Cambodia

Cambodia

This Wednesday, I leave for Cambodia with a group of friends for a 16 day trip.  We're going to visit the daughter and sister of two of the women in our group.  Her name is Molly, and she's been a missionary in Battambang, Cambodia for the last 4+ years.  She plans on returning to the US in 2011, so this is a chance for her to show us first-hand everything she's loved about the country and people she's served so faithfully.  Molly will be our tour guide and has an itinerary for us that will keep us busy the entire time, either serving or sight-seeing. We'll take a walk in her shoes- visiting the orphanage her team started (photo above of one of the beautiful children there), helping at health clinics (two in our group are nurses) and serving in the Youth Center.  We'll visit the temple complex of Angkor Wat, one of the seven wonders of the world, and may travel to Thailand, or to Ho Chi Minh City in Vietnam to visit the Vietnam War memorial.  We'll ride on motos (a moped/motocycle), eat like the locals, and do it all together!  I am so excited to be in Cambodia!

Truth be told, the flight has been the only real concern.   I used to be nearly phobic about flying, avoiding it at all costs,  but after facing it down flight after flight, I can say it's been down-graded to a resigned, tense toleration (c'mon, that's better), with the exception of a flight where the pilot repeatedly attempted to land the plane in 60 mph wind sheers.  That was a bad one.  This flight, all 24-hours-in-the-air-6-take-offs-and-landings-total, should help knock down the bulk of this stubborn fear.  I think psychologists call it "exposure therapy".  With wonderful, calm friends around, and lots to do to keep busy on the plane, I think it will be okay.  Just wished I hadn't read the CNN article "What Your Pilot Doesn't Want You to Know".  Seems they're running light on fuel these days to save the airline money.  Comforting, considering we're flying over a billion miles of OCEAN. Also wished I hadn't watched the opening scene of "Lost", when the plane breaks in two mid-air.

Courage means feeling fear and doing it anyway... I've always loved that quote, and I think it applies perfectly in this situation. Cambodia, here we come!