Another day, another temple

Beng Mealea. Hindu Temple.
Vishnu and Hanuman

Hold their presence there

Etched and carved into stone.

Crisp blue sky laid against

Bright green grass--

Cow shit baked in the sun,

Emitted a putrid odor upon

Entrance and exit.

Maneuvered in, on and around

Crumbled mossy green slabs

Of rock entangled in 

vines and tree roots.

Majestic. Incredible, but very real at the same time.

Rode home with a coconut in tow,

Sipped the sweet, nourishing

Water.

Later we watched the supreme

Peachy goodness of the sunset,

Completely enthralled,

We all felt the same thing,
At least on some level.

This is our life, and we're 

Living it to the fullest.

Hari Om!

Temple Hopping

Angkor Wat. Ta Phrom. Sometimes there aren't any words for places that hold such history, power and beauty. The jungle-encrusted Ta Phrom (where Tomb Raider was filmed) was by far my favorite.  
Awe and wonder have been running my show all day long. After a long, melting hot day--a cool down in the pool was absolutely necessary. Living the good life, indeed!

En route to Siem Reap

I am. I am a child filled with love and wonder. I am a child filled with awe. The worries that I had in the States are far from me now.

Lotus flowers spring up from mud, unfolding just as nature intended. Green rice fields reflect the blue sky spotted with little poofs of fluffy white cloud. Finally, a sunset paints everything with the most resplendent, golden light. Gorgeous. Perfect.

In the little towns on the side of the road, men and women work in their trade and take care of their families--children running free. Life perfectly unfolding, just as it should. Simple. 

My body is light. My heart is light. I am light.

Monsoons and Fast Friends

Yes. Today, right as school was coming to a close, we were all greeted by a huge, violet lightning strike and some booming thunder to go with it. As our teacher Nick said, Welcome to Monsoon Season!" The tuk-tuk five of us climbed into had no panels on the back or sides to block of the pounding rain that was coming at us--but we had no choice, we had to get back home. A couple of us held a couple of large umbrellas out to one side, but no avail! We were all soaked! What it turned into was this really awesome fourty or so minutes of bonding--sharing personal stories and interests and definitely sharing laughs.
I love these people--my comrades. Literally every one of them reminds me of someone I've met before, and I find that strangely comforting. Just backs up my belief that I'm meeting the same people over and over again in different bodies, working out my karma. And with that comes the sweetness and privilege  of being in the presence of what some call a familiar. Someone you meet and feel an instant connection and affinity with. Someone that you know will be your friend for a long time. Someone who inspires you and allows you to be your authentic self. I cherish that connection so much--fast friends, indeed.
This is why I have chosen to travel--to witness effortlessness and truth everywhere. To gather more evidence that stacks up on the side of spaciousness and light. To outweigh any lingering feelings of lack, fear and doubt.
Clear head, warm body, light heart. OM.

Second Day of School

By far, today went by way faster than yesterday! Phew! Grammar lesson in the morning (snore!), Pad Se Ew Gai in the afternoon (the sweetest, most dank noodles you will ever try), and BBQ/pool time this evening to celebrate the union of two lovely, happy beings.
I have these constant moments of awe where I actually get really present. Moments I tell myself, You're here in Cambodia. This is it! Enjoy every moment! Something to that degree, anyhow. I catch myself in these moments and instantly know that this time here--away from everything I have previously found comforting--are moments that I will hold on to affectionately forever. I'm not kidding. The memories and impressions are already being carved into my heart.
In this experience of awe, I know that I lack nothing and that I have everything I need. I know that I am married to the present and not to a notion of where I should be or what could have been. I know that I am here now, and that everything I have been asking for has been leading me to this moment in time. Joul mouy (cheers) to that! Joul mouy to Love. Joul mouy to all!

First Day of School

Today I found myself in somewhat of a familiar setting this morning--the classroom. Lots of information thrown my way about methodology, cultural faux pas, and the like. I am truly brain fried at this point, from last bit of residual jet lag and some dehydration most likely. One of the highlights of the day was the 90 minute lunch break where my comrades and I went to Shabu Shabu--an all you can eat hot pot and sushi joint. Not too shabby with tom yum base for the soup--threw some dumplings, noodles and veggies in there and called it good. And just like in the states, rush hour traffic is a real thing at 5:30pm in Cambodia too. But even still, with a slower tuk-tuk ride, there is just more of an opportunity to take all of the colors, smells and culture in.

Ready for bed now in a big way.

Sabbay Sabbay--Happy, Happy :)

Today, my comrades and I took an official tour of Phnom Penh. Our hotspots were Wat Phnom, The Royal Palace, and the Silver Pagoda. I have never seen such beauty and smelled such fragrance in my entire life. Truly a blessing to be walking on these grounds. Truly a blessing to be alive, experiencing all of this. Truly a blessing to live with a soft heart and open arms. OM.

