| Cambodia: trash thrown everywhere (and I do mean everywhere); cars, driven like there is no one else on the rode, going into the lane that drives the opposite direction to get away from the slow car in front of you; motor/bicycles, driven into every little space they can find on the streets, even with the damn car zooming by; the Tonle Sap, dirty as heck with no one cleaning it, even if a girl goes down to the edge and pisses right into there; [MANY] beggars, the saddest faces you'll ever see, following you around because they haven't eaten in the longest, begging for money just to buy a piece of bread that wouldn't fill them; streets, too small for cars AND motor/bicycles to pass through; people, throwing their garbage out in front of their homes with kids wondering around butt naked or with no diaper on; buildings, getting moldy and paint chipping at every corner; food made out on the streets with nothing sterilized when chopping the fresh meat and fishes; markets on the streets with fresh veggies and fresh fish, still alive, with flies roaming on it; showers with no hot water, just cold (good thing it was nice and HOT!); there is more, but the one thing I have to say about Cambodia is that Cambodia... is the MOST BEAUTIFUL country I'll ever be in.
Driving to my Aunt's house from the airport I thought, "Dang, look at how crazy these drivers are. Oh man, look at the motorcycles--DAMN watch out for the car! Jeez, look at the trash. Why is it so dusty?" But even with all that, right off the bat, I loved it. It was so busy out there. Everyone was busy doing everything, going to school, going to work, picking up their kids, stopping by a friend's house or a relatives' house, or just going to the Tonle Sap to chill. And when driving down to my Aunt's home in a cramped space with people selling their veggies and fish with flies all around them, I couldn't bring myself up to say, "Eww, don't they know how to clean?" I loved how dirty it was, I loved the damn smell of the cars' arse.
And later on in my trip, I leave to go to so many beautiful places. Learning about my culture and learning about the every day life of the people made me feel SO MUCH at home. Yes, I missed it here, Amyasan, my home, the internet, SCHOOL, but really, I could've stayed there for more than a year--for more than 10 years! It felt like it was home to me. Even with everything new, even with the outdoor market with random clothes hanging around and cheap knock-offs, like the outdoor swap-meet here, or restaurants that are everywhere but is in a person's home, or with the traffic starting at 6 AM, or with the careless people throwing their sh!t right where they are standing, I definitely didn't feel like a stranger to the whole thing. Temples are everywhere, pride in their culture is everywhere, representing what they own, being naive about how dirty their country is, it was just so wonder to be expose to something new like that. Of course, I would love for it to be A LOT cleaning, but hey, they're growing and I was more than happy to stay there and watch Cambodia grow some more. Heck, I'm absolutely sure that I'll be the one helping!
Cambodia definitely helped me forget almost every stress I had lying on top of me. But I didn't use it to 'escape,' these are my people and my country. Yes, I can now say that Cambodia is my country. Even with the greedy Prime Minister Hun Sen keeping the money from building new streets and homes and schools, I would definitely go back. Why? Because it has a rich culture--no, because it is my culture. And well, I think it's damn awesome to learn about how the Kings call themselves God Kings and how the people today haven't changed much from the people thousands of years ago or how hard and tiring it must have been to built Ta Keo or Angkor Wat from heavy stones and afterwards carving into the stones making carvings of Apsaras or King Jayavarman VII's victory in those many battles or to show their loyalty to their Gods. How can I not love something that is apart of me. Nope, this little entry does not fully express how I felt when I was there, but it was the best that I could do.
Honestly, I felt like I left home when leaving Cambodia than when I left California. My culture is rich and I'm here to preserve that.
Food? Tarantulas, crickets, frogs, and all sorts of cockroaches. NO I didn't eat the frogs, what do you think I am, a freak?
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