Ho Chi Minh City

After an absolutely wonderful Christmas service at New Life Church (Neth and Ata were helping lead the worship) Neth, Ata, and I boarded a bus with the "Khai Nam" bus line to Ho Chi Minh City. It is only a $16 round trip by bus from Phnom Penh to HCMC and it takes about 6 hours. This is the first time that Neth and Ata have been out of the country together. It is my first time being out of Phnom Penh since I arrived on July 31. Ho Chi Minh City is like Phnom Penh on steroids - taller buildings, thicker crowds, a little nicer selection of stores, and worse traffic. Walking to breakfast this morning I noticed that the sidewalks are more for motos than they are for pedestrians. At least there are sidewalks! Phnom Penh has very few.

When we arrived in HCMC we met a friend who splits her time between PP and HCMC - working two businesses non-stop and taking care of her mother who lives in HCMC. She helped us get booked into the hotel and then took us to a wonderful restaurant that served us a huge platter of greens and a very thin semi-crispy tortilla like wrap that was like what you would find around an eggroll before it is fried. It was the healthiest meal I have eaten in a restaurant in a very long time. The first word that I learned in Vietnamese is the word for "thank you"; it is "cam ung". What I found interesting is that I remembered how I have been struggling in Phnom Penh - usually saying, "thank you" and then quickly catching myself and saying "ah koon". Now, here for some reason I find myself saying, "ah koon" and then quickly catching myself and saying "cam ung". Neth and I were also laughing on the bus ride about how in the States I don't fit in because of how I look - I look Asian, but all my language and cultural upbringing was American. Now here, in Asia, I look Asian, but I don't fit in because all my language and cultural upbringing is American.

I have noticed a couple of different Asian cultural traits that I am still not used to: 1) I mentioned before that it is typical in Asia to ask even a stranger how old they are, if they are married, and how much something cost (often before even asking their name), 2) Money grabbing is an acceptable practice - this morning, for example, I stopped by a street vendor to get breakfast and when it came time to pay he showed me a bill from his pocket, when I matched it he took it, gave it back to me and then grabbed a bill of a higher denomination right out of my hand. (21,000 dong to the dollar here). 3) The line culture in Asia is to push people and cut in front of people in line. At first I thought this was annoying and now I just find it entertaining. So, these little differences in culture are practices that I will probably (hopefully) never subscribe to, but which make me just a little different from the many other people (the vast majority of people) who look like me here.

I will post pictures of the beautiful dinner when I return to Phnom Penh. I took the pictures on my phone, but have no phone service here to send them to my email.

Big correction! After spending the day touring HCMC I must now say that it is nothing like Phnom Penh. Ho Chi Minh City is a thriving, prosperous, world-class city with shopping malls that rival any I have ever been to, world class office buildings, hotels, and restaurants, arts and parks. Today we (Neth, Ata, Minh, and I) walked through Central Park and we saw beautiful tall trees, gardens, and sculptures. We heard musicians in the park and saw a group of engineering students practicing for a flash mob. We went to the Diamond mall which houses a mega-department store and to several other modern malls. We walked down to the riverfront and at the city center saw a wonderful performing arts building and over one dozen world class hotels. That Catholic church in the city center towers majestically above the skyline near Central Park. The whole city is lit up and decorated for Christmas and looks absolutely stunning in the evening. I will go back with my camera to take some pictures, but will post some pictures from our walk in the park this morning.

 

The Most Unusual Christmas Caroling

Tonight I had one of the most unusual and meaningful evenings of singing Christmas Carols that I have ever had. At 8:00 I met a group at a place called “The Message Parlor” in the Golden Sorya Mall. Love 146 organized the group to sing Christmas Carols in one of the most notorious areas in Phnom Penh for illicit sexual activity. We first met at the Message Parlor to do introductions and pray. It was the largest Friday evening group I have ever seen at the Parlor – probably close to 25 people. In the introductions I was so encouraged to see such diversity of people and places represented in the group. There was a pastor from England there, a group of 4 young Americans who are part of the same team from The World Race (a missions organization that sends young adults to 11 countries in 11 months to serve short-term missions), a young man who works at the U.S. Embassy in Phnom Penh, several Cambodians, British, and American staff who work for Love 146, The Message Parlor, and Hard Places Community. After praying together we walked out to the entry to the mall and began singing Christmas Carols – we stood in the same place and sang for about 30 minutes. It was the most unusual setting.

