... is just one of the many puns with which I now annoy Ruth (Riel is the official currency of Cambodia). We've been here two weeks now and for me at least, things are starting to feel normal. The rhythm to crossing the road, the constant grit in between your teeth when you're in the back of a tuk tuk (even though you're breathing through your nose) and even the late night neighborhood karaoke. Speaking of money, it's difficult keeping three currencies running in your head - $1 USD is approximately 4000 Riel, and at the time of writing, the Aussie dollar is getting hammered with $1 AUD being worth about $0.78 USD :(. So whenever we're out, we constantly need to flick between USD and Riel to communicate with tuk tuk drivers or to haggle at the market, all the while converting USD back into AUD so we can compare it with our general sense of worth. To make matters more complicated, there is no central holding of US currency- it's just kind of used as an alternative. While it helps keep the wallet manageable (the highest Riel note I've seen is 10,000 = $2.50 USD), there is no way of replacing damaged US notes. As a result, notes with imperfections are commonly turned away. Just now, we tried to pay for dinner with a $10 note with the smallest nick in one of the corners (about a 2mm tear), and Ruth had to argue for them to accept it!
Even though my sense of direction is practically non-existent, and my Khmer is even worse, getting around has been made easier by a few things:
1) quite a few locals (or at least someone in the general area) speak a small amount of English
2) Ruth does a brilliant job at basic communication and has an incredible sense of direction (except for the other day when she overruled me in a tuk tuk and we went in the opposite way), and;
3) I can Google "How to say X in Khmer" and crudely sound out the word or show them the writing.
The biggest shock to me is probably not the locals, but instead the overwhelming presence of the American accent at school! It was so strange at first that I accidentally said "class" with the nasal twang. The shame. But now it has joined the list of things that were quite jarring at first but now completely normal.
Speaking of school, wow. I likely underestimate how important Logos has been for me settling in here - it provides the routine and the opportunity for social interaction that helps anchor my experience here. To be honest, I would have probably struggled much more if I didn't go to school during the week. The facilities are great and the community is unbelievable. The staff have been incredibly welcoming to myself and Ruth, and we were invited to about 5 different dinners on our first Sunday night here. On my first day everyone was introducing themselves and making sure we were OK. One of the teachers asked if they could join me for lunch, and some of the Year (*sigh*) Grade 7 boys asked me to play soccer as well. In just two weeks I'm already starting to feel right at home at Logos. I've even managed to smuggle Ruth in to join me for lunch a few times.
As a teacher, it's great to be in a position where the majority of my time is spent actually teaching kids, and kids who want to learn. It's exciting to have a chance to be a part of the development of the next generation in a place where a strong moral grounding is desperately needed in so many areas.
So overall, this has been a very positive week for us here in Cambodia, with the dust finally settling after many months of motion (Metaphorically. Definitely not literally).
Even though my sense of direction is practically non-existent, and my Khmer is even worse, getting around has been made easier by a few things:
1) quite a few locals (or at least someone in the general area) speak a small amount of English
2) Ruth does a brilliant job at basic communication and has an incredible sense of direction (except for the other day when she overruled me in a tuk tuk and we went in the opposite way), and;
3) I can Google "How to say X in Khmer" and crudely sound out the word or show them the writing.
The biggest shock to me is probably not the locals, but instead the overwhelming presence of the American accent at school! It was so strange at first that I accidentally said "class" with the nasal twang. The shame. But now it has joined the list of things that were quite jarring at first but now completely normal.
Speaking of school, wow. I likely underestimate how important Logos has been for me settling in here - it provides the routine and the opportunity for social interaction that helps anchor my experience here. To be honest, I would have probably struggled much more if I didn't go to school during the week. The facilities are great and the community is unbelievable. The staff have been incredibly welcoming to myself and Ruth, and we were invited to about 5 different dinners on our first Sunday night here. On my first day everyone was introducing themselves and making sure we were OK. One of the teachers asked if they could join me for lunch, and some of the Year (*sigh*) Grade 7 boys asked me to play soccer as well. In just two weeks I'm already starting to feel right at home at Logos. I've even managed to smuggle Ruth in to join me for lunch a few times.
As a teacher, it's great to be in a position where the majority of my time is spent actually teaching kids, and kids who want to learn. It's exciting to have a chance to be a part of the development of the next generation in a place where a strong moral grounding is desperately needed in so many areas.
So overall, this has been a very positive week for us here in Cambodia, with the dust finally settling after many months of motion (Metaphorically. Definitely not literally).
Hey Ben, unREIL to read your blog <3
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