In which I update you on everything

     The theme today is going to be another "What has Emily been doing for the last month or so?"

So, here goes.

In June, one of the volunteers, Joel, held a health fair at the secondary school at his site.  Meghan and I did a class together about brushing your teeth.  There were five, twenty minute classes, each with about 20-30 students.  I got to demonstrate brushing my teeth five times that day.  My teeth have never felt cleaner!

Everyone's got a bike now! Some are fancier than mine...

I visited the Upper Market in Siem Reap for the first time a few weeks ago.  It's a huge, Cambodian-style, open-air market that is on the international road, making it very busy.  I spotted some Khmer guys playing chess.

Then, the 4th of July happened!! For some reason, I decided it would be a good idea to sign up to sing at the US Embassy with some other volunteers?!?  Anyway, despite my temporary lax in judgement, it was still a pretty fun weekend.  It rained just a little bit...

There was live music and delicious food, we sang some national anthems, I found a John Deere, and the Obamas, and the American Ambassador got dunked!

Ploughing Season has begun!! Rice is being planted, fields are being ploughed, and farmers are getting busy!

I bought a new book shelf!!! I have been wanting one for awhile, but they don't sell them in my village, and all of my books were in messy piles all over my bed.  But, one day when I was walking along the road, a truck full of these book shelves pulled over to get some gas.  I asked them if I could buy one, not expecting them to answer positively, but lo' and behold, they gave me one for $5!  Then, in exchange for helping me haul all of my books from my bed to the shelf, I helped my host brother with his English homework.

Since vacation has finally begun, I have been struggling to keep myself occupied lately.  Some days I study, some days I visit friends and family, some days I lay on a hammock all day reading a book, and some days I tag along with Meghan to visit some of her friends!  This particular day, we visited the family of one of my students, where we learned how to cut up pig food, among other things.

 

I had some visitors in my room.  This little one is my host cousin, Pitsey, the youngest daughter of my CoTeacher, who is married to my host mom's little sister.  Complex family systems.  Here, I believe she is trying to do "Sty", which is short for 'style'.

Kitties love me, as usual.  The one on the right is mine.  She's getting so big!!

Last week, my little host sister, Srey Neeat, fell in the bathroom.  It must have been a really hard fall, because she was bleeding a lot, inside and out.  She stopped bleeding after a few hours, but then the next day she started bleeding again when she peed, so they took her to the hospital.  I went to visit her for a couple days.  My host mom and grandma have been there with her the whole time.  They're not brave enough to ask the doctors what is going on, but they have taken a few X-Rays of her stomach, and she is on an IV and a soft diet right now.  The bleeding has stopped, but her stomach still hurts a little.  Unsure what is going on, but she seems to improve a little bit every day.  Hopefully soon she can come home!!

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