Cambodia sure left a lasting impact on me. We were warned before departing our ship on our day in Cambodia that we should be prepared to see extreme poverty. I didn't know what to think as they briefed us on how to just ignore the begging children that would run up to us on the streets. I don't think I can ignore needy, begging children.
Our tour group started the day off at a home of a Cambodian family. A sweet family in the local village of Sihanoukville opened their doors to let us see into their lives, an average Cambodian family. the home was small and built on stilts to help keep them safe from animals, predators, and flash floods. The floors were a combination of random boards, scrap metal, and mud to fill in the gaps. It was a very humble home in which the entire family lived there including: grandma, her two daughters and their husbands and all their kids. I think total there were 12 people that lived in a home that was approximately 30 feet by 30 feet. Their kitchen was a pot over some coals and chickens roamed freely in and out of the kitchen and under their house. There was no running water and no restrooms, just an outhouse towards the back of the home. The family recently got electricity which was a huge luxury for them and they had one ceiling fan and one light bulb to provide enough light for their night time activities. To say I felt extremely spoiled and blessed after seeing this home is an understatement.
Even though this family had very little they had so much warmth and gratitude about them. They were so happy and the grandmother, who was the head of the home, was so proud of her house which was like a castle in her eyes. I couldn't believe the poor living circumstances and happy smiles on these peoples faces. It took everything inside me to not tear up. I silently said a prayer of gratitude in my heart for all the blessings in my life. For running water, flushing toilets, for a big spacious house, and for the means to be able to travel. I have much to be thankful for and whenever I feel sorry for myself I will always remember that day that I saw this poor, yet happy Cambodian family, grateful for all they had.
Afterwards we went to a local elementary school. We met some of the students who were eager to practice their English skills with us. The school requires the student to wear a uniform, which often is the only set of clothing the kids actually own. While we were there many of the student's parents and siblings were visiting to see us, the tourists, and I noticed that most of the younger siblings did not have shoes or even pants. They walked around half naked, constantly scourging for food. It was there that we started to get badgered by beggars. Almost everyone came up to all of the tourists begging for money or anything we could spare. We wanted to help them but there was no way we had enough to help everyone out. When we got on our tour bus to attend our next stop I could tell Kyle was being very quiet. He told me how hard it was to see little kids like Abby, Connor, and Brayden's age begging basically for survival. We talked about how blessed our kids are and how they don't even know how lucky they are. Even though they think we are bad parents for not allowing them to eat candy for breakfast, lunch, and dinner, they truly are in such a wonderful circumstance by living in a family that loves them, that can provide for their every need, and that they have the opportunity to get an education and become whatever they want to be when they grow up. Kyle and I would like to come back to Cambodia again, but on a service trip. Kyle said the next time we return we will pack giant suit cases full of shoes and pants and just hand them out to all the kids. I hope we can come back again in the future and do more service and aid for the sweet people of Cambodia.
Our next stop on our tour was to a Buhhdist temple called Leu Pagoda. The temple was beautiful and was decorated with ornate statues and paintings that were in gold. We even go to see the living quarters of the monks that live there on the temple grounds who dedicate their lives to study and worship. We also got to see them practicing within the temple. It was a beautiful temple and we enjoyed our time there, but at the same time we were very distracted by the local people that were hanging out there. The begging continued, and this time they were much more aggressive. They would take off our shoes for us, without us even asking, so we could enter the temple and in return put their hands out begging for money. We even saw a mother pinch her baby to make her cry and then have her oldest daughter hold the screaming infant in her arms and go up to each tourist begging for money for her and the baby. We were starting to get so overwhelmed with the people all over us and to see such levels of desperation for any kind of money that we started heading back to the tour bus sooner than we would have liked. We were not alone, most of our tour group felt the same way and we all were on the bus almost 10 minute prior to the designated time because we were all exhausted, overwhelmed, and a bit in shock from seeing the amount of begging taking place.
Since we left the temple site earlier than expected, that only meant we had a longer time at the local market, Phsar Leu. That was fine by us since Kyle and I always enjoy market places. This was a very interesting market places that was half inside a covered area and half outside on the street. The people were selling everything from fruits, to toys, to dresses. They even sold raw meat and fish that were just hanging on the sides of the vendor's booths with flies all over the dead carcuses. The smell was horrific. Between the rotting animal flesh, foul fish stink, and overall smell of trash which consumes the air in Cambodia (literally piles of trash are everywhere), I was starting to dry heave. Even Kyle's eyes were starting to water from the smell and complete filth. The stench was really strong in the covered area of the market, so we made sure to stay outside and check the shops along the street where there was at least a little breeze to help the smell. I would go back and forth between holding my breathe and inhaling through my shirt all while plugging my nose. The hard part was trying to do this all conspicuous cause I didn't want to offend the Cambodian people.
