2014... a year of change.

I know it’s been awhile. I don’t have any good excuses as to why this has taken me so long, so I’ll just say I’m sorry. I found as the year went on, that regardless of how many people told me they loved reading about my adventures and how they couldn't wait to read more, the only way I could sit down and write anything worth reading was if I gave myself time to reflect on my life at that point. Maybe this is an excuse but I found my life very busy the last few months of school; good busy, but busy nonetheless. I found that it’s very hard for me to write something worthwhile in those “conditions”.

So here I am, back in the states after my first year teaching abroad. To call it a year of adventure would be an understatement. For me, I would call it a year of change….life changing perhaps. A year that, no matter how hard I might try, I will never be able to replicate.

I left for China, a girl/woman searching for myself. Trying to decide who I would be, all by myself. And while I may not have all of my questions answered just yet, I’m a hell of a lot closer than I've ever been. I can honestly say that this year has made me a better person. I like myself better. I’d say that would make it a success in itself.

During the many travels I was so fortunate to take this year, I was basically slapped in the face with how unbelievably blessed I am! I met many people throughout SE Asia that have so little and have suffered so great. Yet they are beautiful people, inside and out. In those small moments I was able to spend with them, they changed me. One word, one smile, one wave….it didn't matter. Their kindness was so humbling. I’d always thought it would be so great to go somewhere and volunteer; work with kids, build houses, whatever it may be. It’s something I had always said I’d wanted to do in my life, but I don’t think I really knew what that meant. Now….now I can put faces to what that means for me. And while I can’t say exactly when it will happen, I know it will happen. I will be a person who remembers to appreciate what I have and to help others.

During this year I have learned that family can look many different ways. I am so blessed to have parents, brothers, sisters, nieces and nephews at home in the states (and Germany too!) that are supportive and there for me….no matter what. I honestly can’t imagine being where I am today without them. But I've also discovered that new family can come into your life without you even realizing it. Family that can challenge you, encourage you, inspire you and family that can feel like home. I’m ridiculously thankful for the family I've met this year that have changed me and helped me become a better version of myself. I will be a person who tries to remember that family....old or new, near or far, is what really matters in life.

Lots (but not all) of my Taihu family. 

Wuxi, China 

I've also learned that the saying is true, “home is where you make it”. By the way, I just looked up that lovely quote and it turns out it’s from a classic American film called “Joe Dirt”. J  But whatever….Mr. Dirt had a point. Home is where you make it. I will be a person who works hard to make wherever I am, my home.

On the Great Wall 

I've learned that challenges will come my way, whether I create them intentionally (like the Great Wall ½ Marathon) or they show up on their own (like teaching in a completely new way to 24 kids who speak little to no English!). And that no matter how impossible they might seem, I absolutely will get through them and I'll be better off for it. It might not always look pretty, and sometimes it might hurt, but I will get through them. I will be a person who strives to not give up.

International Day 2014 

Field Trip! 

Field Trip- Class Photo 

Summer Show- Teaching my kiddos how to be "rockers" 

Field Trip- Class Photo 

But most of all this year, I think I've come to learn that I am not perfect! Turns out I never was and chances are good that I never will be. But remember before when I mentioned that I like myself better now? Well I think a large part of that is I’m well aware of my imperfections. And while I’ll always try to improve myself, I think my willingness to admit my faults has made me better. It’s helped me to be more honest with myself and with others, it’s helped me to be more understanding of the struggles other people face and it’s helped me become vulnerable. I never realized how important vulnerability is. I’m so thankful for it. I will be a person who always tries to be honest and allows myself to be vulnerable with others.

In some ways I wish I could go back and do this all over again. I’m excited about the experiences I’ll have next year, but I know they’ll never compare to this. Thank you to everyone who followed my life this year and cheered me on, whether it was from Skype conversations, Facebook messages, care packages, etc. I hope you know how much I appreciate you…you are my family. 

