I'm writing this a few days in advance so I have more time to write, well, everything. Today is the first day of the rainy season. There was a special ceremony at the temple this morning, where all the families brought food to the monks. During the rainy season, every family brings food in a special ceremonial food-bringer, (which my ba is holding below) because Buddha does not allow the monks to go out in the rain.
In other news, the Cambodian election is being held this Sunday, and saying that tensions are running high would be an understatement. Parades of vans and trucks overflowing with people waving flags and banners are constant throughout the day, (which makes riding one's bike while trying to avoid traffic an art form.) and there are loudspeakers in every village blaring from dawn till dusk.
Staying true to the season, it hasn't stopped raining for a couple days now, and luckily I haven't yet been caught biking in a monsoon. Only a matter of time.
I have school usually from 8am to 12pm, when I go home to eat lunch with my family, and then return to school at 1:30, and come back for dinner at 5 or 6. After n'yam bai, I bust out my Khmer homework for my family to help me with, and sometimes I teach them some English in return. During school, 4 hours are for learning Khmer, and the other 4 for technical training, which ranges from history and culture in Cambodia, to how to teach Khmer people English. The village that I'm living in now is called Samrong, (in case anyone wanted to look me up in Google Earth) located in the province of Takeo.
My mosquito net, aka my safe haven at night time.
While I am amazed with how much Khmer we have learns in little over a week, it is even more impressive how practiced my sisters and I have become at charades. It's only a matter of time until we will only need our gestures to communicate with one another. I am extremely grateful to my older sister, Tiri, for bringing me clothes shopping. For, not only is my Khmer not quite up to par in that I could both buy fabrics and have them tailored, but I am also the worst at bartering, which will result in me over paying for nearly everything whilst I shop in Cambodia. As a result, I bought 3 button-up blouses, 3 sampot skirts, and 1 sarong, and had them all tailored to me, all for under $30. Thank you, borng s'rai.
Dining table
Backyard
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