Living the dream: Week 1

So I wrote out a huge long blog entry and forgot to save it in a format compatible to the computer I am now using. Genius. Anyhow the last two weeks have been a trip for sure. After a big western food party in our training village we all set off for Phnom Penh and swear in then it was time to really begin the journey. I have been in my permanent site for just over a week now and it seems like ages since I got here (in a good way). It is strange to think how quickly you can settle into a place.

I am writing right now from a computer in a primary school near my house. The director happens to also be an english teacher at my high school and has generously offered me the use of the schools internet. There has been no shortage to the generosity of people in welcoming me to this town though my host family has certainly gone above and beyond. It has taken no time at all for me to feel quite at home with them, perhaps because of the resemblance they bare to my own family in America. My host dad is a very quiet man who laughs alot, especially when I do something dumb. My host mom is seemingly a bit abbrasive and a bit nutty but is in actuallity every inch of the over attentive overly concerned mother hen (much like my real mom :)) I have had numerous knocks on my door at night because she suddenly became concerned that I had a fever or that the large mirror in my room needed to be properly secured so it didn't fall on my in the night. My host sisters are wonderful, as are their husbands, and their favorite passtime seems to be mocking me (much like my own caring siblings). There are a ton of kids around all the time and well I have to say kidsa re the same everywhere.

Since arriving here my family has taken care of everything from my meals to calling buses for me when I needed to go into town to procuring furniture i casually mentioned wanting.

Today was my 3rd day observing at the high school and I have been surprised by how much I have enjoyed it. While the lack of organized scheduling has been ocassionally frustrating I have found all of my coteachers thus far to be kind and eager to work with me, and I LOVE the students. I have had to do introductions at the beginning of each of the 11 classes I have sat in on so far and without fail I get qeustions from timid students about my family and whether I have a boyfriend or why I don't have a husband yet. I have been susrprised by how comfortable I have felt in front of them as someone who despises standing in front of people. The longer I am here the more I am seeing how much learning english can benefit these kids and afford them more opportunities for their futures and my excitement to be involved in education here is growing. On a more amusing note, one of the older teachers at the school in formed me the other day that he was puzzled by me because Americans are supposed to be big and strong, but I am little like a Khmer girl. Thus I have been here a week and have already been dubbed "the little American."

I have had no shortage of interesting experiences here. My favorite was a few nights ago. My neighbor informed me in the afternoon that that night would be a full moon, she said "tonight there is a full moon so we will meet together and eat nome (friend breads...dessert sorta.)" I was like...why yes of course, there is a full moon so naturally we would meet together and eat nome. WHAT!? That night after dinner I went to my sister's house where neighbors and friends were gathered. There were tables out in front of all the houses with candles, insense, and bowls of fruit and nome. There will children running around with paper lanterns and the whole thing was quite beautiful in an odd way. I am still not entirely sure what was going on but I think they were offering food to their passed relatives (this is a common practive here) and then after several hours they brought the food in and had a nice feast of it.

Needless to say I am learning leaps and bounds every day about language and culture and myself.