I have sung Christmas Carols at hospitals, going from door to door in a neighborhood, at Christmas parties in homes, and in church, but I have never sung in a setting where only a few feet away people are smoking, drinking beer, and bartering for sex. A young woman came up to the group and stood right in front of us. She began to dance and to applaud. She seemed so lonely and although she smiled it seemed like she was in deep pain. As we sang I looked around the open mall and saw young women wearing tight, short skirts and high heels sitting with middle-aged men who were at tables drinking beer and smoking. Several times I coughed – choking on the cigarette smoke that billowed all about us (even in this open mall). It was such a palpable contrast, so different from any other setting that I have ever sung Christmas Carols in before.

As we sang and I saw all this and I thought that Jesus Christ came to earth and died for every one of us who was there tonight – for these men, for these women, for the woman dancing in front of us, and for each of us who were singing. God’s love is no less, no more, and no different for any one of us. I prayed that God’s Holy Spirit would be unleashed in that place and would break open the hard shells of hearts that kept people from knowing God’s love for them. As I prayed I knew beyond any shadow of doubt that God was in our presence. The Jesus Christ of the New Testament that I know would have been more likely to be singing and mingling with people at Golden Sorya than in the churches and decorated homes I have traditionally sung Carols in.  What a different, beautiful Christmas this has been and will be!

Meeting a Princess

About a month ago I met a woman, Nary, who comes to the gym most every day and runs on the treadmill. The first time I met her she was just returning from a marathon race (I think it was in Malaysia) and she had won it. It turns out that she is Cambodia's top woman long-distance runner. She is also a PhD scientist. This week she invited me to a dinner Christmas party at her home. When I pulled up to the driveway gate I was surprised to see that she lives not just in a home, but in a mansion that she had built 10 years ago. It is really spectacular. The architect who designed this home was also there. His name is Py and he is an avid cyclist. (He invited me to ride a great new route with him the following morning at 5:30. Man, is it ever dark at that time! It was like riding in a tunnel.) The gardens at Nary's home are beautiful - tall palm trees, ponds with lilies, hanging orchids, and vibrant Bougainvillea. There is also a very large elevated balcony that is covered and has a wrap around bench.

When one of the guests arrived Nary asked us all to listen for a minute and Nary put her arm around the guest who had just arrived and said, "This woman is my princess". I thought that was very sweet and wondered what this woman had done in my Nary's life to have made such a huge impact deserving of such a kind introduction. I knew that Nary lived here alone, but wondered, since I don't know her well, if calling this woman "her princess" was her way of introducing her partner. Later in the evening Nary offered to give a tour of her home. Only the "princess" and I decided to go. It was a very nice tour of the beautiful home and I found Nary's friend to be very affable and humble. Later on in the evening I found myself sitting on the bench next to Nary's "princess" wand we began talking about where we came from and the work that we do. Nary's friend has her own NGO to help children and also oversees four departments for a bank. I told her about the business Neth and I have started and we exchanged business cards. I looked at her card and noticed it read "Princess..." and I said, "Oh, so your name really is 'Princess'?" to which she replied, "Well, it is more of a title than a name." I took in a deep breath - contemplating the meaning of this.Yes, I really did meet a real life princess in this way. :) She arrived with no security detail. She behaved with no sign of arrogance or entitlement. And as I learned about the work that she is doing and the values she has I was really impressed by what a down-to-earth, caring and humble person she is.

Left to Right: Julie (a writer), me, Duangjai (from Thailand), Nary, and the Princess

Old Chinese Couple Make Their Own Solar Powered Car and Travel the World

As I wrote this title I realized that it sounded fictitious - like the storyline of a novel perhaps, but it is true. On my bike ride this morning I was hoping to again run into the Cambodian Para-Olympic athletes that I met last weekend, but they were no where to be found in the Diamond Island area where I last saw them training. As I made the loops around the Independence Monument - Diamond Island area, however, I spotted an unusual vehicle. From a distance behind it I thought that it looked something like a food cart - with the heavy tarp roof and bike wheels, but this one had two seats side-by-side and a center mounted steering column. As I rode closer I could see that the writing on the back of the vehicle's roof read, "Chinese old couple's low-carbon travel around the world". I was riding hard, timing my laps, and this one was on my fastest lap of the day, but after I passed them I thought that this was really a once-in-a-lifetime sighting and so I slowed to a stop and turned around to see where the couple was. At the intersection I had just gone through they were turning away from me. So, I turned around, rode hard to catch up to them, passing them, then quickly stopping and taking out my phone so I could snap a picture. They saw me and stopped.

 

They did not speak English, but they smiled and nodded as I quickly took a few pictures, smiled back at them and gave them a thumbs up.

This couple made this solar-powered vehicle themselves and they are traveling around the world in it. Pictures that were mounted on the vehicle showed that they sleep aboard this vehicle, pulling down a bug net around the perimeter of the vehicle.

You can see that there is a map attached to the back of this vehicle and on that map (not clear in this picture) is an outline of their route. You can also see that there is laundry hanging out to dry and a cooler mounted on the back right side.

