Happy Thanksgiving*

HAPPY EARLY THANKSGIVING! 

This weekend I am off to the beach city of Sihanoukville with some friends to swim in the Gulf of Thailand!!!! Not only do I LOVE the beach and LOVE swimming, but I get to be IN THE OCEAN!!! We are taking a bus from our guesthouse after work today which will take about 4 hours for $7 US. It’s a tough life I’m living here :P

Another little lesson I have learned in Phnom Penh…. washrooms are absolutely, positively, ridiculously DISGUSTING! Do not use them – take your chances in a bush... trust me! If you absolutely must use the bathroom, never (and I mean NEVER EVER EVER!) use a bathroom at a market. My friend Catherine and I made this mistake and let’s just say we were squatting over a hole in the ground while sifting through two inches of water. It was a great learning experience for me and now I am sharing this knowledge so you never have to experience this. Always carry toilet paper with you as well. Their toilet paper is so soft and so cheap ($0.80 for 6 rolls) but no public bathrooms have it.

My placement is going great so far. It started off slow with doing a lot of reading but it has picked up and I am now helping out with reports for donors. The people in the office were having trouble saying my name and kept asking if I have a nickname. I finally came up with Giul (or I guess Jewel) and they seem much happier with this. This is now what I’m known as J

I am very thankful for the opportunity to be here in Cambodia safe and sound. I am thankful for my amazing family and friends who I love very much. I am also thankful to have created such a great group of friends after being here for just one week.

HAPPY THANKSGIVING TO ALL MY FAMILY AND FRIENDS! 

I MISS YOU ALL VERY MUCH XOXO