Thailand & Cambodia: Day 8

CAMBODIA

We drove about an hour outside of the city to explore the Beng Mealea Temple. This is a temple that has not yet been restored, so it is still in it's original state as when they found it. It is Chuun's favorite temple and it quickly became ours too. It was very "Indiana Jones"! It was cool, and quiet and kind of mysterious. You could hear all different types of birds in the trees and it was just really fun! We loved it! This was also one of our very favorite days on the whole trip.

The Library

Mitch and Chuun

Mitch was in heaven here, he is so curious and he loves exploring really old and exotic things.

He was climbing up and down and all throughout the whole temple, he looked like Micah does at Disneyland, eyes full of wonder.

You can't tell but I was actually climbing down a really steep wall of ancient unsteady falling stones! I was basically climbing down the roots. See, Mitch, I can be adventurous too!

It is said that this temple is haunted and doesn't it look like it from these pictures with the smoke coming through the temple?

Isn't this nature invasion incredible? These trees are just attacking and overtaking every inch of the temple!

Isn't this kid gorgeous? They are such a stunning people.

The Five Headed Naga

In the little village where the temple was, it was sad to see the poverty. There was such an incredible difference between the level of poverty in Thailand to Cambodia. Cambodia was so clearly and devastatingly poor. It was really hard to see, I felt like my heart was just ripped open and aching along with the people as soon as I got there, and I feel like it still isn't healed, it is still raw and I hope it stays that way. I think pain like that in a comfortable life like mine is motivating.

At least about 95% of the children that we saw in these villages were barefoot and really underdressed. It was hard to see. But with all these things that were so hard to see we also saw a culture and a people that were happier and kinder and more humble than any that I have ever witnessed.

This was Mitch's favorite treat! It was sticky rice coconut and black beans steamed inside bamboo. It was really sweet and good. We both really liked it, but Mitch was LOVING it so much that he ate most of mine too.

There are signs everywhere designating whether that location has been cleared of all land mines or not. I knew quite a bit about the war and genocide over there, before I went, but we really learned so much from Chuun whose family lived through it. He told us so many incredibly heart-breaking stories about what life was like and what people had to endure. The stories are way too vivid and raw to write down here, but ask me about it if it matters to you. I was an International Politics Major with an emphasis in Human Rights so these are the stories that matter to me. It meant a lot to me that he shared those stories with me, however, he told them very matter-of-factly, I don't think it was nearly as "foreign" as it was to me. We are all so blessed to live where we do.

This is the spirit, goodness and love that I have been talking about. As we were driving through a really poor village, on our way to a boat to see the floating village, children would run up to our windows and wave and blow kisses and be genuinely excited to see us. They never asked for anything, they just wanted to blow kisses. I was melting!

These three sweet girls ran over as soon as they saw our car and giggled and waved and followed us running and skipping all the way to the boat.

Blowing good-bye kisses

This Kampung Phluk village on bamboo stilts and also the Tonle Sap floating village, were really moving. It was amazing to see the way people live basically in the water. These children are taking boats to and from school. Look at these two tiny girls below steering their own boat...it was crazy!

Behind these sweet children, were the houses on the bamboo stilts, it was the dry season when we were there, but during the wet season the water basically reaches their front doors.

This is the floating village. The build their homes on boats.

And their schools

This was our boat

This day was a really beautiful and powerful day for us.