2007 Mission Trip to Cambodia
Wow….every day since last week has been so very full. I have not stopped from early morning to late night, so I am late posting my entry. Last Friday we were up early, boarded the bus to Siem Reap. The countryside is so beautiful during the rainy season which begun early this year. However, last week did not have much rain and was very, very hot. We arrived in Siem Reap in good time and went to the temples after a quick trip to the market. Shop, shop, shop. You know that does stimulate the economy, help the poor and brings great gifts home to those we love and miss dearly. We were able to go into the Temples at 5 PM on our one day pass. The group head on tuk tuks into the jungle. We arrived at Bekheng (sp?) mountain which is a favorite spot to watch the sunset. In the years here, my family and I never saw a good sunset because the clouds were always there.
There are also elephants at the bottom of the “mountain” that you can catch a ride on to the top and back down if you are lucky enough to get there in time. We were lucky, blessed or both because we arrived and took off running to the elephants and all of us that were there were able to ride up the mountain! It was great fun.

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2007 Mission Trip to Cambodia
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!!