Oh Asia, you so crazy!!

I have been working on getting everything together for this post for a while.  It's hard to explain the odd things that i see on a regular basis, so I had to take a bunch of pictures.  I finally feel like I have enough to do this post justice.

Let's start with the cars.  99% of the cars here are either a Lexus or a Toyota.  And 75% of the motos are Hondas.  I think there was some serious colluding going on with those companies, and they came to the arrangement that one could have the car market, the other the moto.  And in case you didn't know that the car next to you was a Lexus, a lot of them have these huge gold (always gold!) decal that says in foot tall letters, LEXUS.

I know that the "Lexus" looks silver, but trust me, it's gold.

They also like to advertise that they are driving LAND CRUISERs here....

Then you have the crazy wonder products.  They range from teas that cure everything to toothpaste that not only whitens your teeth, but also curbs your appetite.  

What can't this amazing product do??

There is also this.  I don't even know where to start with this one.

I mean really???  corn ice cream???  and it's still $6.00!!  I almost want to buy it to try.  Almost...

And then there is K-pop.  You have to see it to believe it, but they are all kinda awesome....



So yes, if you never thought you needed it or wanted it, you can get it here.  There will be more to come on this subject, because there are always new and crazy things to find out....

Water Festival, or as my assistant calls it, Water Westiwal.

Every year around this time, they have the Water Festival in Phnom Penh.  The Tonlee Sap River changes direction, it marks the end of the rainy season, and nearly a million people from the provinces come to the Big Smoke (city), to see the boat races, the concerts, and fireworks that mark the events of the Festival.  Last year's turned tragic, when nearly 300 people were trampled to death on a suspension bridge.  There were so many people on the bridge that it swayed, which in turned scared the everyone from the provinces, resulting in a stampede.  This year the majority of the events, including the boat races, were cancelled.  The Prime Minister decided the money was better spent as aid to all the people affected by the flooding.  Cambodia hasn't been hit nearly as hard as Thailand, but is also much poorer, so there is less aid for the poor farmers out in the provinces.  So thankfully, there are not nearly as many people in the city as there would be in any other year, but it is still noticeably more crowded.

Today I decided to visit Wat Lanka, the temple nearest to my apartment, then meet a friend for lunch at my favorite restaurant here so far, then we would both go and see what there was to see.

They are adding on to the current temple.

Fairly sure these are crypts...  either way, they are beautiful

My tour guide for the temple.  This cat followed me around meowing the whole time I was there

It;s good to know that even Buddha has time to read the paper and keep current.

The entrance to Wat Lanka

 Turns out, not a whole lot, but we did get a good show while we had lunch.  The restaurant is right by  Independence Monument, which commemorates Cambodia's independence from Vietnam.

Independence Monument

It is also right across from the Prime Minister's house, and his neighbor, the North Korean Embassy.  Coincidence? I think not...

In case you were wondering what Kim Jong Il was up to, they have a bulletin board, with all his "good" deeds....

The big one is the PM's house, the smaller one the North Korean Embassy.  I'm probably on some watch list now for taking this picture...

This stretch of road is also where a lot of the concerts and other events for the Water Festival are taking place.  They light up the trees and monument at night, they sweep for mines and bombs during the day!

They also closed the street, Sihanouk, which is one of the busiest, and put up metal detectors.  It was quite odd to leave the restaurant and not hear "Hey lady, tuk tuk" 20 times.  We walked around a bit, but didn't really see much, most of the events are at night.  

I am working on a few other posts for you.  I have one dedicated to the insane Christmas show the school is putting on, another on how crazy Asia is (it's like a whole other country or something!), and another on the work I am doing with the girls (I love it!!)  I know I have been lax about putting up pictures, but I will work on that, promise.  Other than that, I am enjoying my five day weekend, and working on getting all my lessons planned for the next few weeks. (next week is letters K and L.  Look at that, an entire week, done!  Gotta love kindergarten...)  I have been busy, but good.  Still love it here, but not gonna lie, I needed the little break from the kids, the school, and the stupid Christmas show.  Will post on that tomorrow, for sure!

So happy Water Westiwal to you and yours, also happy 11-11-11, and happy Veteran's Day!  Enjoy your weekend everyone!

First day of kindergarten....and Cambodian traffic suggestions...

So I finished my first full day of school, and only had one boo boo, two tantrums, and five minutes of dead air.  I really need to brush up on my little kid songs!  On the plus side, I get to play all day, they feed me snacks and lunch, and it is a five minute walk home to relax during my break in the afternoon.  I'm kinda digging the little ones.  It's nice to just have to focus on one letter a day, teach them the chicken dance (which is kinda like herding cats.  Runny nosed, adorable cats.)  They love the part where they hold hands and dance in a circle, the rest of the time they just start blankly at me while I demonstrate the rest of the dance.  Baby steps, right?

Volunteering is going fantastic.  I have had three classes with the ladies, and they have been amazing.  It is so great to see them smiling and laughing, and learning.  They have been divided into two groups, and they are so fun.  Tonight was my beginner group, and they were fantastic.  By the end of class, they could say hello, goodbye, and ask someone what their name is.  We have also started on the phonic alphabet, those kindergarten songs are coming in handy!  They were also singing ants on the apple, ah ah ah, ants on the apple, ah ah ah by the end of class.  So much fun!  Once I get more settled into teaching the kindergartners, I will try and add more hours with the ladies, but for now, I am with them three hours a week and I love it!

I also get to take a moto over to the house, and it is normally around sunset, so it is just nice to feel the breeze and enjoy the beauty around me.  (Also, if I focus on the sky, I don't see the chaos around me...)  Traffic laws here in Cambodia are more like suggestions.  Lights, lane lines, even which side of the road you drive on, pretty much anything goes.  They have a few stop signs, but I have yet to even see someone slow down at one.  If you have ever read Medium Raw, by Anthony Bourdain, he describes it so much better than I can.  But riding on the back of the moto is almost like poetry.  It should be a disaster, but it just works.  Since you expect everyone around you to do whatever they want, it's not a surprise when you see a truck or a tuk tuk coming at you, you just go around them and keep on going.  I will not drive my own moto anytime soon, but it is fast becoming my favorite way to get around the city.  Not to worry, I am buying my own helmet tomorrow, so that in case I encounter a rouge expat on the road, my noggin will be safe!

On the down side, I just realized that Cambodia doesn't do daylight savings, so I am missing out on one of my favorite weeks of the year!  I won't get the joy of feeling like I am sleeping in an hour later, and giggling over it every morning.  On the flip side, I won't be angry for a week in spring when I lose an hour...  I'll take missing a week of giggles, since it takes away one of my worst weeks of the year!  Plus, every time one of those little munchkins calls me teeCHERR, I giggle.  I'm for sure coming out ahead on the giggle/giddy front!

Happy November to everyone!  Miss you guys!