cooking in phnom penh

Cooking.

An art form that tastes good too.

Creativity, research, trial-and-error, friends, & learning new things.

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I love cooking.

I love finding new ways to make things I thought were impossible.

Starting with rice…

I feel so accomplished that I know how to cook rice (not instant!).

And before Cambodia…

Bread & vanilla pudding.

Today I made watermelon jam, a recipe from Lesotho.

I feel so accomplished and proud.

Maybe like a runner’s high, but more calories! : )

And last night I experimented with making a hearty Spicy-Thai Pumpkin Soup.

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Jam and chutney.

Pureeing pumpkin.

Bagels.

Maple syrup.

RICE!

Crushed pepper.

Yogurt.

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And then the office lessons from Rathana (and others who chime in with their two cents!).

Sweet and Sour Fried Fish.

Vietnamese Sour Soup.

& Beef Lok Lak (thanks Sokleak!).

“Tryee Jieun Seeung”

“Somla Saiko”

Red and green curries!

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How to slice a pineapple fancy.

And when to use dicing, wedges, and strips of vegetables.

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Something about making things with your hands.  And then being able to share with others.

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Sometimes I am scared that others will not like my food, still growing!

And trying to learn foods that other like, not only me.  : )

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My steps to cooking:

Researching online, in cookbooks at friend’s houses, and asking lots of questions.

Going to the market (my favorite part!): building relationships & a game to see how cheap the meal will be.

Cooking, experimenting, guessing (and hoping).

Eating with friends!!

i am thankful.

As you can see, I had a great Thanksgiving.  I celebrated with many Khmer and American friends, pot-luck style.  : )  I was really excited for the opportunity to share a meal with my Khmer friends (who so often share with me!) and to give them a taste of my own traditions.  During the night we sat on mats on the floor (Khmer style) and wrote what we were thankful for on “Buddy” the turkey (poster), and topped the night off with pumpkin pie and ice cream.

As I sat in the room with everyone eating and chatting, I really felt thankful for the people God has brought into my life!  I feel so blessed to have such a support system of friends.  : )

And I hope you all (if anyone follows me blog, that is) had a wonderful time with family and friends this Thanksgiving!  I am thankful for you too!!  xo.

the beginning of gratefulness day

Happy Thanksgiving!

My day of gratefulness started early this morning and with pumpkin muffins.  A few nights ago I pureed a large pumpkin and am now left with an enormous amount of pumpkin puree!  So this morning I thought it would nice to bake some whole wheat pumpkin muffins for my neighbors and staff.

I donned my leaf-print, autumn-color apron (thanks mary jo!) and started mixing… and waiting.  In the meantime I wrote some of the things I was thankful for in my journal:

I am thankful for my neighbors forwelcoming me with a kind “hi” when I get home, and asking me to sit and talk (“ancowiey laang”).

I am thankful for my friend Sokleak for understanding me and inviting me to hang out and including me in her life!

I am thankful for a great roommate, Christine.

I am thankful for my small home group that is a wonderful community to share life with.

I am thankful for all my team members here and friends, for including me in their lives and helping me learn Khmer/ about Cambodia.

And I am thankful for my supporters for helping me to live & work here!

So after the muffins finished, I delivered them to my neighbors, the local barber, my landlord & her family, some moto drivers, and the local restuarant manager.  And then brought the rest to the office.  I loved being able to tell them that it was a holiday in America and so I wanted to give them pumpkin muffins/ cake (“nome paew”).  And thanked them for being my friends!

Their initial reaction was like, what?! pumpkin in a cake… but I think they enjoyed them (maybe the gesture more than the taste, but at times I have felt them same too!).

So, happy thanksgiving morning!

christmas cookies already!

My mommy sent me Christmas cookies!  She filled a snowman tin with stacks of ginger cookies (our family’s traditional cookie!)- rolled in green and red sprinkles!    I enjoyed eating a sweet piece of home as I drove in a tuk tuk the night  I received them.  It seems hard to imagine that it is nearly the Christmas season… it has been unseasonably warm here this week.  I went to a Christmas Craft Fair today and I couldn’t really get into the season… but the cookies make it possible.  Thanks Mom!  xoxo.

independence day celebration!

Happy Independence Day Cambodia!

Yesterday was yet another holiday here in Cambodia.  But this was a pretty one, with lights and flags and fireworks (and traffic!).  On my way to meet up with friends from the States (Tania, Genilson, Perry, Levi, & Jeremy), I stopped by the roadside to take a few pictures and relish in the fact that I live in Cambodia.  : )

Here is a picture of Perry and I in a Tuk Tuk.  Yesterday we toured Phnom Penh a bit, which was fun!

ratnikiri: a place of green, lakes, & hoodies.

My holiday in Ratnikiri, in North East Cambodia, was gorgeous.  After an obnoxiously long drive (12 hours) on both paved & dirt roads, we reached what another friend had told us looked liked “England”.  We were both skeptical that Cambodia could in any way resemble the topography of England, BUT were very pleasantly surprised!  The sight of rolling hills and lush green trees (not pines, of course, but I can’t ask for THAT much!) somewhat calmed my antsy- squished legs.  We rode up in a shared taxi van, and although we were grateful to have small people in our shared bench seat, after realizing that our 693km trip would have only taken 7 hours (going 65mph) in the States, and it took us nearly 12, I was ready to be OUT!

