When I embarked upon this trip I wasn't really sure what I was looking for. I knew I was going to escape the norm, learn something about the world and people, and have some fun. Interestingly, and I guess not that surprisingly, mostly what I've learned and discovered seems to be within me. For instance, I've learned to read. Yes, I actually knew how to read before I came, in fact, I taught children how to do it. But I couldn't really do it. I couldn't sit down for an hour or two and really read. And think about the characters and find new meanings in books that relate to my situation. And now I can. And I do. I've read so many books sometimes it can even be a challenge to get new ones if I'm not in a super touristy spot. Perhaps that is more about a general sense of slowing down and relaxing that is much easier to have when your daily obligations are finding a place to sleep and eat and take photos of something cool.
In a way this whole trip feels quite self-serving. Like I see these Cambodian women who will thread your legs, massage you, paint your toe nails. I mean, they'll do absolutely anything to make money for their families. And there are the tourists, sitting there like kings and queens just absorbing or taking it all. Yes, we're contributing to their economy and hopefully we aren't breaking too many cultural norms, but there's something about it that feels somewhere between human zoo and personal spa.
However, it has been an incredible experience, and hanging out with my new friend Bjorn that has reopened my eyes to the fact that I'm in Asia. I kind of have to remind myself of that every week or so. Take photos of everyday life that I've just gotten really used to: people eating at stalls on the street, the architecture, the motos with tons of people on them, the little stores and restaurants. I'm not going to be here forever (only a little over 5 more weeks) and it is a little like, wake up Dina, look around you, you don't see this every day.
This trip is about living and experiencing. With that, I finally conquered my fear of moto bikes that I've had since I tried to ride one in Cuba about 5 years ago. For those who don't know, I didn't make it out of the parking lot that day. Couple that with my bad bike accident right before I left and you can imagine I was a little nervous. But after 10 weeks of riding on the backs of them, I finally decided, how hard could it be? Well, let me back up. I'm in this cute and sleepy river town of Kampot, Cambodia. It is something of an expat mecca--almost every guesthouse is owned by a mixed couple of foreigner married to a local. There are good restuarants and just a generally chilled out atmosphere. There is little traffic and it was a beautiful sunny day. I woke up on Wednesday with absolutely no plan for what I was going to do that day. I wasn't sure if I was staying in town or not. I met a guy named Bjorn from Belgium as I walked out of the guesthouse to look for coffee and breakfast. He told me he was in search of good coffee and we became fast friends. So after I skyped with Matt and Marissa, I was in this great mood and Bjorn comes back and says, ''I think it is a good day to ride motos to Kep'' a seaside town about 20 km from here. He also didn't know how to ride a moto, so it was a bit of an adventure. I was hoping to find someone who did know how to ride to help me, but hey, here was my opportunity, time to seize it.
My first ride down the street was frightening. My hands were shaking, I didn't want to give it too much gas so I was kind of moving in short spurts. I tried to stop and I wobbled and quickly put my feet down. I looked back, ''I don't think I can do this.'' Bjorn's just smiling, ''just go slow, you can do it.'' So I turned around, tried again, still shaking. Mind over matter, I can do this. By my third circle my body relaxed and I was like, okay, this is easy. So off we went, down the
countryside, my max speed was about 25 km/hr, but it was thrilling. The bright green rice paddies, the children screaming hello, the farmers working their fields, riding the buffalo, bicyclists carrying massive amounts of grass, vegetables, etc. There was just so much to see and at the same time, I was a driving a moto!We reach Kep, took us about an hour, as I said, I was going 25, and hey, it was 20 km away, so you do the math. But we got there, found some shacks that served up amazingly cheap crab, and other seafood. We ordered a bunch and sat back to enjoy the view of the ocean. Our trip home was just as amazing, I even managed to go about 40 km/hr! I have a new found joy and pasttime. I mean, you just can't come to Asia and not learn to drive a moto. It is such a part of the culture here, I'd really be missing out.
Other than that I've had some other great experiences here in Kampot. Yesterday we headed out to this cave and we had this child as our tour guide. This is actually quite common. You show up to a place, a some child walks you in and out and expects a tip. But this was different. This was one of the best guides I've had on my whole trip. He knew all about the cave, knew how to hold the flashlight so we could see where to step, showed you where to mind your head, just so professional. He said he was in grade 7. It was amazing. We happily gave him and his crew a couple of bucks upon leaving.
That's it for now. I also have done a few not very exciting but chill little river boat rides, hiked pretty much straight up Bokor mountain and back down and had a massage by a blind person. Overall Kampot is one of my favorite places on my trip but I am ready to move on. I'm headed out to a small island called rabbit island for a day or so before I head back to Phnom Penh to get my visa for India.
Hope all is well with all of you. I enjoy hearing from all of you, even the everyday details of your lives, but I know everyone is busy. Lot's of photos up at on picasa.
xoxo
Dina
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