Here I am once again. As incredible as it may seem, I got here one month ago, and things are still falling into place right now. Getting used to life here is a challenge from the second you wake up to the moment you go to sleep. Here is how my day goes on:
I wake up at 6h30 everyday, to enjoy a peaceful breakfast made up of tea and some biscuits. Well, to tell the truth, it is not always peaceful, as generally the first thing to do is to bathe in anti-mosquito (a great smell for the early morning), put water to boil, kill the ants in the sugar....
Anyway, at 7h30 one of the teachers picks me up on his motorbike. The road is generally quite bumpy, which helps me come down to my earthly duties. When I get to school, it is almost eight, so I go into the classroom and I am greeted by all the students, reciting some poetry about something in Khmer, to which I reply O Kun (Thank you) before moving on to 3 hours of teaching.
By 11h30 I am hungry as hell, so I discover with great surprise the rice that is my daily meal. In less than 10 minutes, the kids start getting to the library, where I eat, and start drawing, coloring, playing… At 13h00 I am back to work (What is your name? How old are you? Where are you from? What is your name? How old are you? Where are you from? ) until 17h30, with half an hour of rest.
I get home just in time for a throw-yourself-some-cold-water-with-a-pot shower, then I eat lunch and go to bed… at 9! This goes on every week for six days, and the seventh is dedicated to.... resting? You wish! There are always house chores and lessons to prepare.One would think this is a crazy way of spending holidays, but if I could show you the smiles of the kids, the baby steps in communicating with people of completely different backgrounds and all the discoveries and surprises, maybe you would understand.
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