Foreign Chicken

Turkeys are not native to Cambodia, hence the translation "foreign chicken" in Khmer. This is a little embarrassing to ask, but are they native to the Americas? Anyway, in case you've ever wondered which Thanksgiving Day foods would be the most well received by Cambodians, the answer is mashed potatoes and turkey (they say it tastes like chicken - you know that's funny). They also liked Danielle's carrot souffle. It was delish!

Our invited guests included students, tutors, and friends. The meal was prepared by all and thoroughly enjoyed by all. No, we didn't fall asleep watching American football, nor did we play touch football on the street. WE DID teach our guests a little about the history of Thanksgiving and play board games while feeding our faces with desserts. We thought it important to keep some tradition :)

An Ideal Day of Language

Thursday marked the greatest day I've had for language learning. A man next to me at lunch finally understood when I asked him where he bought a fried pie with banana (something I'd wanted to try for weeks now). My language tutor changed her teaching style to allow for more authentic practice. We only spoke Khmer the whole time and carried on normal, albeit broken, conversation. Then a woman in the market sat me down to teach her common greetings in English and I could because I understood a lot of what she asked me. Yeah. Yeah! Good language day.

Time spent at the university continues to pick up. Two more students have joined the staff, meeting our needed quota. They've cleaned the books and cleaned the shelves. Now they're warmly greeting visitors and helping us plan for classes. They are delightful, truly delightful.

Pop! Flap, flap, flap... [stop]. "Oh..." That's what happens when your bike tire blows. The inner tube was still intact, allowing me to continue on to school. I took it to a bike service station where I got a tire change, oil, and lube job for $3. My name is in their computer now so maybe I'll get some coupons for the next visit. Kidding, kidding...

The last picture below is just a glimpse of the sea of motos parked at the university. Motos: The Students' Choice for Transportation.

Rumor Has It They Eat...

...congealed blood in Asia. It's true. During a trip to our favorite market we stopped for lunch. As usual, we let them serve us whatever was communicated when we answered "yes" to their questions. As I looked down into my bowl I noticed some unidentifiable fragments. The exchange went something like, "Bekah, is this blood?" "Yeah." "Does is melt?" That's the new question. I couldn't tell if it was melting blood causing the reddish hue in my soup or some added seasoning. I don't know if I have the courage to find out. I have met my cuisine match.

The weekend was composed of a classical piano concert, learning to cook lok lak and spring rolls, and a birthday bash. All of those events included the company of Cambodian students or recent graduates that were befriended by Mindy in the past year and a half. What an encouragement to see how her relationships have grown to be so full of joy!

My work here has extended to co-managing the English library on campus. Bekah and I have the privilege of heading up renovations, hiring student staff, and planning programs to promote its use. It's a fantastic way to serve the university, which by the way is becoming more familiar to us every day. We've been manning a table to provide info on a new English-based major each afternoon for the last two weeks. Now we're able to smile and greet a few acquaintances as we walk through the halls. Ah, the signs of building community. So nice.

Enjoy the picture of the over-sized preying mantis. Later that day we only saw its legs lying there. Something had some good eatin'.