First Day: Kinda Crazy

It is a 17 hour flight to Cambodia. Our trip was actually 24 hours, with a 6 hour layover in Ghangzou, China. 6 hours inside of their airport. We were not able to venture out. We did however, meet a missionary couple that were on their way to Indonesia. They sat next to us on the flight to China, and hung out with us during our layover before they flew off to Thailand. They have been missionaries they entire lives, serving predominately in Indonesia. It was great to felowship with them, talk about their lives as full time missionaries and our trip to Cambodia. We prayed for them before they boarded their plane, asking God to bless and keep them safe.
After a 3 hour hop to Phnom Pen, we were greeted by 93 degree humid air. Like a punch in the face. Living abroad in Japan for 2 years, and traveling around in Asia, you learn that every country has it's own smell. Japan, at least Tokyo, smells like fish on hot asphalt. Cambodia, is similar. Maybe a fish on hot asphalt on trash day kinda smell. Again, I love it. The sights and sounds are completely foreign, which makes it so amazing. That brings me to the first "Cambodian" experience: Riding in a Tuk Tuk

The Team riding Tuk Tuks to lunch

Tuk Tuks, I think are Cambodia for: "Extremely unsafe carriage, pulled by an underpowered mo-ped." In fact, nobody is safe on the roads in Cambodia. Cars, motorbikes, scooters, and Tuk Tuks whisk through the streets with reckless abandon. If they have "rules of the road" here, they are treated more like loose guidelines. So, here we are piling into our Tuk Tuks at the airport, just about to take off and a security guard from the airport blocks one of our rides with his mo-ped, pointing and yelling at the driver. The driver, waving his hands in protest, does nothing to lessen the security guard's rage. I have no idea why this guard was so angry with our driver. It appears to be an incident that occured prior to our arrival. Based on the body language, I can see that this is not going to end well for our driver. More guards start heading over. One guard yanks him off his bike, while another starts slapping him. Then I hear the familiar crackling sound of a stun-gun. Yeah, not going to end well for our driver. But, just like that, as soon as the craziness began, it was over. The driver dusted himself off and met us on the otherside of the parking lot and drove his Tuk Tuk to our hotel. Welcome to Cambodia!

The street my hotel is on

We got settled in our hotel, which is right across the street of the Royal Palace. The Palace has self guided walking tours of the gounds. I had a couple hours to kill, so I headed over. It is a major tourist attraction in the capitol. A lot of beautiful gold painted Buddhist structures, but like most things in Cambodia, the closer you get to it the more dilapidated it appears. Cracked and crumbling facades, covered with plaster and gold paint.

Selfie at the Royal Palace

Night time on the streets of Phnom Phen

I went to bed exhausted! Monday (our time) will be our first day working with Agape International Missions and interacting with the people in Svay Pak, 20 km outside of Phnom Phen. I am super excited! I can't wait to see what The Lord has in store for us.

Please continue to pray for us (Me, Tim, Justin, Cody, Marissa, Shawna, Kate, and Mary).