldn't be more thrilled! I’m moving to Yinchuan, which is in the far north of China, close-ish to Mongolia. I've signed a six month contract which begins March 1. After that? Who knows. I don’t even know what country I’ll be in. I’m determined to make my way to Tibet, Nepal, and India…eventually.  I have no idea where my final destination is, but I am so pleased with the direction my life is going.  Until then, I’ll do my best to maintain this nomadic lifestyle. 

I hope everyone is having a fabulous holiday! I wish I could be with my family and best friends delivering my signature Christmas cookies.  Instead, I’m eating rice and breaking a sweat on Christmas Eve as I type this email. If you've somehow read this entire email you deserve a cookie (hey can you mail me one of those as well?!).  Read my blog! http://cambodianchris.blogspot.com if you don’t read it, I understand…just don’t tell me you’re not reading it.  I’d love to hear from y’all and I apologize for not keeping in better contact with many of you. I’d like to hear what is going on in your life after making you read so many of my words about me. 

Merry Christmas! LYMI, peace n’ blessingz, SB < 3, ZLAM, and any other slang/acronym/youtube quote you can think of to say I love and miss y’all. Love you mama and daddy!

Christina 

How to be an adult in Cambodia

The title is a joke, by the way. I have no idea what I'm doing or how to be a grown up...but I doubt any of you know how to do it either. 

It feels like I've finally hit my stride here in Cambodia. It's strange that my first experience with grown up life is in a third world country. By grown up life I mean that I have a real job and a real apartment...in CAMBODIA. What?! My life before Cambo was living in a posh on campus apartment with two of the most incredible roommates, where we had weekly dance parties, cranked the AC to subarctic temperatures, and my obsession with them became borderline unhealthy.  The cost of my rent here would get me a closet in the US, and the exterminator would visit the house every other day (I swear these ants reproduce 10 offspring for every one I kill). The temperature lingers in the mid 90s, and AC is a no-go. Southwestern living was a dream world.

I've got 2 jobs and a bicycle to keep me busy and moving around the city. This my bike in front of my apartment. Oh shoot...sorry I forgot to put the welcome mat outside our metal gate and padlock. I usually pedal for about 2 hours every day. My jobs are on the opposite sides of the city, each about 20-30 minutes away from my apartment. Remember what I said about the temperature? Mid 90s. Transportation? $30 bicycle without gears. Work wardrobe? Slacks and button ups. Result? More sweat than a 5 game college volleyball match. When I show up to work I look good enough to be the cover girl for awkward family photos. (www.awkwardfamilyphotos.com )

In the mornings I teach kindergarten to affluent half Chinese half Cambodian children. They are hilarious. English is their third language, so you can just imagine what our classes are like. I've been working 2 months and literally have never successfully carried out a lesson plan. These are 2 of my favorites/ biggest trouble makers. 

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In the evenings I am a PROFESSOR of BUSINESS ENGLISH at a UNIVERSITY. Oh no, that's not a joke. I actually teach college classes. Who let that happen?! My students are awesome. Their teacher? Not quite there yet, Cher. On the first day of class, I fell out of my chair. In the second week of class, I wrote on the white board with permanent marker. Classic. Rookie mistake Professor, rookie mistake. I like this job a lot because I feel like I'm really helping my students make a better future for themselves. 

I've far from figured it out. I would like to think I look as normal walking down the street as these Buddhist Monks...but instead my days are filled with alarming miscommunications, awkward encounters, and culturally questionable interactions. Oh and buckets and buckets of sweat.  Strangely, this feels comfortable now. It only took me 13 weeks to somewhat get it together over here, and surely my last 10 will be a cake walk. That's totally not true, I just wanted to reference cake because I really miss it and could use some right now...

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Welcome to Cambodia Mr. Obama

Two weeks after he was reelected, President Obama came to see me. Aaaaand the rest of Southeast Asia. It was the first time any US president has ever come to Cambodia! While abroad, I'm usually I'm a little embarrassed to say I'm American. Anyone who has traveled outside the US has most likely also felt this way many many times. This was the most national pride I've ever felt outside of America. People here were SO EXCITED for President Obama. It was such a big deal that all schools, many roads, and most businesses were closed. Surprise 4 day weekend? This is my kind of country.

Cambodia hosted a huge pan-Asian conference that fell in conjunction with Obama's visit. Police were EVERYWHERE. Both ends of my block were monitored by police officers, while hundreds more lined the streets. They would temporarily stop all traffic on main roads to allow faceless Asian diplomats in the sleekest black cars I've seen in months, drive down the road straddling the double yellow lines. Right, because they need all 4 lanes to drive down the street. Then again, it's not like anyone respects those double yellow lines...ever.

