Getting to Cambodia is not quick or easy; it costs a small fortune and takes more than a day of flight, airports, taxis, and Tuk-Tuks to arrive to any hotel. However, we had a great time doing it! On our first day, a group of around 30 students, professors, family, and even the dean of pharmacy took over the front of the Nashville International Airport. Traveling was a breeze! A thirty-something or so hour breeze… I don’t know if it was because of our group size, our smiles, or my safari hat… but our group slid, like butter on a hot pan, through every airport security checkpoint. It took less time to get through security as a large group then it ever has for me as an individual. On the plane ride from California to Hong Kong, we ate, watched movies, ate, slept, played games, and ate (at least I did). I have to mention that a majority of the pharmacy students played a game of “trivia” on the airplane and that I was able to beat Dan Stirling in Trivia. Normally, this never happens… so I have decided to blog about it so that he does not forget anytime soon. : )
O.k., enough bragging… I wanted to mention how great of a group we have going on this trip. I am not saying this just because I came. Seriously, every single student and faculty member, regardless of whether they are in pharmacy or nursing, are some of the most friendly people I have ever had the opportunity to spend time with in my life. I feel very blessed to be a part of such a group and I am already anticipated doing great things, and learning many life lessons with and from them. At this point, I have to admit that I am writing the blog for day #1 on day #3. That being said… I will give you a heads up and let you know that this assumption has already, in only 2 days, proven to be very correct. I will not spoil it for now… so you will have to read their blog days if you want to hear about that amazing work we are doing, and will be doing long after this trip is over with. (click image to see larger size)
In closing, I will briefly mention a couple of traveling tips that you should consider before planning a trip of your own to Cambodia. 1.) Don’t bring anything except a laptop and a power cord. You can buy everything here for a fraction of the cost, including luggage, cloths, hair gel, etc. 2.) Don’t even THINK about renting a car… get a Tuk-tuk. There are no noticeable traffic laws or traffic police here… and if you try to drive, you will crash. 3.) Bring a group of friends and strangers with you, the experience is lost without being able to talk about every second of your trip. 4.) Quit your job and just stay here forever! You will here more about this soon, but this country and experience is so amazing that you could spend a lifetime living, learning, and giving, and two weeks is just not enough.
– Dan Myslakowski (PharmD Candidate, class of 2013)

Diana Perricone Senior Nursing Student Cambodia day 1:
We landed in Phnom Penh at about 10:30 AM on Tuesday, May 17th. It was very weird to realize that we left on Sunday, and just completely skipped Monday altogether.   I could tell by looking out of the window of the plane while we were landing that this is certainly not like any place i have ever been.  From the plane you could tell that about 90% of the roads here are dirt roads.  We got to the hotel by two vans which was only about 10 minutes away.  Driving through Phnom Penh was very surreal (and terrifying cinsidering traffic laws appear to be completely non-existent). I have never seen so many abandon buildings in one area in my life. Then, I realized that they aren’t abandoned at all…they are fully occupied homes, businesses, dr.s offices, etc! So many of these buildings look like something that would be deemed unsafe, and condemned in the US. Some of the names are pretty funny. For example.. I’d probably avoid the “Sour Dentist.”. 
Although so obviously empovershed, Phnom Penh is beautiful.  There are many stunning buildings that look like steriotypical asian palaces and temples (and for all I know at this point they are!).  We got to our hotel, and began to divide into groups of roommates.  There was one girls room that would occupy 3, which Abby, Suzanne and I wanted, but the pharmacy girls insisted on having it, so Suzanne is rooming with Rachel P and Abby and I stayed together.  We waked upstairs to our third floor room (which is actually the 4th floor) and it proved to be a little bit of a hike.  Its not that I’m out of shape, but we were already so hot, that any amount of exercise was killing us, and also, the stairs are uneven, which just really throws most of us off.  We spend some time unpacking and showering (which we all desperately needed after traveling for 36 hours) and headed downstairs for a quick tour of our area.  It was at this time that I realized that my wallet was missing! I went back upstairs to look for it, and it was not there. We have searched the van from the airport as well as contacted the airline, but imhave a strong feeling it’s never coming back.  That being said, I am now completely broke in Cambodia. A little scary, but I am oddly at ease with the situation, and I just know that my parents and teachers and I will work something out. In the meantime, the gracious people on our trip lended me some money to use so i won’t be missing out on anything!  
We had our first meal at a beautiful restaraunt around the corner from our hotel.  I had pineapple fried rice (delicious) and tasted some of my friends more adventurous choices and everything was SO good.  The kids in Camboida are ADORABLE.  I’m going to be fighting to not return to the US with 8 of them.  Since we obviously look like tourists here (I mean, were white for one, and for two several of us are blonde, which may as well be a sign stapled to our head that says “TOURIST”) the kids get excited and say (sometimes yell across the street) “HELLO!” My mother and father would melt. It is so humid here, that although it’s only in the mid 80s (considered a chilly day) I can honestly say that I dont think I have ever sweat so much in my life.  
When we got back to the hotel, most (if not all) of us went to the grocery store.  I was surprised to see that they have many of the same brands as we have in America such as McCormick spices.  We bought mostly bottled water for the trip (trying to avoid parasites!). Then some of the girls went to have massages ($9 for a 1hr massage!!) and the rest of the evening was spent relaxing with each other before all going to bed.  It is now 5:20AM in Cambodia (just cant sleep anymore) and were looking forward to getting to go to the hospital today.  

