Cambodia Day One

Day one in Cambodia is complete. Everybody is feeling much better after a good nights sleep in a bed and some real food, not plane food. Today was our first full day here in Cambodia and was a real taste of what is to come. We got a real feel for the weather today, it was very hot and humid and will take a bit of getting used to. We had a Khmer language lesson today to learn some of the local language to help ask for our room keys and say hello and thank you. It has already been put into practice many times. The language classes were taught by two of the local monks who were very happy to be teaching us and always had a smile on their faces. Next it was off to the war museum to get an insight on some of Cambodia's sadder history. We were shown around the museum by surviving soldiers from the previous wars in Cambodia all having been hit by land mines. They shared with us the history of Cambodia and its wars along with their own sad and devastating stories. After our visit to the war museum it was back on the tuk tuks (motorbike taxis) to go to lunch. We had lunch at a cool lounge which was a welcomed relief after the hot humid weather outside. We all enjoyed a lovely meal with most of us opting for a "normal" western meal. 

We spent the afternoon buying supplies for the health care packs we are donating to children and putting them in bags. It was our first attempt at navigating the markets and dealing with the stall owners. A new experience for many of us I'm sure. After preparing the packs we all took the chance to have a break and recharge the batteries before going out to tea. We went in two groups with my group going to Green Star, we all enjoyed some local food with some even deciding to try the frog and eel. It was a lovely dinner followed by another ride on the tuk tuks which is a new and different experience. It takes some time to get used to weaving in and out of the traffic and watching bikes and cars coming straight towards you only to swerve at the last minute. 

Now everyone is ready to sit and recharge the batteries for another busy day tomorrow. 

Demi