Xie Xie Ni :) 

Molly 

Discovering Cambodia Part 2...

After Siem Reap I was a little bummed because I didn't imagine my trip could get better than that. I did mention before I think, that Siem Reap, specifically Angkor Wat and the floating village, were my favorite parts of the trip. However, at this point I still had a lot of amazing experiences ahead of me.

So......back onto the bus we went (did I mention we took a lot of bus rides???), leaving Siem Reap and heading to a town called Kampong Cham for the night. We were only staying here one night...I had little expectations, but it was awesome! We took a bike ride across the river on a bamboo bridge that was pretty damn long actually! We visited a local school where children of all ages were learning English and we had dinner at a tuk tuk driver's house with his family.

First off...before living in China I didn't realize how much I love riding bikes! I mean, really it had been since my childhood that I had ridden a bicycle. But I gotta say, I think it's my favorite way to get around and see the sights! Moving on....









 Starting out, heading across the bridge in full day light. The bridge is rebuilt every year and it was made with a lot of bamboo, strong but it was still rather rickety. I figure though...they drive cars over the thing, so I should be fine on my little bike. :)




















Imparting my wisdom on the kiddos. :) I have to admit actually...just a few minutes trying to teach them English and I was questioning my skills! No me gusta! It was very different than teaching my kids and a good eye opener!

We left Kampong Cham the next morning....back on the bus. I guess at this point I should share with you that my feet, specifically my left foot, did NOT appreciate all of the bus rides. The heat combined with my feet hanging down for so many hours, led to....ummmmm....how shall I put this? Fat people feet? Geriatric feet? I'm not sure...they're both pretty mean and terrible (I'm aware), but that's exactly what they looked like! I had some serious edema in my left foot....you couldn't see any of my ankle bone. It was highly depressing. Thankfully, it didn't hurt. But I just started to imagine the rest of my days when I travel, wearing compression socks with my sandals!!!! Must find out why this is happening and put an end to it...immediately. Not okay Molly, not okay.  

So anyway, back to much more important things. Off we went on the bus, headed to Phnom Penh, Cambodia's capital city. I think I'd like to go back to Phnom Penh sometime, because some friends of mine from school were also there and they loved it! I think I was annoyed to be in a city at this point, or something like that, so I wasn't terribly excited about much of it. However, we did take a nice tuk tuk ride around the city at night. I tried to get a picture to capture the traffic in the city but it was terrible, so I'll try and describe it. I think the best way I can put it is....there are soooooo many motorbikes driving around, it feels like each one is a bee, and you're in the middle of the hive. They swarm all around you, not necessarily moving in a unified direction, just absentmindedly, dodging this way and that with almost no rhyme or reason. If you close your eyes and just listen....it almost sounds like a swarm of bees. It really is so different than what most westerners are used to. I'm a little more accustomed now since living in China, but even here it's different. There are a lot more bicycles here and the motorized bikes here are electric...not nearly as noisy. Of course the Chinese make up for it with the horns...but so do the Cambodians. :)

Phnom Penh at Sunset 

Early the next morning, before leaving for our home-stay in the country, we went to visit the Choueng Ek Killing Fields and the Tuol Sleng Genocide Museum. Choueng Ek & Tuol Sleng are the largest of the killing fields and prisons used during the Khmer Rouge regime, which led to an estimated 2 million deaths. It's honestly kind of hard for me to write about this because I don't really even know what to say. It was horrific what happened, and going to these places, seeing the mass graves where 400+ bodies were thrown in, mass graves where children were thrown in, pictures of the people etc. it's almost too much to comprehend. It was, to say the least, a very sobering experience. I took only two pictures (I felt weird even taking those), but I'll share one with you. It's always good to be reminded how fortunate we are.