In the mode of preparing to leave and saying our good-byes, we wake up to take a morning walk only to realize that we are too late to see the city wake up. It is already bustling with traffic and people; exercisers have gone to work; the sun is already high and hot in the sky. We see a couple of people still sleeping in hammocks or and one mother sending her children out to ask for food.
Last night as another farewell, we went to dinner with some of the friends in the church–the pastor, Sovann, and his wife, Sopheap, and their two young children; one of the nurse educators, Phalla, and her husband, Kenda, and their two beautiful daughters; Sotia and wife, Paesset, and 7 year old son who was only one year old when I first met them. It was one of my favorite times on the trip; a relaxed and comfortable time with children laughing, entertaining us with their singing, and playing silly games as children everywhere do. It is so amazing to be able to share in this way with people all the way around the world! We discussed raising children, stories of engagement and marriage, illness, faith, victories.

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After our 38 hour return trip, we were so very happy to get back to Nashville around 9AM this morning. All of our flights were on time (except one which was 30 minutes late because someone had forgotten to turn on the air conditioning), all of our luggage arrived with us, and family and friends greeted us at the airport as we arrived. Thank you for all your prayers. We saw evidence of answered prayers every day of our stay in Cambodia. I want to say a hearty “thank you” to all the awesome students– for your positive, “just do it” attitudes and willingness to move out of your comfort zones as you served the people of Cambodia in so many ways!
Susan, Chas, Tyler, and Zane, we wish you Godspeed as you travel back all together as a family.

This past weekend, we experienced extremes–from extreme poverty to extreme wealth, from eating soup made with “skin from the pig” and chicken “with skin and bones” to fresh passion fruit and lavish desserts, from a Cambodian village-style bathroom (see picture – click to enlarge) to matching bathrooms with sauna and jacuzzi, from loud speakers and karioke to elegant ambiance. But in both extremes, we found people who invited us in with open arms.

On Friday morning, we traveled to the village that we discovered through one of our class readings, “Bones That Float.” In the book, Kari Grossman, the author, talks about adopting a Cambodian boy and, in the process, adopting the country as well. She and her husband, George, in searching for their son’s birth family, had discovered a village in the Kampong Spue Province. Over 6 years, they have been working with the village, helping them grow the Grady Grossman School, dedicated in honor of their son. They have also helped the village produce sustainable income to pay the teachers by making and selling briquets made from trash. We contacted Kari and she asked us to visit the village and assess the nutritional status of the children, do some health teaching, and provide bicycles to all students who had completed the 6th grade so that they could ride to the next village to continue their schooling. We worked with her Cambodian contact, Yeong(?), to make the arrangements.
After a 3 hour van ride over some BUMPY roads, we arrived at the school where we were to stay in the teachers’ quarters and to do the nutritional assessments. Our accommodations were worlds apart from our comfort zones. See the pictures of our bedrooms–complete with mats on wooden frames with mosquito netting–which also served as our pharmacy. My roommate was Phalla, one of the nurse educators from Sihanouk Hospital, who was invaluable as a health translator and as a roomie. She showed me how to take a “bath” Cambodian-village style. Imagine donning a saroung and going behind the house to wash in the rainwater caught in large clay pots.





