The Little Things

9-2-08

As usual, it's the little things about life in a foreign country that jump out at you the most. Here is a collection of some of the little idiosyncrasies that make life in Cambodia what it is:

Cambodians love karaoke. It has well and truly swept the nation. Every open-air restaurant seems to have a machine, and most houses and families have at least one DVD of songs. Usually when darkness falls (around 6:30 every night; this close to the equator there is very little change in this) the sounds of music and (sometimes very poor) singing will echo across my neighborhood. But if you are planning a karaoke trip, be warned: “karaoke bar” is almost always synonymous with “brothel.”

Tek Phos is a district town, the equivalent of a county seat back in the states. However, it is located well away from any of the main roads, so it is pretty small. This is about as rural as you can get and still be in something that could be considered a “town.” There is, however, a rail line that runs from Phnom Penh to Battambang that passes through town. The area around the tracks sometimes seems a bit sketchy. Also there is a big pile of trash and massive potholes; I call that area the Narrows. I have to pass through the Narrows to get into town, unless I want to take the really long way around. Most times I opt for the long way.

As I may have mentioned before, you can't go anywhere in Tek Phos without children screaming “Hello!” at you. Everyone knows this word, and they use it as much as possible. Therefore, it is pretty easy to know when one of the other trainee's is in the area; you just listen for the screaming kids.

Not that we are that difficult to spot. The Peace Corps gave us all mountain bikes of the kind that no Cambodian has. They also gave us helmets and told us in no uncertain terms that we could wear them or go home. Add into that the fact that we usually are going somewhere that requires us to be dressed in slacks and a button-down dress shirt, and the Peace Corps has ensured that we look as much like dorks as possible when we have to go somewhere.

At some time in the distant past, the Peace Corps would issue volunteers motor bikes; those days are long past, and for good reason. If we tried to ride a motor bike, or moto as they are called here, we would probably die. There are no traffic laws outside of Phnom Penh, and the ones in Phnom Penh are more suggestions than actual laws. The rule is; the biggest vehicle has the right of way. Also, everyone uses their horns as much as possible. Moto accidents kill lots of people every day; we are expressly forbidden to even touch one.

On a more somber note, it has become more and more apparent to us just how much the past has touched everything in this country. Like most Cambodian men, my host father usually walks around at home without a shirt. It was pretty obvious to me after seeing him without a shirt that at some point he has been wounded; I'm no expert, but I was pretty sure that the wound on his shoulder was a bullet wound. He confirmed this last night when, unbidden, he started talking about his wounds. He told me more earlier tonight. From what I have gathered, he was definitely shot by “the Vietnamese,” and that it happened about twenty years ago. I don't know what capacity he was operating in when he got shot, and I don't plan to ask. Other trainees have similar stories; one was shown pictures of his host father's past in the military, official or otherwise. And another trainee has a host father who is missing a leg. What happened in this country affected everyone, and continues to do so today.

Having said that, Cambodia is an up and coming country. Everyone is optimistic about the future. NGO's are doing more and more work here, and tourism is on the rise. Phnom Penh is a boom town, and I have heard that many of the other large cities are as well. The younger generation in particular are optimistic about their future; most dream of going to the larger cities for school, and many parents encourage this thinking. I have no doubts that Cambodia's future is bright. I just hope I'll be able to help it along a little.