- There isn’t breakfast food. People eat breakfast, but it’s just normal food. In the morning. Okay, I’m told this isn’t completely true, but you still eat rice with meat and veggies, so I really can’t tell the difference.
- It’s not “summer” here (thank goodness) because there are only two seasons. We’re just on the very beginning edge of the rainy season, which lasts from around now until about October. (The opposite season is the dry season, which is the rest of the year.)
- The roads are surprisingly good! Main roads are well-paved, and side streets are hard packed dirt or gravel, which are still quite navigable.
- Kids that aren’t in a private school attend public government schools. They go six days a week (Monday-Saturday) but only in either the morning or afternoon in order to fit everyone in. So, a child will either attend from about 8-12 or from 1-5. Everyone wears a uniform, usually a white shirt with navy shorts or a skirt.
- There are stop signs, traffic lights, and lanes painted on the roads, but as a driver from the US by comparison they feel more like suggestions than rules. Traffic lights are roughly followed, especially if you are in a larger vehicle (a car or bus.) Motos can pretty much do whatever they want, as long as they aren’t in someone else’s path. The rules essentially seem to be: don’t hit anyone, and don’t put yourself in a place to be hit.
- There are mango trees everywhere. It’s awesome.
- Fresh fruit in general is really cheap. Meat and eggs are much more expensive (though still much cheaper than the US) but fruit and vegetables are just sold by weight.
- Things you can buy for $1:
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- 1 kilo of Mangos
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- A pineapple
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- At least 1 large water bottle (depending on where you are)
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- A delicious fruit smoothie
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- Coconut ice cream served in a fresh coconut shell
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- A very short tuk tuk ride
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- A cheap wallet
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- 6 eggs
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- Entrance to most national parks
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- About 20 bananas
- The official Cambodian currency is the riel. Essentially, the other official currency is the dollar. It is commonly accepted to exchange 4000 riel for one dollar. So it is totally normal to get a bill that says 7.50, pay with a $5 and a 20000 riel, and get $1 and 6000 riel in change.
- It is very rude to wear shoes inside. I wear shoes to go from my apartment to school, and if I go out in Phnom Penh, but never in my apartment, the school buildings, or the hotel rooms we stayed in.
Also, I thought it would be fun to include photos of the visual assignments the kids just finished! They are working on loops and controlling objects (in this case a turtle) through built-in commands. They’re doing awesome! They just finished coding hangman on Friday. Enjoy!