Lucky Lizards and Killing Fields

So last night, I was greeted by a familiar sight--a little baby gecko lizard. This little reptile caught me by surprise near my door on the corner of the ceiling, and I was instantly taken back to when I did my 500 hour teacher training in Mexico where I met a lizard I affectionately called Dusty. I discovered Dusty, still as could be, in a corner near our cubbies--and as his name indicates, he was covered in dust. He stuck around for most of our days in the studio, when we were all going through our own growth, challenges and breakthroughs in class with Jean. Dusty witnessed it all--completely at ease in his circumstances. A wise creature. Now a lizard comes to me again during this time of great change and growth to remind me that I can rise above anything that causes discomfort (loneliness, culture shock, language barrier, getting ripped off at a gift shop, etc.). I love it when I get little reminders of my wholeness and ability to handle anything.

A friend from Seattle arrived last night who I've been in contact with for a few weeks through Facebook. I knew instantly that we'd be comrades and stick together to help each other feel more at ease in this foreign land. Today we ate breakfast together and then proceeded to walk about outside, dodging traffic and feeling alive in the hustle. We checked out the local mall, which had tons of similar clothing and shoes, and a food court on every floor it seemed like. We were over the mall pretty quick and went down the street, past the hotel and over the river to this amazing cluster of temples where monks and other locals were frequenting. Everybody greeted us with a "Hi" and a smile as they stared with wonder at us. We smiled back and bowed our heads as we walked around everywhere. I love that a smile and a gesture of respect is all that both parties needed to go on about the day. It was truly perfect.

Later on in the afternoon, Smith took a group of us to the Killing Fields at Choeung Ek--a popular tourist site that houses the remains of some of the people who were mercilessly killed by the Khmer Rouge. I was entranced by the Memorial Stupa that I knew was filled with skulls. This building is beautiful inside and out, even though its reason for being there is less so. The energy there was heavy for sure, but I emerged from it being unaffected. I focused instead on the beauty of the grounds themselves, which were lush, green, and filled with many species of butterflies. Butterflies are one of the ultimate symbols of transformation and I was comforted by their presence of lightness in a place that was once filled with horror and darkness. So it goes to show you--whether you're at Choeung-Ek, or dealing with pain and discomfort in life, you still have the luxury of choosing what to pour your attention and energy into. Today, I chose beauty--and felt more alive than ever as a consequence.

Breakfast and Bidets

Barely 4 hours of sleep and I'm back at it again! The best part of this morning was going downstairs and finding out that there was bacon--yes, BACON--and French toast on the breakfast menu in the hotel lobby. Oh, small comforts from home are a true delight! Came back upstairs, took a lukewarm shower (which I was kind of anticipating) and proceeded to just relax and make my connections with everyone at home. I've only met one other colleague from LanguageCorps here, and he's been living in Cambodia for the past four months. It was fun hanging with him, listening to his easy exchange of conversation, jokes and laughter with Mr. Smith and the other hotel staff. Lop-lop was the first Khmer word that I learned; it means "crazy". I'm feeling slightly crazy right now, but I know that I'll adapt soon enough. In two weeks I'm going to be in Thailand anyhow, so no real pressure to master the Khmer language.
For now, I feel like I need time to myself to process all of this. I don't feel a pull to be outside in the hustle and sticky heat, latent with mosquitoes (discovered my first legit, big-ass bite on my back this morning, by the way!). I just want to hang in my room and connect with everybody back home--at least until some of my other colleagues get here in the next couple of days. I am aware of how far away I am from home now--that reality is setting in. The anxiety that led up to this trip is gone, but the comfort of talking to friends and family is saving my ass right now. And I'm ok with admitting that I need that. Boy, am I disoriented...stay tuned, Friends. Love you!

Phnom Penh: Day One

It took 24 hours, but I'm finally here! Gotta say I slept a good amount on the plane rides (thank you, double dose of sleeping pills!), and I was thoroughly entertained by French films and a 13-year-old boy named Billy--who was en route to his own hometown in China.

When I finally emerged from the airport in Phnom Penh, I was met by a smiling Khmer man named Mr. Smith. I felt at ease immediately, as he was holding up a sign with my name on it and immediately knew who I was walking out of the joint. The tuk-tuk ride that followed was a perfect way to survey the sights, sounds, and smells (eep!) of the city. Phnom Penh is definitely on its way to becoming more developed, but old practices (piles of garbage festering in the sticky heat on sidewalks) and ways of being are still in effect. And yes, I had that moment where I witnessed 4 people riding together on one tiny motorbike--hilarious indeed how people make things work.
It's now 4am and I'm definitely tired and adjusting to this whole time change thing. Glad to be out of a plane and one with the ground. Glad to be safe. Glad to be brave and steady in the midst of all of this change.