Moving to Cambodia

*Published on **2018-02-09** by **Kelley** | Categories: Travel*

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I threw my bag in the back of the van. Moving between countries here is like moving between states at home. We just had a small stop at the line between Laos and Cambodia, a stamp or two, and we were off again. I feel at home in vans because I did drum corps for so long. Large moving vehicles put me to sleep. Or they let me read and write and think. I slept most of this one away. At one point we did make a stop for food. I woke up hot and ready to stretch my legs. We pulled up into a circle of shops familiar with foreigners. Overpriced and undersized food piled on plates was thrown at us quickly. I stuck with one of my crusty Powerbars. Chewing thoughtfully and sipping the constant travelers companion of a half gallon of water, I spied a little girl. She sat swinging her legs and singing to herself. As soon as I caught her eye, I smiled and she lit up. She wiggled in next to me so I gave her a pen and some paper. Immediately she went to work. She was dropping ABC knowledge like whoa. We spent almost an hour drawing together.

That sweet smile almost never left her face. She chattered to me in her own language, pretending I knew what she was saying the whole time. At one point, I drew her. A very good likeness I think.

In return she drew me. You’ll have to decide on that one.

When it was time for me to whip out my camera I only got a few shots before she wanted a turn. As I said before, I am pretty nervous when handing over my gear. But she did well with it. The two pics above are hers. And so is this one. I kind of love it. It’s not often I get a photo of myself. 🙂

Not bad right? Someone buy this girl a camera. OOPS! We’re pulling out. I smiled my goodbye to my newest friend and hopped back into the caverns of the van. They said we wouldn’t be long but it didn’t matter to me. It’s all the same when you’re sleeping.

By time we got where we were going it was dark. This is one of my least favorite parts of traveling. You get dropped off at some random spot and have to find your way to your hostel. Luckily I just have a backpack and a side bag, not much at all. I have pics of the address and maps.me and a dark alley to navigate through. But something that SE Asia has taught me so far is that I don’t have to be afraid. I can still feel just a tingle of worry or fear when I’m alone with a man walking down a dark alley but I know it’s just left from the fear ingrained in me in the US. I’ve been assured time and time again that nothing will come of it. Not to me, not to my friends, not to random travelers I’ve spoken with. In the US we cry so loudly that other countries aren’t safe. But it’s here I feel safest.

I find my place. It’s gorgeous. It has a pool and a very inviting wine bar on the corner. I drop my bags where I’m lucky enough to get both a bottom bunk AND a corner spot. How nice. I pop back out to find a bite to eat and then roll back to bed. It’s nice to get as much sleep as you need every once in a while.

I slept until the sun was bright and shining the next morning. Only I didn’t know that because I was inside for once. I woke up hungry and thirsty and went to find an exchange place and some food. Exchanging your money near boarders or at airports is pretty stupid. They charge you an arm and a leg. You just do enough to last a day then find the places inland that don’t carry murder rates along with them. I found I was at the super heart of town by walking three minutes and running into this.

There were snacks galore. I kid you not. These places put my little morning market to shame.

Just about anything you wanted was a few steps away from the hostel.

Some of it was begging to be touched.

Some of it not so much.

Some things were so familiar that they reminded me of my own back yard.

While some things were just a bit of a bend on reality for my brain…

still others were so foreign I just had no clue.

The one thing that I did love about this market was that no matter what I was looking at there was unerring beauty everywhere.

I posted a few pics to FB to share with the world and went about my day. It wasn’t long before I experienced an example of just how small this world can be. A friend recognized where I was. She would be there. A woman who I’d only really seen on my couch every Monday night for years joined me in Cambodia that day. The link to my past was sweet. I marveled at how my friend had grown since I had seen her last, and at how much she helped me grow with just one conversation over lunch. She helped me release and, more importantly, feel okay releasing some hurt caused by an important group of friends we shared. Someone who knew me so well just showing up in this world of mine was a shock indeed but a most welcome one. You can see the pure joy on my face. Adding a friend to the fold is priceless.

We walked a little bit more, exploring the craziness of the market.

This woman was just straight up shucking the scales off this damn fish. But they were still left on there? I didn’t understand at all. Over the next few days I would watch her quite a bit, squatting on top of the table cleaning people’s dinners.

We talked about our old lives as we passed through the aisles of these people’s lives. We chatted about what was next.

We marveled at the handiwork of the things in front of us, how people were spending their lives as we were just wandering through.

How they were different from us.

How they were the same.

We got to the other side of the market. It was time to say goodbye. My heart was sad but so happy at the same time. It’s not every day you find a beloved friend on the other side of the world to connect with. I wandered in the direction of my hostel. I drank in a few more sights.

Made some new friends.

And I pondered what my night might look like.

This place had me curious. I could tell there wouldn’t be too much relaxing going on. But then again, I’d relaxed enough. Welcome to Siem Reap, Cambodia. It was time to be curious, to explore.

But first, it was hot and there was a pool calling my name.