Last Days in Cambodia

Saturday, June 27, 2009--Siem Reap to Phnom Penh

I was worried about whether the pickup service would get me at my hotel. They were scheduled for 8:00, and I was outside waiting. By 8:10, I was getting nervous. At 8:15, the people at my guest house were about to call the bus company. But just as they started to dial, a man from the bus company arrived on a motorcycle apologizing and saying that their van was full with people from other stops and that they had sent him to get me. He put my suitcase between his legs, and I climbed on behind him. Off we went!

The bus didn't leave on time (8:30) anyway. I think they were delaying to sell a few more tickets since it wasn't full. We finally pulled away about 20 minutes late. There were two short stops on the trip, and we arrived in Phnom Penh around 14:00.

There were two interesting guys sitting across the aisle from me. One is a professional photographer from England who has been traveling independently around the world by buying individual one-way tickets. Many people do that now. He has been traveling for 18 months and will return home in August, he said. The other was a guy from Belgium who has lived the last 9 years in Shanghai teaching English. He had traveled here for a vacation and to scout the country as a possible place to work. He wants to leave Shanghai and is considering the various Asian countries that will allow him to stay there and teach English.

At our second stop on the bus trip, there were several girls selling fresh slices of mango in plastic bags. Two of the girls had big spiders on the fronts of their shirts. I thought they were artifical. But one of the girls took her spider off and put it on the arm of the man from Belgium. It was alive! Obviously, they are not dangerous, or the girls would not wear them or handle them. But what a surprise to learn that they were real. The man from Belgium handled it well, but can you imagine how many people would react having a 10 cm (4 inch) live, black, fuzzy spider placed on their exposed arms!

One of the girls, a smaller one without a spider, was so delightful. She had a great smile and personality. She readily accepted that I was not interested in buying the fruit. (There are warnings about buying fruit like this because it has been rinced in local water which is then in the bag and soaking into the fruit.) She walked away to try to sell from others, but she said, "If you change your mind, you buy from me. OK?" Later, she came back to stand and visit. My guess is that she was no more than 9-10 years old. And her English was unbelievable. She could follow and contribute to just about anything said (instead of just having a few planned and memorized sentences to say). With her English skills, her personality, and her obvious intelligence, she could be so successful in life. But she is at the bus station selling fruit rather than in school getting an education. How sad. It's such a loss for her, her family, and for Cambodia!

I went directly from the bus station to my former hotel where I had reserved a room already. It was only about 6-8 blocks away. They gave me the same room, and I was relaxing and living in luxury again. I went to the store to buy some supplies--ham, French bread, chips, nuts, water, and beer. I just stayed in my room and relaxed and watched TV for the evening.

Sunday, June 28, 2009--Phnom Penh

This was my last day in Cambodia. I decided to be lazy. I went outside at 10:30 to read in the shade of a tree at a nearby park while my room was cleaned. It wasn't easy, though, because tuk-tuk (motorcycle with an attached covered carriage) drivers kept bothering me wanting to take me somewhere so they could make money. One of the problems with Cambodia is that there are too many tuk-tuk drivers. Most do not own their vehicles. They have to pay $3 per day to rent them from the owner and have to buy their own fuel. So they are overly aggressive with tourists in an effort to earn the $3 plus more so they will make a profit for the day. They cannot leave tourists alone, because they see each one as having money in his pocket which could be in their own!

Back in the room, I napped, read, and watched TV until 16:45. It was cloudy and comfortable outside, so I went out for my last evening in Cambodia. I returned to the nearby park where many people gather each evening. Some people were out, not not many yet. The musical fountains had not started yet. Across the street, a temple was having some kind of ceremony which involved people sitting at tables under a tent on the sidewalk and music being played on loud speakers. I watched some young men playing hacky sack with a bamboo ball. I watched a small boy throwing fits because he wanted to play with whatever his brothers had. They fought over both a scooter and a soccer ball with the boy wanting both and his brothers wanted whichever one he wasn't using. Some people were playing badminton without a net.

Eventually, two of the guys who had been playing with the bamboo ball came over to the bench and sat and visited with me. They were nice and spoke English well. Both were students and told me about their studies and their plans in life. One works part time for an NGO (non-govermental agency--called a non-profit agency in the U.S.) and said that he wants to return to the countryside as a teacher trainer of teachers of English with an NGO after he finishes his teaching degree. After cooling off while talking to me, they went back to their game, and another young man immediately came over and sat and visited. He, too, is a student. I learned he is 25 and was a monk for 11 years. But he left that and became a student at a university. He still lives at a pagoda, however--the one across the street having the celebration. He invited me to go see his living quarters, so we went over there. He lives in a house with 60 others--monks, teachers, and private persons like him who have been monks. He has a small room (4 ft. x 6 ft. or 1 1/3 m x 2 m) with corregated metal walls and ceiling. In it, he has a TV, a bed, and bookshelves. He has to pay for his electricity and his water, but the room is free otherwise. He showed me a folder with all his certificates including his bachelor's degree. Here in Cambodia, as in much of the poorer parts of the world, educational institutions just keep teaching and teaching and teaching students who are so eager to try to get a job that they just keep paying and paying and paying. It's sad. He said he had interviewed for a job earlier today, but 500 persons interviewed and there are only 6 positions that are vacant. Anyway, after visiting there for 15-20 minutes, I excused myself and left to return to the hotel.

