Briefly--From Cambodia

I know it's been a while. Sorry, I only have internet about once a week, and the last couple of times (including now), I've not had my flash drive with me to put up the entries I've written in Word. I did want you all to know though, that I am here and well. I've been here just over a week. Cambodia is a beautiful country, though not necessarily in the traditional sense of the word. I love being on the Mekong (especially at night...it's so peaceful!). It's very brown though--makes the Hudson look clean. People still wash in it though, brush their teeth with it, use it to drink even when they are desperate. We are well taken care of on the ship though--on weekdays, we have a cook making 3 meals a day for us (very good cook), there's fruit with every meal (dragonfruit is one of my new favorite things), and the rooms have air conditioning. In so many ways, I'm very grateful for it, but in others, I feel almost as though I shouldn't be living in such luxury. The crew on the ship is wonderful. All speak a little English, and a few speak very well. I help Marie-Claire a few times a week teaching English to the engineer, the captain, and the doctor, and also with the night guard, Sokun. I really love teaching--it's such fun, and I love the chance to work with the crew in that regard as well. Bill and Marie-Claire are great teachers as far as culture and the like go, and I am learning Khmer from the nurse on the ship, Daven, who speaks very good English as well. We do Khmer lessons in downtime. I'm up to body parts :) I'll write more about Phnom Penh and clinic when I update again from the ship, so you can see how it's going. The country is so different, and yet I have felt nothing but tremendous peace the entire time I've been here. This is where I'm supposed to be, no doubt about it.

Stay tuned, and thanks for listening :)