oops its been ten days!

Oops, I didn’t realize it has been ten days since I last wrote. Anyhow, here I am.

This past week has been quite busy, but despite that, it has been good. I met new friends, went out for drinks and even went Karaoke with a few people! These karaoke places are a little different from the ones in Hong Kong. For one, they are cheaper here… but that might also be because we didn’t order anything to drink. When you open the door and walk into the complex, they are perhaps about 10 girls not with much clothes on sitting on the couch waiting for you to choose them so they can accompany you while you sing. That’s not only in Cambodia but one thing that’s for sure, if I was with foreign friends who live here in PP, that would be the last place we go. But I was with a few travelers and they wanted to do something fun, so after a lot of debating, we ended up in a very grand room that could fit up to 10 people with just five of us. The bill was less than $6 US altogether. Impressive no?

I had a relaxing weekend and didn’t do all that much. I wasn’t feeling too well so decided not to exert myself too much. In fact, Sunday afternoon I went to the gym and laid by the pool for a few hours before dinner. I’m not a big fan of the humidity and the heat during work or when I’m clean, but it was perfect weather to be under the sun by the pool.

I’ve made myself a deal to go to the gym every day for one month, with possibly one day off a week depending on how I feel. I have been going every day and it’s been quite a treat. You could say it’s my safe haven here in Phnom Penh. It’s my stress reliever, it’s my happy place where I feel like my world has stopped for an hour or two and there is nothing to worry about. Some might call me strange, some might call me insane but no matter how tired I am after work every day… my energy level seems to be recharged when I walk into the gym.

I had the chance to grab a drink with a friend this evening and had great conversations. Though there are things here that I am totally sick of and would love to get out of the situation, it’s times like tonight where I look around and think- I made the right choice. You can get study your butt off, get a Master’s degree and  earn millions of dollars… but the experiences, the conversations and the friends I make here are priceless. Day after day, God breaks me and reminds me that though I might struggle with a few aspects of life here in Cambodia, if I continue to Trust and Obey, he will continue to bless me with amazing experiences and people that I would never have met if I was not here today.

I challenge you today to go to a friend, grab coffee and speak simple words of encouragement to them. They don’t even have to be words, it could be a genuine look in the eye that lets them know you care. A smile can go a thousand miles, you never know when you’ve just made someone’s day THat much better.