Again, it was more of an eye opening experience than anything else. It made me so grateful for all that I have, and again made my heart break for these people that were just trying to get by in such poverty standards. At least at the market we were not harassed by beggars, so in that case it was somewhat nice and relieving.
Our final stop of our tour took us to a resort on the beach where we had a BBQ on the water front and got to lay out and enjoy the water for a couple hours. All the resorts that occupy the beach fronts in Cambodia are owned by foreign investors. The resort which we stopped at was owned by a Chinese investor. The water was truly beautiful and the food was delicious. Kyle and I did say how difficult it was to truly enjoy the food and beautiful resort knowing that just outside the resort gates the Cambodian people were starving and begging for money. It almost didn't seem right.
Kyle and I were lucky enough to find a cabana on the beach where we laid out and watched the beautiful waves roll in and out. The water felt amazing, and I was surprised to see no trash along the beach after seeing so much trash along the sides of the roads. The resorts really take care of their beachfronts which makes it really nice for their guests, that's for sure.
Time came for us to head back to the ship. For the rest of the day we just kept talking about how grateful we were for everything that we have, and tried to think of ways that we could help the Cambodian people. I am glad to know that we have missionaries serving in that country helping to not only spread the gospel, but serve and help the people as well. Since our time in Cambodia was so short we would love to return again. We would love to See Ankur Wat which is a world wonder, and to help out and do a couple service projects whether they be related to the many orphanages that dot the country of Cambodia, or something affiliated with the church and it's organization. No matter what, we do not feel like our time in Cambodia has been enough and plan to return again.
We had another day at sea on the cruise ship as we sailed up to Bangkok. It was nice to have a relaxing day on the ship in which Kyle and I took full advantage of. We slept in, read our books, soaked up some sun, got our ice cream cones, and even watched out friends Digby and Marie Long play in a shuffle board tournament. Shuffle board is super popular among the British and since majority of passengers on board were from England, it was quite the tournament.
We made it to Bangkok, and I was beyond excited. On today's agenda we were going to explore the temple and the famous Golden Buddha, check out the Grand Palace, go on a river boat ride down one of the canals, and eat a traditional Thai meal.
First stop, the Wat Traimit temple and the Golden Buddha. The story behind the Golden Buddha is actually really interesting. In 1954 they were moving the giant plaster Buddha (yes, plaster at the time) to a new location. The ropes in which they were using to move it slipped and the Buddha fell cracking some of the plaster and revealing the golden statue underneath. Further investigation took place and carefully the plaster was removed and revealed that the Buddha was not made of plaster like everyone thought, but of gold! The Golden Buddha was actually in several piece and a key within the statue was found to assemble the pieces together to form the Buddha statue. Many of the people believe that the plaster coating was placed over the Golden Buddha to protect it from the Japanese invasion during the Second World War. They did not want the Japanese to take and destroy something that was so valuable. It is a miracle that the true Golden Buddha was revealed after WWII all due to a minor chipping of the plasters exterior coating.
The temple itself is at the top of quite the flight of stairs. At the top we got to see beautiful views overlooking the whole city. We saw monks, beautiful artwork, and the giant Golden Buddha himself. The temple was exactly what I pictured a Thailand temple to look like. The long pointy tops with ornate gold roofs. It made me think of the musical "The King and I."
Next on the agenda was the Grand Palace. For this I didn't know what to expect. I figure it would be a castle and that it would be pretty neat. I was very wrong. The Grand Palace is a huge square filled with many giant ornate buildings that are decorated in gold, jewels, and have the most elaborate art and detailed work. It was a little overwhelming to be honest. I almost didn't know where to look. Our tour guide let us loose within the palace walls so we could explore on our own for an hour or so. Kyle and I were constantly bumping into people because we were always looking up at the many buildings that were just amazing and grandeur.
Then we went to the Jade Buhhda Temple. There was a long line and photos were forbidden within the temple, but the exterior portion of the temple was something to behold as well, and while waiting to go inside we got to appreciate the artwork that the exterior was as well. It was covered in a mosaic of tiny jewels and glass the size of quarters that overlaid the entire temple. The amount of time that it would have taken to do that was just mind blowing. We were told that most of the work and construction within the Grand Palace was done by slaves. Inside the temple the Jade Buddha sat at the top of a giant tower and the walls, the ceiling, everything was painted in beautiful murals and covered in gold. It was amazing and something that cannot be given true justices through words everyone must see it in person at least once in their life, it is breath taking. The best way I can sum it up is that it is the 16th chapel, but for Thailand and Buddhism.
