Mission to Cambodia 2013
from Taylor Bonds

Once again we started the day with a refreshing run/walk and then ended up eating soup for breakfast and it was so yummy! After breakfast it was my group’s turn to embark on the adventure of touring Phonm Penh.  We started the day with some shopping in the Russian market and it was quite the experience considering the selection of goods is unreal!

For those of you that know me well, this is probably the last place you would ever want to come with me considering it takes me at least 10 minutes to decide what drink to order at Starbucks.

Not only am I one of the worst decision makers, I also am the absolute worst at bargaining… this seemed to be the routine at the market place:  “I give you best price, you are my best customer today, I give you 7, that is best price, I give good price.” . . . . “I can give you four.” . . . .“Oh know that not good price, I need better price, you give me better price.” . . . “Four is all I have” . . . “No you give better price. I say 5 is my best price for you.” . . . “I am going to look somewhere else.” . . . “Oh no I don’t want to lose you, four dolllll-ars and its yours.”

But, after succeeding in some bargain buys I ended up with some great gifts and by far my favorite purchase from Cambodia and it is a pair of some awesome Cambodian pants that were quite the hit in our group! There were tons of people that went back to the Russian market and bought them the next day! I wore them while we went to tour the Buddhist temples. It was a very unique experience; there were many monks that just walk all around in orange robes. I couldn’t help but wonder what they were thinking about, who they were, and how they ended up as a monk.

Next, we took tuk tuks to the Toul Slang Genoicde Museum. (pictures below – click on to enlarge) This was one of the hardest things to take in so far on this trip. The museum used to be a pubic school that was turned into a detention facility and was used to torture “prisoners” that were educated Cambodians who did not want to listen to the new way of life that the Khomer Rouge set into affect.  Instead, they wanted to stay the educated, civilized person they were taught to be. This prison held around 20,000 soldiers during the reign of the Khomer Rouge. I will allow the pictures to give you words I am not able to put together, because honestly I do not feel they are words that can describe the horrific events that took place at this torturing, imprisoning, and disgusting facility. If you are interested in this topic you can watch the movie or read the book “The Killing Fields” you will get a better idea of what happened on April 15, 1975-1979.

At night, we went to a church service with the Cambodia “singles” and “campus” group. It was truly a wonderful and encouraging service. It was such a great reminder that no matter what race we are, what language we speak, or what our background we come from God loves each and every one of us so much. “For you created my inmost being; you knit me together in my mother’s womb” Psalm 139: 13.