Culture Shock

Cambodia is a lot to take in! It hasn’t sunk in yet and it probably won’t until my team leaves next Saturday.

The climate isn’t too terrible; Missouri definitely prepared me for the humidity and heat combination.

The food has been a fun experience so far, mixing Cambodian food with more familiar dishes. We’ve had rice noodles, fried noodles, pancakes, coca-cola ribs, french fries, and pizza. We have arrived on a holiday which, as I understand it, is like an independence celebration. There were boat races in the river that runs through Phenom Penh with thousands of people all crammed into one area!! So crazy! With the holiday in mind, that changes the operations of the country with the extreme amount of people.

The smells aren’t bad until a lot of people are all crammed against me and the fish smells are so strong, most of our team gets very disgusted by it. It makes me feel nauseas.

So far, the most shocking and unsettling thing has been seeing the trash all along the streets and put into the river, as if it’s a garbage disposal. Heart breaking to witness so much filth.

Right now we’ve made it to the marriage retreat after having spent the night in Phenom Penh at Steve Hyde’s gorgeous, mahogany covered, 6 stories high, 10 suites for guests, home. The beach is at our back door in Sihanoukville, SW of Phenom Penh 3-4 hours drive. Some single people were invited by Steve so my roommates are Lomsa (26 – single) and Kunthea (25 – engaged). Both speak English but Lomsa has a little harder time with it. Kunthea is fluent and got free English lessons from a church and that was where she heard about Jesus! Steve has said that there is “Cambodia Buddhism” (their own version) but the people are very open to Christianity because of the current and past struggles everyone is affected by. The Christian church here is the fastest growing church in the world!

I’ve been really connecting with a family from Brasil, Daniel, Alene (pronounced Aliinii), and their 4 or 5 year old daughter. They speak good English but complain that it’s not good and only occasionally we stumble when we talk to each other. Alene tells me she has a hard time teaching English to the kids because of her accent, so she uses lots of videos. The daughter does not know any English. They have built a small house in the children’s center in Poipet. I am waiting to make my decision on where I will be stationed (Poipet or Krachet) because there are two that I must choose from. I haven’t felt as strong of a pull and connection toward Krachet as I have for Poipet. When I talk with Steve, I’ll see where he wants me and then decide from there. Poipet also has Cambodia’s only Women’s Crisis Center. Cambodia is 3rd highest in abortion rates with more than 60,000 operations every year that are known. Vietnam is #1. Thailand is #2 even though it is illegal there. I really hope to visit the crisis center.

God is so good in protection, guidance, friendship, and everything in between that I don’t notice. I am seeing the Spirit work through our team and our fellow travelers and pastors. God is going strong and using me! I can feel it! It makes me feel very excited and humbled. I am learning so much about many different cultures all at once and seeing Jesus come alongside us all to connect us and worship Him! Praise Jesus!

Today:
– 1st squatty potty
– 1st experience with haggling for a shirt (Alene pretty much did it for me, thank goodness!)
– 1st Cambodian roadtrip (white nuckles the whole way)