We left on Saturday in time to get back to Phnom Penh by dark and in time to attend a barbecue to which we had been invited. Susan and Chas are friends with the director of the World Health Organization in Cambodia, so we were all included in the invitation. So after our culture shock in the village, we had to adapt back to a different way of living. We met people from Belgium, Hungary,and even Atlanta! And our hosts were wonderful people.


From one world to another we travelled this weekend. People are the same everywhere, and we all have needs. Hopefully, we met some needs this weekend. Our needs were surely met!
Thanks for your many prayers as we ventured into another world.

Today was our first full day of working in the hospital. Some of what we see and experience is similar to the US but much is different! In both venues, we see caring health care providers, sick patients, loving families. In Cambodia, however, families are feeding, bathing, and turning their family members who are sick; nurses are regulating IV rates by counting drips rather than using IV pumps; medical decisions are being made with less sophisticated equipment (X-rays rather than CT scans and a plastic chair on wheels rather than a wheelchair, for example.) One patient that we saw today (left image above) had a leg wound that had been treated months earlier in the hospital but who had then resorted to Cambodian traditional medicine, having the leg wrapped in a grass bandage. By the time he was brought back to the hospital, he was disoriented and the infection had spread throughout his body.
Another patient had a textbook case of ascites (right image above). We have many opportunities for learning–about skills, culture, and even about ourselves. Our group is awesome and positive even in the face of obstacles such as transportation and scheduling issues. Thank you for your prayers and continued support. Continue to pray for us and the people of Cambodia.
Click images for enlarged versions.

Today has been our last full day in Cambodia. We have hurriedly finished with our last minute errands and have come to the realization that our time is almost over.
We said our good-byes to the children from the orphanage yesterday as we attended a dance performance by the children from the orphanage and from an international school that has partnered with them. It is so inspiring to see the Cambodian children and the international students working, dancing, laughing, and just being children together. They all performed both styles of music–the macarena dance and the traditional Cambodian butterfly dance, to name a few. There were many tears as we departed, but we will be back. The children have stolen our hearts. Each of us has bonded with a special child and will try to support those children through mail or other means. Several students are talking about coming back for another dose of love from the children and from the people of Cambodia.
Today, we went to the hospital for the last time and received hugs of gratefulness. We returned those hugs with grateful ones of our own. The nurses and other people of Cambodia–social workers, business employees, housekeepers, cooks–have opened their hearts and lives to us!! They have changed us forever. We will think fondly–and often–of Rossi, Phalla, Rota, Sarom, Mom Someun, Vindet, Sopheap, Savvy, and many more.
We will be back in the US shortly, but our hearts are captured here forever. We will return!!

We have returned from the village after a 4 hour trip one-way (about 50 or 60 km.). Back to the reflections…
Progress has been made since we were here last year.
The hospital now has an excellent Cambodian nursing director. Nurse educators have risen from the ranks and teach half time while spending the other half of their time working in their areas of expertise. Susan has conducted teaching rounds for the students and the Cambodian nursing staff.
The orphanage is also much improved through donations from many sources. The orphanage has a relationship with an international school; a Khmer child is paried with a student from the school and together they learn dances–traditional Khmer dances and tradtional American/European dances. They will have a performance right before we leave. The children are healthier; scalp and skin diseases had been mostly treated.
On the HIV home visits, we could see improvements as well. Mothers-to-be are now aware of and are taking the free antiretroviral medications available to them that may help them have a healthy baby.

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Today we are heading to the village where there are 179 families living, 25 or so without rice. We will be taking rice and good will to these families. Yesterday, we spent in the hospital where we saw medical problems such as a young boy with end-stage heart disease likely caused by an untreated sore throat, a man with gouty arthritis, and a woman with stroke as a complication of hyptertension. However, I am so encouraged to see the progress that has been made in the last year….

We have made it! After around 29 hours and 7 movies and at least two breakfasts, we are here safely. Thanks for your thoughts and prayers.