I’m not one to highlight milestones as the years pass, but
the short or long time I have spent in Cambodia thus far, depending on the day and my
outlook, has allowed me to focus more on them. I just celebrated my second and last birthday
in the Bodes and now I must remember when asked everyday how old I am to answer
differently. I have now been in Cambodia for over a year and I still feel like every
day throws something new and unexpected at me. I recently had a conversation
with our country director who called this phase of a volunteer’s experience the
height of "ignorant arrogance". This means that at this point the volunteer tends
to think they know all, but they simultaneously realize they in fact know
nothing. However, some things have come to be more commonplace and I tried to
compile a small list of those below. I look forward to the chance I will have
this coming month to see this country through the fresh eyes of my American family. I’m
not sure what the next year will bring, but I know it will be constantly changing,
surprising and more intense than the past one.
- pigs on motos
- families on motos (5 or so people)
- round-about insanity and the "traffic rules"
- waiting and waiting when it comes to travel
- food sitting out for hours in the market
- kids using knives and other dangerous objects
- monks chanting on loudspeakers
- rain pausing the flow of daily life
- rain pausing the flow of daily life
Things that are still shocking:
- IVs on motos
- after a moto accident, the injured is thrown on the back of another moto
- physical appearance being bluntly commented on
- wedding music - volume and length
A personal project that I’ve taken on, as mentioned in the
last post, is to take at least one photograph every day. This was inspired by my
photography professor and mentor from college who has taken on this project
since 2002 (http://dailypost.bowdoin.edu/).
This has helped me to remain observant and to think about how to present my
daily life to those of you who can’t see it with your own eyes. Please follow
it by checking out my photostream here: http://www.flickr.com/photos/sam_wise/
A milestone for Cambodians that took place in the last month
was the 5th national election in the history of Cambodia. It was a time of excitement, passion and
anticipation for the Cambodian people. The aftermath is much calmer out in the
provinces, but the final results have yet to be finalized. Peace Corps strongly
suggested that we refrain from having political conversations for safety and
security purposes which I adhered to, also because it’s really challenging to
have a political conversation in another language. The author of the following
article said “however flawed or unfair this election, the Cambodian people have
spoken” which is the sentiment I experienced as every Cambodian I know of
voting age proudly showed me their ink soaked finger as proof of their vote.
NYTimes opinion piece - http://www.nytimes.com/2013/08/10/opinion/global/the-cambodian-people-have-spoken.html?pagewanted=all&_r=0
Fellow PCV’s blogs with more history and context on the election -
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| Rainy season |
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| Cows guarding my school |
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| Birthday festivities |
