Merry Christmas! We have had an incredible Christmas Day in Cambodia…it’s hard to know where to begin. It started with Santa leaving two DSI games and t-shirts for the girls. A hearty breakfast and then Yoen picked us up to visit the elephant Sambo (mentioned yesterday) at Wat Phnom, the temple in the middle of the city. The girls got to ride Sambo around the base of the temple and feed her bananas. At the top of the Wat, the girls got to release a caged bird. This is like the book "The Caged Bird Sings" which was written by an UU. You whiper all your dreams within one breath and then release the bird. This is to make your dreams come to pass. It was awesome at Wat Phnom!
After the elephant ride, we went to pick up the girl’s skirts. They looked beautiful in them. From there we went to Yoen’s home. His wife cooked a wonderful meal for us. They have three boys, Hong (14), Hor (pronounced how-11) and Hai (8). The boys and the girls were being shy with each other. The boys are learning English in school and they were practicing their language skills with us. The house had their tuk-tuk (a motorcycle with a cart for four average sized people) inside the main room. Yoen’s family was very gracious.
Yoen has done a number of birth family searches. The girls have indicated they would like to find their birth parents. He said that since Ana’s orphanage closed he may not be able to find them as there is no longer any paperwork available to work with. He told her that if he couldn’t find any information that they would be her family here in Cambodia.
We went to the Buddhist monk who is the supreme patriarch of the area. We began by lighting incense and praying before the Buddha. He gave each of us a blessing which included a red yarn bracelet and a talisman to protect our home. We then received a water blessing which is like a Baptist baptism. Luckily we requested a little water and only our heads got soaked.
From there we ventured out of the city to a Buddhist monastery. This was the most incredible place we have seen yet. The temple was full of hundreds of Buddha statues of all shapes and sizes. We met some Buddhist nuns who loved patting Annie and Sara’s belly. Yoen took us around the grounds. We heard young monks chanting. Yoen pointed out a Buddha tree, the kind in the Buddha received enlightenment. We walked through many stupas which is like a burial vault. One of these contained many bones of people killed in that area by the Khmer Rouge. We then went to a pond with the biggest catfish we had ever seen. The girls got to feed them ramen noodles.
Another experience was having fresh squeezed sugar cane. It is an extremely sweet drink. It has been fun trying new fruits and Cambodian treats.
Throughout the day, Yoen shared his experiences through the Khmer Rouge time and how he survived. He was 13 at the time when they took over. He was punished by them for catching fish for his family and had his arms tied behind his back while the ants bit him. His oldest sister did not survive during this time.
Ana & Maddie riding Sombo.
Ana getting ready to release her bird.
Yoen Soek and his family.
This is a small part of the hundreds of Buddhas in the temple.
Standing in front of the Buddhist monastery.
Ana & Maddie with young monks who are about their age.
Ana getting ready to release her bird.
Yoen Soek and his family.
This is a small part of the hundreds of Buddhas in the temple.
Standing in front of the Buddhist monastery.
Ana & Maddie with young monks who are about their age.
We ended our day back at the hotel for a Christmas barbeque complete with Christmas carols, Yule logs, golden glitter masks and a Cambodian Santa making balloon animals. This will definitely be a Christmas to remember!
Merry Christmas! We miss you! Wow sounds like a great adventure. Glad you are having a great time. The weather is cold today and windy. We have snow spots on the ground but definetly a green Christmas. Safe and fun travels to all of you. We love you!
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Love that you are having a fantastic trip. Merry Christmas. Continue to enjoy every moment. Love to all. Aunt Deb
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