December 5th...(friday!)

Sometimes, when you don't have too much filling up your days, they blur together. Today was good example of that. I knew that on Friday I had plans to go watch a Khmer rock-opera called "Where Elephants Weep". What I didn't realize until late this afternoon, was that today was friday(!)

"Where Elephants Weep" was AMAZING! I loved it. The show had the English and Khmer text of each line as it was sung. This is the only reason that I remember the following (sung in Khmer originally):

...here our land is green and fertile.../ halfway across the world a man named "King" has a dream,/ and a band called "the Beatles" make girls scream/

If you can imagine reading this while hearing Khmer being sung (with "king" and "Beatles") then you can also imagine my joy and excitement for the upcoming comic journey. The story was about a young Cambodian guy who worked as a music producer for Sony in the states, whom made a return to Cambodia (with his friend) to become a monk, and be at peace. He meets a girl who he falls in love with, but she's engaged to her brother's friend (and business partner). The show used this premise to hit a few different points about Cambodian identity: the monks, cultural dance and song, the Khmer rouge and pol pot, the "new money" Cambodians (and their debaucherous lifestyle),  the street kids, lack of/need for parental love, and the experience of being child soldier.

This was all couched in a switch between, and sometimes combination of, traditional Khmer and 80's rock. There was also some hip-hopish stuff thrown in (this was soo funny!): the brother had three hired guards/goons who were all dressed in suits and acted supa gangsta - busting out with some svet hip-hop moves and comic rhymes. I loved this show, quirks and all. This picture is of me imitating an elephant using our free poster. After the show Beattie and Jarnah and I went for some Thai food - spicy morning glory and rice is a good meal.

Since Jarnah and Beatti both have bikes, but I do not, we've had to double-up a few times. This usually involves Jarnah sitting on the little...flat...I want to say book-holder? at the back of her bike, while I put in the leg work. The length of time between my last bike ride, and this double-ride has exacerbated my issues with balance, and instilled humor and fear into the hearts of Jarnah and Beattie both. 

Today was a great day of fresh fruits - I ate two mangoes for breakfast, two oranges for lunch, and papaya for a snack. (Yes, a whole papaya, but it was a small one...and I put lemon on it - soo tasty, I highly recommend it.)