It was really cool to see the swell of pride from the local Cambodian people. Before school one morning my TA said "I hope because Obama is coming, the whole world will know of Cambodia". The people here are so proud of their country, and the giant strides they've made in the few decades following their dark period of genocide. That being said, corruption is alive and well in Cambodia, and there are countless problems that remain within this country.










I have the same wish as my TA. I hope that Cambodia will continue to develop, and the world will begin to look at Cambodia not with pity, but with open arms, recognizing the enormous amount of work left to do, but appreciating and encouraging their crusade to progress.

Mosquito nets and cold showers: Living the dream

Last weekend I went to the beach! I'm slightly jealous of everyone in the states complaining about how cold it is, because honestly I think my body has physically forgotten what it feels like to be cold. IT'S SO HOT HERE. I'm always drenched in sweat, which definitely helps my professionalism when I arrive at work after my 30 minute bike ride with sweat dripping off my head. The one good thing about this perpetually miserable temperature, is that a long weekend at Sihanoukville beach is always an option

It took a 4 hour impossibly cramped van ride to get to Sihanoukville, where we stayed in a bungalow complete with mosquito nets and ice cold showers. Okay okay I said I forgot what it was like to be cold... I think this shower put my body into hypothermic shock.

The weekend was spent lounging on beach chairs, reading and getting my nails painted, as women selling tropical fruit from their head patrolled the beach, preying on my weakness for mango.

I've been in Cambodia for over 2 months now! I've moved into an apartment with a fellow American teacher, I have a bike, and two English teaching jobs. I'm settling in nicely here, but don't worry...however "smooth" my life goes, I still humiliate myself daily as I get used to life here in Cambodia.

Holiday in the Countryside

Recently, Cambodia celebrated their largest holiday Pchum Ben. Everyone usually returns to the countryside to be with their families. 

One of my favorite former students invited Melissa (my new roommate) and me to join her in the countryside to celebrate. It was about a 2 hour tuk tuk ride away from Phnom Penh

Her house was in a small village, and she had a whole bunch of family there! They were so nice and excited for us to be there. We were equally as thrilled 

We went to their local temple to feed the spirits and pay our respects. It was fun but it felt like we were at the zoo...but we were the animals to see. Everyone stared with the same why-are-these-two-white-girls-here-I've-never-seen-anyone-who-looks-like-that expression.

After the temple, we returned to their house to eat! The food was...edible. They eat on wooden tables that double as beds at night time. It hurt just sitting on it, I can't imagine how they sleep there. 

 This is about half of the family 

This little guy was my favorite

That was one of the coolest things I've done since I've been here. 

My favorite part of this country? Their ability to do nothing and just chill

Chuh cuuuuuute

In Cambodia they call teachers "cher", not like the singer behind the song believe (one of my favorites), but as in the second half of the word "teacher". Buuut with an accent it kind of sounds like "chuhh", like a "churro", not to be confused with "burro" (eh, Bronwyn?). Now I want a churro. 

I have 2 classes I just finished teaching; one at an orphanage, and one for the hotel cleaning staff. It was HARD. There was no book or curriculum to follow, so I had to basically make everything up off the top of my head. I'm glad I had the experience to teach there, they were really great kids. Here are many pictures of the orphanage, and the nuggets who live there

waving goodbye after class

on the last day, we brought pizza!

puppies, ducks, and children run around the grounds in a mad, usually partially clothed, free-for-all

this was my classroom for a while

pretending to drive the tuk tuk 

outside one of the classrooms

This is the hotel staff that I taught! I loved them so much. Their English was very limited, but they tried very hard and were hilarious. One of the ladies, every time I saw her, said "CHUR CUUUUTE" and gave me a thumbs up. That was about the extent of her English- except for the loads of job related vocabulary words I taught her!  She might be trying to suck up to me...or she may just have good taste. 

  oh ya... Christmas tree in our classroom.

People have tons of respect for teachers here. In the US, I wouldn't be allowed anywhere near the front of the classroom; however, in Cambodia they give me way more respect than I deserve. 

Indiana Jones for a day

I recently went to Angkor Wat and other temples around Siem Reap, the most popular tourist attractions in Cambodia. Angkor Wat is the largest religious structure in the world. We spent a day and a half exploring temples, including the temple where the movie Tomb Raider was filmed. 

I fulfilled a childhood dream by climbing (mostly stumbling) through ruins of old temples like Indiana Jones. 

Now that we have returned to the Phnom Penh, I am taking Khmer classes and teaching at an orphanage. It's pretty difficult, but I'm looking forward to being able to communicate through spoken language, rather than my unintelligible sign language and Tarzan style English.  The writing is very difficult and I doubt I'll get the hang of it....