“Us or We” for the most part includes myself and my friend Hadley, who is working here short-term from the USA.   We shared a cute-rustic-quiet cabin at this lodge in the woods!  We spent time hiking to the lake, biking to the town and lake, swimming in the fresh water lake, taking a moto adventure (with other friends we met there) to three waterfalls, riding an elephant, and even making s’mores.

A highlight for me was waking up in the morning and hearing birds chirping, and NO clicking sticks, horns honking, or dogs barking!  It was also amazing to wear jeans and hoodies in the evening and waking up from under our heavy blankets and feeling can-I say:: CHILLY!

The s’mores story is worth exapnding a bit, so I will describe both the vision and the reality to you.  Hadley and I were hoping to make a campfire and have s’mores in the woods one night.  The reality ended up being pink and white marshmallows, with coconut butter biscuits with sesame seeds, and chocolate (that was not good).  At our guesthouse we asked if they could make us a fire… they did NOT get the vision (and I am sure thought we were absolutely absured).  They kindly offered us a gas stove to use in the restaurant.  SO, although we were surrounded by trees and being eaten by bugs, it was not exactly like camping.  But the s;mores did taste wonderful.  Another event that night was the ants-in-the-pants experience that I had.  May I add that these were not just small annoying ants (that would not be a worthwhile story), but were HUGE BLACK BITING ANTS.  And they were in my pants, so what else would I do but drop my pants… yes in the restaurant (thankfully just my friend was there- I think)… OOWWW!!!

yum

very cheesy... and not so much a campfire...

On the way home I was worried about not being able to get in the city (I even left a day early because of the horror stories I heard because of Water Festival) and when we got to the police stop point, I smiled : )  and they said “barang” (foreigner) and let the whole van enter the city.  Thank you God!!  I got back in record time and did not have any additional stress!

Here are some photos from Ratnikri:

yakom lake

riding an elephant

hadley and me.

i can breathe again!

eating at latex center restaurant... after passing a heap of rubber trees

 

my new cub 50.

The Honda Super Cub 50, my new ride around Phnom Penh, has quite a history.  And I mean that in two ways.  One, the Registration Card I have is of a quite large Khmer man who bought the car maybe in 2000… but who knows where it came from before then OR how it came to be sold in Phnom Penh to me.

Second, the Cub 50 is what apparently made Mr. Honda rich.  Since they started being made over 50 years ago (in 1958), more than 60 million have been sold worldwide!!  AND it is still the best selling powered vehicle of all time (so quotes Wikipedia). Apparently the Beach Boys even recorded a song about it “Little Honda”

A little about the Cub itself.  Mine, a Cub 50 (versus the newer Cub 70 or 90 versions) is a “49cc, 4 stroke, underbone bike” – whatever all that means.  All I can say for sure is that it has 4 gears (or 3) and the engine revs loud at about 30 kph (less than 20mph, about 19).  Sometimes the electric starter works, and other times I find it easier to kick start it.  It is also excellent on gas mileage, and I can pay just less than $3 to fill up, and that lasts me about a week!

I love my new moto because I can go faster than on a bike, and am less sweaty & exhausted when I reach my destination.  My mood has also increased with my purchase and I am again in an upswing for enjoying my time here, my additional job roles, and even am remembering more Khmer now!

Thanks for your prayers and hopes for safety… I wear a helmet!

 

my first tailor-made shirt!

In Cambodia it is very easy to make a tailored shirt.  You can design one or bring one you already have to copy or show them a picture.  They are SO talented and there is a pretty good range of fabrics in the markets.

I am fortunate to have a wonderful neighbor who is a tailor and my friend.  She is such a good seamstress, and I want to brag about her fine work…

So here is the picture I showed her to make:



And here is a picture of me and her (me wearing the shirt):

holiday-to-be in GREEN.

cambodia is the country for holidays.  i heard that the number of public holidays in cambodia is FORTY FOUR!!  i checked how many the USA has, and it is only ELEVEN.    chab dai picked 21 of the 44 to celebrate.

a big holiday coming up is the Water Festival, where apparently millions of people from all the provinces and tourists flood into phnom penh to watch boat racing (+300 boats) and listen to concerts.  it marks the reversal of the current in the Tonle Sap river.

although i am keen to see this carnival-like holiday, i am going to escape the traffic and crowded city and head to ratnikiri.    it is a long journey (10-12 hours) in the northeast of cambodia.  the pictures are absolutely gorgeous and it is GREEN, with lakes and hiking and trekking, and i hope to sleep one night in the jungle too.  yay for a small piece of home that i miss being here too!  i just made definitive plans with my friend, hadley, today.  for a sneak peek, check out this site: www.yaklom.com.

more pictures to come… of course!

frisbee in the rain. and in the PARK.

This weekend I played ultimate frisbee again.  We played at a place similar to what I have been missing: a park!  It was actually a school (a very nice one!) and I didn’t think there was anywhere in Cambodia to fill my heart’s hopes for a park.  : ) But there was and I was happily surprised to be there!!  It was so green and the trees were big and offered shade.  And we played in the rain too, it was wonderful.  : )