First Weekend in Cambodia- New Photos and Video

One of the first things you'll notice about Phnom Penh are all the motos driving around on the street. Next to tuk-tuks, cars, and bicycles motos are the main mode of transportation; and up until I arrived in the city I had never rode on a motorcycle. Due to the way traffic manuevers on the streets I believe riding on one here is a unique and thrilling kind. Hardly anyone follows traffic laws here. You'll see oncoming traffic heading your way on your lane simply because they're taking a short cut. The odd thing is that I haven't seen any accidents, yet, so it works for them here. Probably because motos and tuk-tuks stay around 40mph, so everyone is relatively driving in a slow pace.

On average I spend about $1 on a meal. The most pricey food item I've bought was a $1.30 iced coffee. The closest market to where I'm staying is the Russian market which is on the east side of the city. I've done little shopping, but I have splurged on $6 second-hand books. One of the best things I can take advantage of during my time here is having the privilege of reading books. Maybe it's good that my laptop freezes and the internet speed is sticky slow, because I can move through books much faster.

Although the city itself is rich the majority of the people living here are poor. The country is rapidly moving towards growth and progress, so there are many opportunities to influence and invest but it is very common to come across homeless children as young as five years old begging or laboring for change. I've also encountered disabled fathers or mothers holding their baby on the streets crawling around for help. It is a scene that leaves me helpless.

Later this month I'll be visiting the Killing Fields, the genocide museum, and Angkor Wat to further learn about the history and culture of the Kingdom of Cambodia, but so far the conversations I've been having with the locals and Khmer-Americans have given me a lot to swallow and a responsibility to respond.