Home

I have been home for almost a week, and I am already counting down the days till I can go back to Phnom Penh. This summer truly has been a learning experience and a continual adventure. Through my internship I have been able to learn about a new culture, language, public health, and international development. It is safe to say that everyday was something new.

As I look back on life in Cambodia, I find things that I want to instill with life in Provo.

First, I will learn to make Khmer dishes from fresh ingredients. During my last week in Cambodia, I was the only intern left or barang with the host family. As a result, I had a lot of free time and was able to spend a good portion of that time in the kitchen. I learned how to make basic Cambodia dishes that are somewhat quick, healthy, and delicious.

Second, I want to make time to enjoy a cup of Milo.

Sometimes during the internship, I got a little overwhelmed with the workload and upcoming trips. One of my favorite ways to de-stress and relax was to grab a cup of Milo and go for a bike ride. Eventually Milo became one of my favorite drinks and now I just crave them all the time. I just need to make Milo without the sweet condensed milk...

So, technically I only have two things I have on my list...but the list is far from being complete. Jet lag and graduation have consumed a lot of my time lately. All I know is that when I arrived in Cambodia, I was just a naive public health intern with 2 suitcases. When I left, I left with a new love for Cambodia, respect and admiration for Buddhism, friends, and another family.

Cambodia, I hope to see you again in 9 months!

Tongue Tied

Well, the summer is practically over and I have yet to begin to master the language of Khmer. Tessa and I have been taking Khmer lessons from a member in the church. We can say simple phrases and answer basic questions...as long as they revolve around what we want to do or eat. Apparently talking about food is a universal subject that everyone enjoys.

As I have learned more about the Khmer language, the more I am motivated to learn and practice here in Provo, UT.  All I need to do is find someone who is willing to tutor me, which may prove to me more difficult than I thought. Anyways, I always like a good challenge and this will keep me focused on something until school starts.

Can you believe that the new semester starts in just a few weeks? I cannot, but I am excited to start as a BYU GRAD STUDENT! Yes! I can finally see a light at the end of the tunnel.

My Growing Family

These are some of the people who I will miss a lot when I go back home. Well, now that they are family...I will have to venture out to Cambodia more often. :)

Eating lunch at the hair salon

Me and Mom

Oh, Sovanea is not going to be happy about this photo...

Lyno

Tessa, Bunthy, me, Jessica

Sovannea and Jessica - my two favorite people

Host parents!

Adventure and Reflection

Before i knew it, it became July and now it is half way gone. Every morning I sit on the balcony listening to the sounds outside--a woman calling for empty plastic bottles/cans, motos honking their horns, and bells notifying of the approaching monks.

 I have been asked to update people on my life in Cambodia, but this place is too perplexing and marvelous to describe. Everything hits you in the face so hard all at once. Nothing is half-way.

The smells are either heavenly--from fresh jasmine flowers adorning people's door-ways, to deadly--fresh fermenting human and animal waste.

The people here are either extremely loving and friendly, or extremely abrasive.

Every outfit is well planned, nothing is thrown together at the last minute. Hair is not quickly put into a ponytail, but nicely curled or braided. Finger nail polish is an art and continually changing.

The food is extremely sweet, bitter, savory, or incredibly spicy.

The weather is either unbearably hot, with heat rising from the ground, or wet with monsoons that require one to swim through the busy streets and sleep with earplugs.

The women are constantly overlooked while the children are constantly reprimanded.

Here in Cambodia, I experience the highest of highs, and the lowest of lows. I cry from laughing at least once a day. I hear stories of individuals who have become my most current hero. People who have overcome impossible odds and stigmas. People who have used their whole life savings in an effort to make the lives of their children a little bit better. Women and children who have moved beyond the prejudices of poverty in a society where money means everything.

Hopefully someday soon I will have the opportunity to sit and write everything that I have experienced down. Until then, I will continue to share little pieces of my life in Cambodia. Who knows, maybe as I continue writing these experiences, it will promote reflection in someone else.

Filter Much pt.2

Since writing my first blogs post on the lack of filters in Southeast Asia, there has been many more noteworthy conversations. Posted below are just a few highlights my roommates and I have heard while in Cambodia.

Example 1: "Oh Melanie, you and Tessa have very big feet."
Example 2: "When you laugh, I cannot see your eyes." -J
Example 3: "You look Chinese because your nose is very big."
Example 4: "You cannot fit on moto because you are too big, it will make me go like this" (Moto driver than tilts the moto.
Example 5: "Oh, you have gotten so big." V then points to the shirt.

Thank you neighbors for saying such noteworthy things. :)

Time

I really hate that time goes faster when you are having fun. I cannot believe that I will be sitting in Utah in 2.5 weeks. It is going by too fast! Someone please build me a time machine or somehow make the earth spin in reverse. I do not actually know if that will make time go backwards, but it worked in the movies therefore it must be true.

Anyways, this summer truly has been an amazing experience. I have loved working at RACHA and learning how public health functions in an NGO setting. I have been living my dream this summer and I hope to return to Cambodia next year. I only hope that this can be more permanent instead of 3 months stints.

In a few days I will post about the highs and lows I have experienced in this country, as well as my overall thoughts.

Chess

Recently, Tessa and I have become obsessed with playing games with each other. The first game is chess. Tessa brought an IPAD to Cambodia and downloaded a free app of chess. Now we play chess everywhere whether it is on the balcony, the bus, lunch break, middle of the night, while we do laundry, in between reading journal articles, etc. If you cannot find us in the usual spots or I seem distant on chat, it is very likely Tessa and I are playing chess. 

As of now, I am wining in the Cambodia Summer chess competition. If I remember right, the score stands at Melanie: 75 Tessa: 32. Take that Tessa! Hahaha. We will see who wins the competition at the end of the summer.

If only Tessa and I could play Harry Potter chess...