Cambodian Coast Trip!

I am ignoring the voice of perfectionism which compels me to spend hours crafting the most intriguing blog post, as it is my first real post and the pressure is ON! (Note: this the same voice that almost kept me from starting this blog, and that frequently attempts to sabotage creativity and freedom in my life.... which I am choosing to ACTIVELY IGNORE!). That said...

It's a bit strange to take a "vacation" a week and a half after getting here, but this past week has been a huge Cambodian holiday, Pchum Ben, and has provided an opportunity for me to spend some time with new coworkers + see another part of the country! On Thursday morning, I traveled by bus with several new coworkers and their friends 5 hours south to the sleepy coastal town of Kep. We stayed in a lovely hillside bungalow with this INCREDIBLE view of the ocean and Vietnam in the distance. (Note: we did not have satellite TV as you may guess by this picture. Running water and electricity, yes. Think cabin, with a hammock on the porch and a mosquito net over the bed). 

The area is known for it's pepper farms, which I did not have the chance to visit, but whose bounty I enjoyed. For all of my foodie friends, if you've ever wondered what ground pepper looks like in the raw, here it is. This was served as a condiment of sorts to sprinkle on top of seafood dishes, and is much milder and richer in flavor than any pepper I've ever tasted! Who knew!

On our first afternoon, we went down to the oceanfront for fresh seafood lunch. And I mean FRESH! I took this picture from our restaurant seats while we were waiting for our meal. Notice the women thigh deep in ocean water dragging up oblong wooden traps...hauling up the crab we ate 10 minutes later!

We spent much of Friday out on "Rabbit Island," an idyllic beach that can only be reached by boat. Highlights included floating in an inner-tube, eating pancakes with nutella for lunch, and laying under a tree.... Paradise really! (save the squatty potty outhouse)

On Saturday, I went back to the oceanfront for some time to read and journal alone, and was joined by three boys who proceeded to take turns drawing pictures of elephants and palm trees in my journal. So fun--and hilarious to try and communicate with gestures and grins! 

This morning, I headed out on a long moto ride through the countryside of Kep and the nearby town of Kampot, which is absolutely beautiful and reminds me a bit of an Asian version of Palmer farmland: Luscious rice fields, thatched roof houses on stilts every several acres, cows munching along the side of the road, women in long sleeves peddling along on their bicycles, half-dressed children running along muddy paths, countless land-rovers honking to pass..I would have to post 20 pictures to even start to do it justice but here are two:

My destination: local caves that my tour book said contained "stalactites and stalagmites"--which have fascinated me since I was a kid. After a good 40 minutes on bumpy roads, I made it to the edge of this beautiful rice field and was met by 4 kids (maybe siblings?) who served as my tour guides into the mountainside caves. My headlamp came in handy, as part of this adventure involved scrambling up and down rock formations in the dark places, with bats chirping overhead. 

We made it back this evening via taxi (a Toyota Camry to be exact, perhaps the second most popular vehicle here second to the Land Cruiser), and I am thoroughly tired and amused at these pictures. I realize that blogs are funny--that you can't really experience what another person experiences, even through words and pictures. But it's fun to try. 

As for a first blog post, that took awhile, and I don't think I'll post such long ones in the future. For now, I'm heading to bed for a short sleep before my first full day at work. Here, in Cambodia. :-)