Cambodia – Day 1
What a day and what a difference 130 miles can make. We flew from Ho Chi Minh City to Phom Penh, Cambodia on a puddle jumper. It is hard to imagine how different these countries are from one another in dialect and culture. We were also blown away by going from a country that had no history of incarnational ministry to one that has had Young Life for 10 years.
We were greeted by Sohka and Rita. Rita was led to Christ by Sohka who was led to Christ by Sope who was lead to Christ by Penhyet, the man who started Young Life in Cambodia and is now the National Director. I wish I could express the joy of seeing just a small piece of God’s legacy here in Cambodia.
Tomorrow we will spend the day with Penhyet and see more of the ministry. We will also go to the Genocide Museum, and get a first hand account of what happened to this country when 3 million people were killed from 1975 and 1979. I will admit that I am not looking forward to this, but to understand this culture we have to understand this horror….. if that is possible.
I had a few moments today that were a little funny…hope you enjoy..
On our way into our hotel I hit a step, broke my favorite pair of sandals while falling into the lobby. Every time we walk into the hotel the reception desk staff look at me and start chuckling.
When we arrived in our room we found out we could have internet service. The Hotel said they would send someone up with a chord. The guy arrived empty handed. I started to move the night stand to look for the connection point. While I was looking for it the guy proceeded to crawl out the window, reach under the air conditioner and yank out an internet chord. All I saw was his legs dangling out of a 5th story window. With my mouth open, he jumped back in, handed the cord to me and said, “Internet.” It was awesome. I thought, I could have done that. Then I thought again, no it is worth it to have him come up here to dangle out the window for the $6 instead of me.
We went to meet the Young Life leaders to go out to dinner. We were standing in the courtyard of one of the Young Life centers introducing ourselves. When I introduced myself “Hi, my name is Jamie” everyone started laughing. Apparently, they just got a new puppy and they named him…Jamie. Below a photo of the boys together.
We went to BB World for dinner with Penhyet and his staff. BB World is the Cambodian McDonalds. I have gotten a bit picky about my eating and don’t eat hamburgers, fries, ice cream or drink coke or any caffeine (I know weird). To top it off the BBQ sandwich I did order never came. Finally, Penhyet told me to eat the hamburger that was placed in front of me. Reluctantly, I ate it, only to find out that I had just eaten one of the leader’s hamburger. At that point I tried to buy the young man everything on the menu, but he was fine with the extra fried chicken that was on the table. I asked Penhyet a few minutes later how often he took the leaders out like this and he said he does it as often as he could…every six months…gotta love stealing an every 6 month hamburger.
This country is amazing, mainly because of the people and especially the Young Life leaders we have spent time with. Great community and amazing amount of ministry happening. I can’t wait to see it all first hand tomorrow.
What a day and what a difference 130 miles can make. We flew from Ho Chi Minh City to Phom Penh, Cambodia on a puddle jumper. It is hard to imagine how different these countries are from one another in dialect and culture. We were also blown away by going from a country that had no history of incarnational ministry to one that has had Young Life for 10 years.
We were greeted by Sohka and Rita. Rita was led to Christ by Sohka who was led to Christ by Sope who was lead to Christ by Penhyet, the man who started Young Life in Cambodia and is now the National Director. I wish I could express the joy of seeing just a small piece of God’s legacy here in Cambodia.
Tomorrow we will spend the day with Penhyet and see more of the ministry. We will also go to the Genocide Museum, and get a first hand account of what happened to this country when 3 million people were killed from 1975 and 1979. I will admit that I am not looking forward to this, but to understand this culture we have to understand this horror….. if that is possible.
I had a few moments today that were a little funny…hope you enjoy..
On our way into our hotel I hit a step, broke my favorite pair of sandals while falling into the lobby. Every time we walk into the hotel the reception desk staff look at me and start chuckling.
When we arrived in our room we found out we could have internet service. The Hotel said they would send someone up with a chord. The guy arrived empty handed. I started to move the night stand to look for the connection point. While I was looking for it the guy proceeded to crawl out the window, reach under the air conditioner and yank out an internet chord. All I saw was his legs dangling out of a 5th story window. With my mouth open, he jumped back in, handed the cord to me and said, “Internet.” It was awesome. I thought, I could have done that. Then I thought again, no it is worth it to have him come up here to dangle out the window for the $6 instead of me.
We went to meet the Young Life leaders to go out to dinner. We were standing in the courtyard of one of the Young Life centers introducing ourselves. When I introduced myself “Hi, my name is Jamie” everyone started laughing. Apparently, they just got a new puppy and they named him…Jamie. Below a photo of the boys together.
We went to BB World for dinner with Penhyet and his staff. BB World is the Cambodian McDonalds. I have gotten a bit picky about my eating and don’t eat hamburgers, fries, ice cream or drink coke or any caffeine (I know weird). To top it off the BBQ sandwich I did order never came. Finally, Penhyet told me to eat the hamburger that was placed in front of me. Reluctantly, I ate it, only to find out that I had just eaten one of the leader’s hamburger. At that point I tried to buy the young man everything on the menu, but he was fine with the extra fried chicken that was on the table. I asked Penhyet a few minutes later how often he took the leaders out like this and he said he does it as often as he could…every six months…gotta love stealing an every 6 month hamburger.
This country is amazing, mainly because of the people and especially the Young Life leaders we have spent time with. Great community and amazing amount of ministry happening. I can’t wait to see it all first hand tomorrow.
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