A Cow Can Climb a Mountain

Hi! I seem to have lost my small digital camera already. It only took me less than three months, which is a new record. These pictures that I have posted are the last ones that I had downloaded right before I left my camera on a bus while traveling to my permanate site. No need to worry, my loving sister from back home is mailing me a new one and I still have my utimate digital camera to capture some other great moments. But for now please enjoy the array of random photos that i have posted. :)

If we're not in class training or spending time with our host families than chances are we are all hanging out surrounded by large quantities of food.

This is one type of dish we all can't seem to get enough of. It's called cow climb a mountain. You basically slap layers of meat onto a burner and watch it cook. You can also get pretty creative with it by adding all sorts of vegetables, spices and butter. It's basically the american interpretation of fondu!

This is one of the many watts that is located by my village. It sits on top a hill and overlooks a bunch of nearby villages. It's very refreshing and peaceful up here.

This is definitely a great view to help clear the mind.

I love all the architecture and scultptors at all the watts. Each one is different and unique from all the other watts.

On this particular day we visited the watt and spoke to the monks to gather some more information about Buddhism. It was very insightful and interesting as they were extremely polite and nice in answering our questions.

Some of the things I learned about these monks is that: any male can become a monk after the age of seven for however long they would like, monks are only aloud to eat two meals a day (breakfast and lunch), all monks must shave their heads, monks are able to recieve an education while living at the watt, most males become monks to either show the utter most respect to their family or because they may be to poor to live on their own.

When it rains it pours...

My friend charlie cutting up some meat for our jumbalaya and movie night.

Movie night at Sam and Hal's house.

We don't believe in couches, chairs, sofa's or even recliners. All we need is a floor and a few matts.

The  movie Means Girls was the first preview for the evening.

This is my friend Arnaldo and our delicious huge pot of jumbalaya. As they say in Cambodia, it was ching-ine (delicious)!

Healing the Wounds of Sorrow

 Before I go any further with my blog entry I would like to take this time out to prepare you on the pictures that you are about to view. A few Sundays ago, a group of friends and I rode our bikes out to the killing fields in Krang Tachan. It was well hidden in the deep paths of Cambodia. It was a rainy, somber day, which we all felt was appropriate to fit the mood of an area that echoed the cries and screams of those who suffered from the tragic hands of the Kamar Rouge. Let us take this moment to send out our love and positive thoughts of energy and prayers for those who experienced this catastrophic horror. Let not the memory of those who have suffered be lost and forgotten.

 A memorial shrine to those who have passed on.

 So far, about thirty thousand remains have been uncovered from this one site. There are still other grounds in the area that have not yet been unburied.

 In order to relay what happened in some of the spots there are written accounts describing what the Khmer Rouge engaged in.

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Some of the clothes that were recovered from the underground prison cell.

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Some of these paintings depicts the appalling occurences as well as the country's sigh for hope and peace.

A map to show what it was like during the Kamar Rouge Regime...

and what it has transformed to now.

We had a long bike ride back home to reflect on everything that we saw, heard and read while being at the memorial site. So many thoughts were roaming through my head but one of the main things that I kept wondering about was how incredibly strong my host family is in being able to keep their lives going for the betterment of their family. Like so many other families in Cambodia, they experienced death, loss, and seperation from their homes, families and all together the lives that they once knew. Cambodia is still recovering from this tragic loss and it is still uncertain as to when it will be fully recovered. I'm a little sad to admit this but prior to moving to Cambodia I had very little knowledge about what had happened. But after being here for two months and learning so much more on the history of Cambodia I am now more determined to serve my purpose on being a volunteer here. I don't yet know how I will be able to help. All I know is that each of us can breath inspiration and hope towards another if we just give it a go. So here i go...

<3

A Special Kind of Love

 This is a view from our front patio. The water tank on the left is one of the many ways my family collects their water from the rain.

 This is my youngest host sister, Kimvong, having a playful water fight with her mom.

 When ever it pours she likes to run outside and run in the rain. I have yet been able to find that determination but I'm slowly starting to lean towards that idea. Maybe next time...

 My sister and host mom wanted to take full advantage of the rain and wash their hair in it.

 This is my other host sister, Kelly. She is the eldest of my three sisters.

This has probably got to be my most favorite picture that I've taken since I've been here. Not only does Kimvong look adorable she also reminds me so much of my family from back home, especially my nieces. It's been a great comfort to hear her laughs and to see her smiles. Each time I hear her laughing I think of my niece Annie. Their laughs, their humor and their playful, kind hearts are similar in so many ways. We like to play jokes on each other...the same way my  nieces and I would play jokes on each other. :) 

 

This is a short footage of the rains drops falling.

Later on in the evening my family started making a delcious dessert made out of coconut and rice wrapped in banana leaves.

 Kimvong reminds me so much of my nieces but I should also say that the rest of my host family makes me feel just as much love and support as my family from back home gave me. I truely am grateful and feel blessed. I left my great family and traveled thousands of miles to be apart of another endearing family that has made me feel completely welcomed and loved.

 After filling each banana leaf with the paste, they let them sit and bake in a container outside that was sitting on top of a burner. They weren't ready until the next morning but needless to say, it was a delicous treat to wake up to.