Monday, June 29, 2009--Phnom Penh to Bangkok

I stayed in the room to organize things and to read until check-out at noon. I had been dreading arranging a ride to the airport, so I decided to go two blocks away to the same tuk-tuk driver I had used my first day here to change from my first guest house to this one by the riverside and the Royal Palace. He was at his usual place, and we arranged a price--$5 (after starting out with him asking $8 which is more than taxi drivers get for the airport). I still thought that might be a bit high. It took us 35 minutes to get to the airport. That's further than I recalled it being when I walked into town on arrival, so I guess the $5 is an acceptable price. I actually could have walked it again today, but I decided not to because I am worried about wearing out the wheels on the suitcase and I would be walking in the heat of the day. Since I road in the tuk-tuk, I arrived at the airport 4 hours before my flight.

I was stung by some small, fat insect on my way to the airport. It flew onto my forefinger as we were riding in the tuk-tuk. I felt the sting and brushed it away from me. I squeezed the spot trying to get any fluid out that had been inserted by the insect. Then I sucked on it and spit out whatever might have come into my mouth. I didn't want it to sweel and hurt. I saw a bit of a white ring begin to form. But then the pain went away and everything was fine.

While waiting at the airport, I finished reading my current book. It's What is the What by Dave Eggers. I gave it 3 1/2 stars out of 4. It was a very interesting and fascinating book to read. It tells the true story of a young man from the Sudan who was one of the refugees who, at age 11, saw many attrocities and was forced to leave his home and walk for weeks to seek refuge from civil war. He lived in temporary camps for years and was eventually resettled in the U.S. It clearified to me the problems in that area and what has caused them. His story was told in a way that showed his naivety and the humorous aspects of his life, too.

Just 30 minutes before out plane was scheduled to arrive, heavy thunderstorms began. I was sure our flight would be greatly delayed. It was raining so hard that no plane could land. Fortunately, however, they stopped just about the time the plane should land, and it landed only 4 minutes late.

I sat beside a man from Portland, Oregon, on the flight. His family (wife and two children) were in the row behind us. He is a teacher of history, and his wife is a librarian at a private school in Portland. He was approximately my age and had been a hippie in India and Nepal back in the '60s and early '70s. Although I could tell he felt the need to try to sound impressive to me (Poor ego!), it was interesting to talk a bit. They were coming to Bangkok for 3 days and then going to Nepal to visit friends from there who also have children near the ages of his. Apparently it is the first trip to Asia for his children, so they were going to have some great experiences. I gave him the book I had just finished reading. He knew the author and, being a history teacher, had an obvious interest in the subject matter.

There was rain and heavy traffic in Bangkok. I left the airport about 18:00--just when most people get off work in Thailand. I did not reach my hotel until 20:15. Away from rush hour, it only takes an hour or less to cover that distance. Fortunately, however, the rain was not falling hard. And I was able to avoid the deep puddles of water at Victory Circle where I had to change buses.

They recognized me as I checked in at the hotel. The young man behind the desk even remembered my room number and commented that I was getting the same room again. How nice it was to have the traveling behind me and to be in my luxurious room! I watched TV and reorganized all my things from my bags.

Tuesday, June 30, 2009--Bangkok (Part 1)

I had a great experience at breakfast. The manager was not in sight as I went to the restaurant. I entered, and the usual buffet was there without French toast. I got a plate with scrambled eggs, Asian vegetables, ham, and hot sauce. Amost immediately, the waiter brought me a small bowl of syrup. Just as I was finishing my plate, he set my freshly-made French toast in front of me. I got bacon to go with it and began eating. It so good. When I finished it, I got a small fruit plate. Just as I was beginning to eat it, the manager of the hotel walked into the restaurant and up to me. I stood, and she welcomed me back and said she hoped I had a good time in Cambodia. Then she said, "I'm sorry there wasn't French toast this morning." I replied, "There was. Your waiter remembered and had it prepared for me. You have a great staff." She beamed. The waiter in the distance had heard, and he beamed! How nice it is to be treated so well!! And breakfast was great. UMMMMMM!

I've been worrying about tonight for two weeks. I return to the dentist to pick up my partial plate. I hope all has gone well. I got my first partial plate like this 40 years ago. However, about 32 years ago, when I needed a crown on a tooth above the partial plate, the dentist took impressions for it. Then he tugged to remove my partial plate from the impression material after it had started hardening. A small hook that goes around one of my teeth broke off. The dentist wanted to try to fix it by having the pieces welded together, but it would work, so he had to have the original company make me a new partial plate. Ever since then, I have worried about any dental work involving impressions. This is the first time I have had to have an impression made since then. Two weeks ago, I cautioned the dentist about how important it would be to be careful with the partial plate and especially that small hook when removing it. She said she would write a note to the laboratory. But for two weeks, I have dreaded today in fear that the plate would be damaged. It is a unique design. All dentists are impressed with it, because it is in two pieces that are hinged together to make it "float" when chewing to avoid hard pressure on my gums. It was expensive back in the 1970s. There's no telling what a new one like it could cost today. But worst of all, there is no idea who originally made it and whether another one like it could be made or not. So I still have a few more hours today to worry. I hope I will have good news tonight at 17:00 when I go to the dentist--that the original plate will be fine and that the rebuilt teeth on it will be well done.