Tuesday in Cambodia

This morning we went out to the Killing Fields. Aimee is so into this. She said she just has to ground the book with all this history. She is in “intense-work-mode” and the pen is going to run out of ink. I realized that I had to let her call the shots on our plans and things we needed to cover.

It is great having Theara and Thearan (The Rapha House staff). They pick us up every morning and take us where we need to go. They also answer all of Aimee's questions about the sex-workers. They are so fun too. We feel like we’re hanging out with girlfriends.

We drove by where all the sex-workers live and saw them in the daylight eating breakfast together on their porches. T and T are taking us back tonight and I remember the transformation at night. It is heartbreaking to hear all their stories. One girl said she had a man take her to a hotel where five other men were waiting for her. It is sickening and twisted.

Aimee and I went for iced coffee after our trips out today. Aimee was sitting there and all of the sudden she was in a conversation with a man from England. Sure enough, he began bragging about how he spends his nights here in Cambodia and Thailand. He said, “I could never get a twenty-five year old in England! Here I pay 400 dollars and have one for two weeks!” It was all I could do to listen to him. Aimee is amazing and is able to transform into her “journalist-mode” where she’s very non-threatening.

Today we also went by boat to Women's Island. I took pictures of the big tree where all the women were tied, tortured and killed. Aimee ask Sokhan what kind of tree it was and he answered, “A Mango Tree.” We both are like, okay, in Africa you sit under the Mango Tree to share your visions and dreams: in Cambodia these trees mark the symbol of death. These are some bizarre things to process on this trip.

Tomorrow morning we are going to meet the Vietnamese girls who have been rescued from brothels. We saw many Vietnamese girls working in one particular area which was just for them. They are in demand here. T and T shared how little girls as young as 9 and 10 are forced to perform oral sex. They are not allowed to have sexual intercourse yet because they are being “saved” for a big spender whose desire is to “buy her virginity” It’s a common belief among Cambodian Buddhist that to have sex with a virgin will both boost your virility and cure AIDS. Young girls are on the auction block until they find a buyer with big bucks.

Needless to say Aimee and I are having a real hard time with men on this trip. Keep in mind that even Marie (a little precious white haired missionary) bluntly stated that “Cambodian men are just jerks”. I really see how the women of this country are the backbone. Every foreign man here alone makes a person wonder just what are doing here? Well, I think we know.

The next couple of days are going to fly by. We are both a little exhausted but need to finish up and keep the pace at least one more day. We are hoping to have Thursday to walk around and chill out before heading out on Friday.

It has been a great trip and I think I am excited to see what God has in store for TAL. I really want to work more in Cambodia so maybe it will be with the Vietnamese girls here. Sokhan did ask if the Vietnamese girls can come and live at the shelters because they do not know Khmer and need to go back home but there’s nota safe place for them. I feel that meeting with his wife tonight and then going to the shelter tomorrow morning may open some doors. We will see.

This is a very sticky keyboard. I am about to gag with the incense burning right next to me in the Buddhist shrine. Aside from urine I think incense is the worst thing to smell on my list.

Today we ate lunch at Sokhan's house and it was very true Cambodian (and fun). I have been eating Morning Glory until I think my hair will turn green. I asked, “What is the secret to this blend?” He answered “Snail oil and garlic.” I don't know if we can find snail oil but maybe I should try.

Okay right before lunch we went to a slum area where T and T work with kids and sponsor them to go to school. The homes are built on stagnant water because of the rains. They are absolutely nothing but a tarp covering with wooden slat floors. A guy came walking around the corner who was carrying a gigantic water rat! He started skinning it and I thought we were both going to lose it. He fired up the BBQ grill and he is fixed lunch. It was a crack up. We did manage to regain our appetite for lunch but it was questionable.

While we were having our iced coffee today at a little corner café when out of nowhere an elephant walks up and puts it’s trunk right under the canopy. It was so cool! I thought how Van and Tatum would have gotten a kick out of that. Aimee fed the elephant some fruit--and of course, he had a little boy with a can guiding him. Only in Cambodia would you see that.