Home in Phnom Penh

After seeing over a dozen rental properties (with three different agents) I found the place that really calls to me as being the right home. It is in the Toul Kork district of Phnom Penh and of all the places I have been to in Phnom Penh it is my favorite. I like the streets, the lack of busyness, the cleanliness (that is relative), and I just feel a peace when I am there. I did look at several places in Toul Kork, but the one I chose is the best value for the dollar and I liked that unlike most other places I saw the people at this one all seemed very happy and they are friendly. (This applies to both staff and residents.) It is called “De Castle Diamond” and my new address will be: Number 158, Street 315, Sangkat Boeung Kok 2, Khan Toul Kork, Phnom Penh, Kingdom of Cambodia. Please come visit!

View from my room at Diamond

Lots of storage space

A small, but modern kitchen (some places I looked at had no appliances)

View from the entryway

View of the pool from doorway to my unit

My decision was made a little more challenging because I met three very nice people when looking at different rentals and so I began to feel somewhat allied with wanting to help them out by renting, but the bottom line is that they all lived in/showed me areas where there was a lot of noise and crowdedness that I just couldn’t see myself living in long-term. Toul Kork is peaceful. Diamond has a beautiful indoor pool and great views; a health club on one of the floors, and nearby businesses. It is by far the safest and most secure of all the places I saw. I did find one three bedroom, three bathroom with a huge living room for $150/month (1/3 of what I will be paying at Diamond), but to get to it you have to climb a narrow and steep spiral staircase and one of the floors had 5’6” ceilings. Now I know you all are thinking that height should be just fine for me, but it did feel claustrophobic even for me. Plus, at Diamond there are elevators (lifts), which will make moving in so much easier.

I also purchased my Cambodia commuter bike today. I bought it from a French women, Anne, who has a great job. She works for the United Nations as a Legal Assistant in the Khmer Rouge prosecutions. She is, however, on the defense side. Riding home on the bike gave me such a feeling of being able to really explore and experience Phnom Penh since I no longer have to rely on tuk tuks or motos for transportation.

The new ride

This morning I had a wonderful time with God. First there was the message from Oswald Chambers that God is the One who chooses us and that often we do not know at what He is aiming us and because of our shortsightedness we may think that He has missed the mark with us. This was comforting for me because here I am far from where I have considered home my entire life, far from family, with no job and still with no place to live, and I do not know for sure to what God is aiming me. I know that my mission is primarily to love Him, but I do not know the details of why He has called me here. To know that He does know what is ahead and He has a perfect plan for that gives me great comfort. I am to just love Him and remain obedient to His calling.  Next, there was the humorous lesson from Max Lucado delivered in the style that only he seems to be able to do. In that lesson Max put down the word “someday” – writing about how we often use it as an excuse to put off the things that we are being called to do. Well, once again, this was a comforting message since I know that this time I have seized the opportunity and not used a “someday” excuse. Then Mother Teresa wrote that if we want to have people who are poor be able to see Christ in us that we must first see Christ in them. This was one of the foci of my prayers this morning: that every person I came across today, especially those who are poor, I would see Christ in them. Finally, there was God’s very Word in Psalm 19. His Word is perfect. It converts our souls, makes us wise, and causes our hearts to rejoice. His Word is pure, clean, enlightening, and it endures forever. It is more desirable than gold! Do we truly seek and desire God’s Holy Word more than gold (more than money, more than “things”, more than recognition and respect)? Those who seek God’s Word will receive reward greater than all that the world has to offer.