Driving to the home-stay

After our humbling morning it was hard to carry on about the day and be chipper. But after lunch we headed back on the bus, had a nap and then eventually got to our home-stay in the Cambodian countryside. This was a very cool experience and I'm so glad we got to do it! Seeing the kids at the home-stay was definitely my favorite part. I know I've said many times how beautiful these kids are, but it's true! They are beautiful and they are so friendly! As soon as we got to the village area we were staying in, we started to see houses and in each of the front "yard" areas, there were just kids! Tons of kids! And dogs too, but wow...lots of kids!!! They would run out to the street and wave...say hello even. :)

So interesting that they're just hanging out, playing with a fire. A bit different than what I'm used to! 

These 2 cuties were total hams....LOVED getting their pictures taken and then looking at the pictures afterward. I wish she had smiled because she had a really pretty smile, but this little boy is pretty damn adorable himself. 

Our sleeping arrangements. It was really not that bad, but regardless...I slept about 1 hour...MAX! 

 The food while we were at the home-stay was...eh...not my favorite. Not terrible, but a lot of strange meats being thrown our way. Haha! But for me, definitely the worst part was the huge red ants that seemed to follow me everywhere I went. I'm sure they were harmless enough (actually I'm not sure about that at all!!!!) but they freaked the crap out of me. I wished so badly I'd had my camera because I was walking through the "yard" of the place we stayed and some clothes were hanging on a branch of a tree drying and oh my gosh............the clothes were absolutely covered in these red ants! And they were big! And scary! And fast! After that it was all over for me. I itched and scratched all night long and instead of sugarplums dancing in my head, it was big, red, fast ants crawling around my body from head to toe.

The next morning we took a hike to a waterfall before heading to Sihanoukville...the beach! The waterfall was pretty and all, but really at this point I was ready for some of that, laying on the beach with a yummy drink in my hand kind of holiday I had previously referenced. I felt like I had been dirty for days and now I just wanted to lay in the sun, get some color on my winter skin and read a book!!!!

Sihanoukville isn't known for being the nicest beach in Cambodia, but it was perfect for a couple of days. We found all the touristy crap you could want, restaurant after restaurant plastering the beach...different names, same menus. There's a saying they use in a lot of SE Asia and it's this, "same same, but different" and I think it's used a lot for very good reason. :) Pretty much everywhere you go that's touristy is the same...but it's different. :) Very logical!

While it wasn't the nicest beach ever, Sihanoukville gave me everything I wanted. Yummy drinks on the beach, sun on my skin and....oh yea....the freakin Seahawks won the Superbowl which I watched in this little beach town in Cambodia at a bar called Stars & Stripes. I can't complain! I was drinking my 3rd bloody mary (which was not bad at all!) by 9:00am.




After burning our skin just the right amount, maybe just a "tech" more (that's for my dad) we headed back to Phnom Penh for one more day in Cambodia. Then the next morning we headed to Ho Chi Minh, Vietnam. Our tour ended here, but Dae Hee and I still had a couple more days of our holiday. We headed out of the city for a little more beach time in Vung Tao, which was a big tourist destination for the local Vietnamese people. I laid by the pool and finished my book on and off for two days. It was a great way to end the holiday. Before heading to the airport on our final night, we wasted some time in Ho Chi Minh people watching. It's a very bustling city...lots going on. We found a great place to eat, drink and take it all in before heading home.

So far, my time traveling around SE Asia has been more amazing than I ever imagined it could be. I have met amazing people, experienced bits of culture that I knew absolutely nothing about, saw beautiful natural landscapes that are so different than what I've been around my entire life. I am so unbelievably lucky to get to do all of this and in about a month I'm going to be even more lucky. March 28th I head to the beautiful island of Bali....cannot wait!

Discovering Cambodia Part 1...

