I'm very much enjoying life here in Phnom Penh. Still taking in all the newness. And the heat, which requires that I spend half my time drinking water and the other half looking for a loo. I am now volunteering at the NGO and learning so much about how NGOs run, how Cambodian culture works, and how to survive commuting to work on a moto-dop (see photo of me in my power ranger/boba fett helmet)).
The traffic here truly must be seen to be believed. In the western world, now and then, you read in the paper about some fool who drives up an exit ramp onto the highway in the wrong direction, causing a multi-vehicle accident. But here, every day, in every lane, and across every lane, every different type of vehicle is moving and jockeying for position. Most intersections don’t have stop signs, so it is just a matter of weaving your way through the chaos and usually the bigger vehicle wins. Gridlock is common and the notion of do not block the box does not exist. Where there is the occasional stoplight, police lie in wait for any moto-dop drivers not wearing helmets and when an unsuspecting driver stops at the light, the police run out and grab the moto keys and charge the driver a fine on the spot. No payment, no keys. It is mesmerizing to watch all of this from the back of a moto and I am usually too curious to be scared as I hang on and keep an eye out for bag snatchers.
In terms of getting settled socially, the ex-pat community is small and very friendly. New people arrive every day, without knowing a soul, so phone numbers are exchanged over coffee within the first five minutes of meeting. This feels a bit like being in kindergarten, when you first go on to the playground, and you see lots of other kids who kind of look like you. So you go up and say, hi my name is ___, let’s be friends. And it’s a done deal. That is what it is like here. Which is refreshing in such a faraway place.
This past weekend, I got to know my way around town a bit. I went to a local market called the Russian Market and bought fabric to have made into clothing. This can be done very cheaply ($6 for a skirt) and is a better option than buying ready-made clothes, which won’t fit me anyway, as am too big to fit any clothes made for local women. At the market you can also buy movies for $1.50, so took advantage of that. Then spent all Sunday lounging by the pool meeting others who were also new in town. Not a bad life, but good to remember that not everyone here gets to live like this.
There are so many things to worry about here, like bag snatchers, traffic accidents, horrible people exploiting local women, but it is important to try not to think of these all the time or you'll never leave the house. Therefore, I try to focus on immediate problems and so far, my main worry is about this adorable little puppy named Abbey at an Internet cafe I frequent. Rabies is a huge problem here and I did not get the rabies shots. When I visit the cafe, Abbey always runs to me and tries to give my foot a lick. Because I am a huge fan of dogs, I would normally encourage this behavior. But instead I am shooing her and basically running away, which feels (and looks) absurd and goes against my nature. Oh well. For the time being, better that than foaming at the mouth...See photo of the savage beast above.
Overall so far so good.