Our final stop in Bangkok was a river boat ride down the canals to check out the city in a different perspective. Bangkok is a busy yet beautiful city. It is full of color, life, and culture. We then stopped and ate lunch at a nice hotel along the river and enjoyed the beautiful view.
Since I like to collect the "You Are Here" collectors mugs from Starbucks, Kyle suggested we check out the Starbucks that was just a miles down the street. These particular mugs are special mugs that have beautiful pictures of different cities and countries that can ONLY be found in those particular cities or countries. For example we got a Singapore mug in Singapore, and I also got a Japan mug in Japan. I can't get these mugs anywhere else. So I was really wanting to get a Thailand mug since I didn't get a Cambodia, or Vietnam one. So we ate our lunch, then Kyle and I snuck out and went exploring on our own before we had to be back to the tour bus in 30 minute. So we ran down the streets of Bangkok all the way to the closest Starbucks, only to find that they didn't sell them at that particular store. I was so sad, and disappointed but at least it made for a fun adventure. Then Kyle and I had to run all the way back to meet up with our tour group in time before they would leave. We got to see the hustle and bustle of life down the streets of Thailand, ran into some interesting street markets, and even made it back in time. We were hot, sweaty, and tired having just ran a mile there and a mile back in about 30 minutes with our backpacks in the hot, humid Thailand sun. Even though we did not find a collectors mug, I am grateful for a husband who was willing to give it a try with me and to go running down the streets of Thailand in the heat to check.
The next day in Thailand we were on the island of Ko Samui. It was a beautiful island and a very touristy spot. Since it was our last stop on our cruise we opted for a more relaxing excursion and hung out at the beach at a local resort and ate at an all you can eat beachside buffet. It was so nice, and the weather was perfect. The only downside was that it was super crowded. They were not joking when they said it was a tourist hot spot. The beach was literally lined up with beach chairs that we couldn't even see the water because of all the beach chairs in front of us while on the beach. So Kyle and I opted to lay out by the pool alongside the beach which was much less crowded. We still got to see the beach off in the distance and didn't have to worry about getting dirty with all the sand. It was the perfect way to end our Southeast Asia Cruise. Relaxing on a tropical island, nothing but blue skies, blue ocean, and a sparkling blue pool. I am sure going to miss paradise, that is for sure.
For our last night on the ship we ate dinner with our good friends Digby and Marie. We have really enjoyed their friendship on the ship and hope to stay in touch with them throughout the years. Better yet, we hope we can someday go live near them! They are from Cambridge, England and as of right now there are two F-35 squadrons opening at Lakenheath AFB in England (Neighboring town to Cambridge) in the next couple of years. It would be a dream if we got stationed out there next to good friends and to enjoy life in another country and experiencing another culture. Till then I am grateful for email and social media to stay in touch with the dear Longs.
We also said goodbye to our fun waiters. Every night we had the same two waiters, Narasak and Pornapie. They were both from Thailand and were fabulous. They quickly picked up that Kyle and I could put down a couple meals each night so Narasak would take our order, bring out our meals, then bring a couple other meals he though we would enjoy. We ate like kings and queens on the ship, and we, and them, always got a kick out of all the different food they would bring out for us to try. It was also fun to learn about their lives back in Thailand, their families, and their goals and ambitions with working for the cruise line. We wish them all the best, and hope that our paths cross again in the future.
Thanks for all the wonderful memories, Sapphire Princess. We had a wonderful time on our 11 day Southeast Asia cruise. It was so nice to have alone time away from the kids, even though we missed them like crazy. We made sure to call them every day we were at a port and had wifi. They have had so much fun at grandma and grandpa's place, I don't think they will want to come back home with us. Even our dog, Sandy was having the time of her life playing with our neighbor and their dog back in Japan while we were away. Everyone had a little vacation, and it is true that "distance makes the heart grow fonder." As much as I love to travel and see the world, there is nothing better than being in the arms of my babies. Abby, Connor, and Brayden, momma is coming for you! And Sandy, Kyle is coming for you in Japan where he will pack up the house and bring you stateside to meet up with us so we can all we reunited again.
No comments:
Post a Comment