I just think that this is one of the coolest things I have seen in a long time. What an adventurous couple these two are and what a great way to see the world!

Motodog

"Look, it's a bird; it's a plane...no, it's Motodog!"

I bet that on any given day in Phnom Penh I see over 1,000 motos. So, in the four and a half months that I have been in PP I have literally seen at least a hundred thousand motos, but today is the first time I have seen a dog on a moto. I have seen monks on motos (three yesterday with the Moto driver making four men on one Moto ). I have seen five people (two parents and three kids) on one moto. I have seen all kinds of crazy things on motos: including one loaded 8 feet high and several feet wide. But this is the first time I  have seen a dog on a moto.

Human Rights Day

Neth and I had a very busy day of work today. The time just seems to fly by - as evidenced by the fact that the first time I checked the time today I discovered that I had been sitting in the same spot working on drafting a plan for a new client and it had been 6 hours since I began - without even standing up once during that entire time. So, after a 10 hour work day I began the trek home by moto. Traffic was thick tonight! I was driving down Russian Blvd (one of the major roads in Phnom Penh) when the traffic completely stopped in all directions. There was a long line of monks blocking the street in protest for human rights. I truck with a banner reading "Justice brings Peace" was parked nearby and many of the monks held Cambodian flags and signs. It was a completely wonderful reason to be stopped for 10 minutes to observe and admire their cause, their perseverance, and their courage.





Since I have written recently about the beautiful sunrises here I wanted to share a picture that I took this morning from my balcony.

Back to Monkey Business

As the parking lot guard at the Cambodia Development office promised me yesterday the monkeys were out at 2:00 eating today. Instead of seeing them in the same spot I saw them last time I actually rode my bike around in the office area and saw a whole family (it appeared to be a mother, father, and three babies) all eating together in a grassy area.



I also took a picture of the tree that has all the bats in it. Yikes!



From being grossed out by all the bats I rode down to Diamond Island and did some loops around that area. On one of the side streets I saw these three young men and a fourth one (not pictured) who are all training for the Para-Olympics in Myanmar. They were really nice young men and told me that they practice every day from 7:00 in the morning. We compared the wheels on my bike to theirs and we were amused that they are very similar. One of them showed me his thick gloves and how worn they were. Another asked me how much my bike cost and it made me pause to look at how simple their equipment was and yet they are racing at world-class speeds. I saw them every time I did a lap on this street (about 7 laps) and we would smile and wave as we passed each other. On my last lap I stopped to talk with them a little more and wished them all well in the Para-Olympics.




On one of the laps I stopped to take this picture of a street cart with crabs and snails because it just looked so nice.



It is hard to make out, but the sign reads "Wonderful Group" and the building on that property is all burned out and dilapidated.  I thought that the only wonderful part was the irony of the sign.

  


I am very surprised by how far the river has receded in only a matter of a couple of weeks.

No Monkey Business, Just Amazing Sunrises

The sunrises in Asia are amazing! This morning was no exception, I woke up at 4:30 and after my morning devotions saw a bright golden-orange sun surrounded by a halo of orange clouds rise over the Phnom Penh horizon; it was splendidly beautiful. Later in the morning (at 6:30) I was riding my moto en route to play tennis with a couple of friends. On street 2004 I saw literally hundreds of people walking down the street and congregating at a building just off to my left. I believe that they are people who have walked from Cambodian provinces to participate in the large human rights demonstration planned for this Tuesday, a national holiday in Cambodia. After tennis I went for a bike ride ("gee cong") and since it was nearing 2:00 I decided to swing by Wat Phnom to see if I could see the monkeys again. I rode around and around Wat Phnom a half dozen times always slowing down in the spot where I had last seen the monkeys. I checked the clock on my bike computer and it was now 10 minutes past 2:00 - the time that the monkeys are reputed to come out to feed. No monkeys. So, I rode my bike onto the grounds of the Cambodia Development office. This is a huge property covered with tall trees and palms. I once saw two monkeys scamper across the street and climb the wall onto this property and the last time I saw the monkeys they came out from that property. As soon as I rode onto the property I was greeted by a guard. I indicated that I was interested in seeing the monkeys and that made him smile. He told me (at least I think this is what he said) that the monkeys only eat every other day and so today they wouldn't come out to eat, but to come back tomorrow. I told him that I saw them come out for food from his building a week ago and he said that they live in the trees on the property. He let me ride around the property, which I did slowly and all the while looking up into the trees, but I saw no monkeys. There was, however, a tall tree in one corner of this property that had hundreds of bats hanging from the limbs - from a distance appearing like large dead leaves. Yikes! I think I have animal prejudice. I love dogs and monkeys, but you can keep the snakes and bats.