FAQ and all that jazz

So I get a lot of questions about my life here in Cambodia. I thought I would go ahead and make a FAQ section so that we can get this out of the way all at once.

1. Is it fabulous living over there?

Why yes, it is. Thanks for asking. I am getting to do things and see things that I may never have done/seen before. I get to meet amazingly different people everyday. I get to travel Asia. So all in all, yes, I'd say it is pretty fabulous.

2. How do you get around town?

I bought a moto (refer to previous posts). So I will either drive my moto, hire another moto, hire a tuk-tuk, or bum rides off my friends who actually have cars. I really enjoy driving my moto, but its really not convenient for grocery shopping.

3. What side of the road do they drive on there?

Technically, the correct answer is the right side (same as in the States). However, the more accurate answer is whatever side of the road there is space. That's right, wherever you can sneak your moto/car/tuk-tuk/18-wheel truck through is the side that you drive on. Nevermind oncoming traffic. The rule of the road is the bigger vehicle has the right of way, so if there is an 18-wheeler headed straight for you, you better move, and move damn quick. Oh, and sidewalks are also fair game if you can fit your vehicle on them. Be advised that stop signs are advisory, not compulsory. Usually the largest road has the right away and does not need to yield.

Also, another quick note about driving- the traffic police stand on the side of the road and try to pull you over by stepping in front of your vehicle. You may treat this as more of a suggestion to pull over rather than an order as the police (we call them smurfs because they wear blue shirts with white helmets) have no means of transportation to run you down should you choose to not pull over. As long as you are fast enough to avoid them, drive on my friend. Drive on.

Finally, traffic signals here can be confusing. Please do not be alarmed when your green left turn arrow, green straight arrow, and green right turn arrow all come on together. Please just be advised that oncoming traffic has all the same arrows green and try to avoid getting hit. The best thing to do is to just start turning left before the light actually turns green (there is a countdown on each light so you will know when it is going to turn). Again, watch out for traffic coming at you from ALL directions then (because the people in front of you are thinking the same thing but the people on either side of you still have a green light). Good luck, my friend.

4. Whats the weather like?

Mostly its pretty hot. It is tropical here afterall. We do have a monsoon season but I was lucky enough to avoid that this year. So far its been a pretty temperate 90 degrees everyday. Lately, it has only been about 80, which apparently here is cold weather. Either way, its usually nice enough to swim in my pool so I can't complain much.

5. What is working at the Embassy like?

Its like working at a fortress. One in which the doors are really heavy and there's a grand piano in the lobby. Luckily, I do not work on the Embassy compound, but rather we are co-located with part of the Cambodian Ministry of Health. However, I do go to the Embassy quite often to conduct business and to get money (the most secure ATM in all of Cambodia!). Fortuitously, the Embassy community here is quite small and friendly and they have given me a badge to be able to come and go at will. I also have been extended some courtesy services for which I am incredibly grateful. There is always some Embassy event going on (from trips, to happy hours, to blood drives, to holiday parties, etc) so we get to know everyone really well and everybody has been incredibly welcoming and friendly. I have quite a good group of friends this way.

6. What do you do at work?

The official answer is that the CDC works directly with the Ministry of Health through Cooperative agreements to battle the HIV/AIDS epidemic under the umbrella of PEPFAR (the President's Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief). Basically, we provide Technical Assistance to the Ministry when we hand them tax payer money. My actual role in that is still a bit murky. I am attempting to work with part of the ministry on a Continuous Quality Improvement project to improve the care and treatment of people living with HIV/AIDS (PLHA) but it has been slow going.

7. What language do they speak in Cambodia and can you talk with them yet?

In Cambodia, the official language is Khmer (pronounced Khmai). However, a lot of people can speak a modicum of English at least. That statement may not be true for most moto or tuk-tuk drivers so you will have to be prepared for that. The ones that do speak English will try to charge you more. I have been taking language lessons for awhile now and can converse at a minimal level. I am quite proficient at getting where I need to go and giving directions and I can make my wants/needs known at a basic level. I can also bargain in Khmer which is a terribly useful skill here. I have found that it is a bit difficult to learn a language that has a completely separate alphabet because you have to try to translate everything into Roman characters and that gets complicated.

8. What do you do for fun?

This is probably one of the hardest questions to answer. There are no movie theatres here that play English-speaking movies. I have yet to find a bowling alley (although I hear rumors that there is one). Apparently, there is an adult go-kart course somewhere a bit outside the city but I have not seen it. Basically I would say that I have a lot more human interaction here than I do in the States. We get together with people and have dinner parties or some Embassy party or go out to bars/clubs. I go to the markets and buy pirated DVDs and then we end up just watching them at home. I still read books for entertainment, but they are harder to find here. My TV has a lot of pretty good English speaking channels so Ill watch that. My boyfriend has a PS3 that we will play to pass the time. We go out to eat a lot and try new restaurants and new food. Pretty much I just do what I did in the States but I go out a lot more to hang out with people. Hanging out with people is pretty much our main form of entertainment.

9. Is it dangerous there?

Well, probably, if you are stupid. The most common issue with safety here is purse snatching. There have been reports of people being pulled from a moving moto because they refuse to let go of their belongings. I have not had any problems with safety here for a couple of reasons. First, I'm not an idiot and I don't carry a purse in sight at night on a moto. I usually sit on my purse on a moto and my purse is black and small so it blends in quite well with a moto seat. Secondly, have any of you seen my friends here? I hang out with the Army Special Forces guys or the Marines usually. Neither of which are a group of guys that you want to mess with. Especially since most of the Cambodians are smaller than me, never mind my military friends. I am quite well protected, so you need not fear.

10. How long are you going to be there?

Who knows? My initial contract ends at the end of Sept 2010 but there is already talk about renewing our contracts for an additional year. I will let you know when I have that figured out.

Well, I hope this has been informative and answers the majority of your questions. Please let me know if you have any others that you would like me to answer.