My Chinese New Year holiday was a holiday that left me feeling sad, inspired, ashamed and encouraged; a whole range of emotions. Since moving to China my idea of a "vacation" has changed so much it's shocking to me. I guess that reflects changes within myself. Things that were once so important to me, seem to have been put into perspective... which I'm so grateful for. Don't get me wrong, I still love laying by a pool with a yummy drink in my hand. But perhaps there's more to traveling than just that???

For my CNY holiday I was able to discover a country that, I'm embarrassed to say, I hadn't given much thought to in my privileged little life. However, I learned that Cambodia is an amazing and beautiful country in so many ways. The rice paddys, the temples, the PEOPLE! What wonderful people! They truly are beautiful inside and out and I appreciated any opportunity I had to interact with them and see them in their day to day life. It was extremely humbling.

To start the holiday off, a friend from home and I met up in Bangkok, Thailand, and then joined a group of people we would travel with for the next 12 days. Lucky for us....the people in our group were very cool and we ended up making some good friends. :)

Once we headed out onto the road in our first of many bus rides (this one was a short 9 hours including customs entering Cambodia), we ended our day at our first Cambodian destination, Siem Reap. Oh Siem Reap! I can't really say enough about our few days there. It was so amazing and surreal to me! Our first full day in Siem Reap we headed to Angkor Wat....which I thought was one of the 7 Wonders of the World. Haha...I'm laughing at myself now because I'm looking on google and finding a lot of conflicting information. Regardless of what list it may or may not be on...it was spectacular!

This is my best picture of Angkor Wat as the sun was rising. 

We got there at about 6:00am because in order to get a good view (and good pictures) you have to see it as the sun is rising. So when we arrived it was dark; we could barely see the silhouette of the temple. Hundreds of other people were there with us...vying for a good position to get "the" picture. Well....I'm sorry to say I did not get "the" picture, or even a decent picture as the sun was rising, but because I knew "the" picture was not going to happen for me, I left the area where everyone else was and I explored around the temple in almost complete isolation. I got to walk around these amazing sandstone creations built in the 12th century and it was nearly silent. It was serene, tranquil...an experience my words could never give justice to. I did get a few nice pictures of some of the structures we wandered through and the best part is....there are NO people in the photos!











Ok, so there is a person in this photo. :)   I had to get a pic with my Trailblazers shirt!

I found myself taking a lot of pictures that show the repetition in the architecture....like pillars and archways. I would use the technical photography term for this style of photo but I don't know it. :)

I really liked these shots and these areas of the temple because I felt like they really captured the massive size of this place and the feeling of complete abandonment. Taking a picture of the entire structure from a distance is fine, but for me close ups were much more impacting.

One of the towers. 

View of the courtyards from Bakan, the highest level of the temple...the place closest to the Gods. 

Once the crowds started filtering in we toured around a bit more waiting for the rest of our group and then we made our way around the back of Angkor Wat. From this side I got a better photo of the temple as a whole.

To the left is a photo of some of the many, many carvings all throughout the temple. If you actually stop and think about how amazing this is for just a moment...it's insane! They had to get the sandstone, float it down the river, assemble it into these amazing temples...and then they did this??? Their beautiful and intricate artwork covers the place, from the walls to the ceilings! I know we live in a different world today, but stuff like this makes me feel so pathetic! And extremely impatient!





After spending several hours at Angkor Wat, we spent the rest of the day at 3 other temples. I have to admit...after Angkor Wat it wasn't going to get any better for me so I was kind of "checked out" by temple #2. You'll have to forgive my less enthusiastic portrayal of the rest of our day.

The 2nd temple we went to is called Bayon temple and it's best known for the 4 faces that adorn all 4 sides of each tower. It was cool....I'll admit it. But it was mostly photo ops of people posing as if they are kissing a face on a tower. Eh...not for me! I did get one nice picture though.

The 3rd temple we went to is called Ta Prohm temple and it's the temple where Tomb Raider, with Angelina Jolie was filmed. At this point in the day I was full on DONE! Of course it was beautiful the way the trees and temple structures seemed to grow together, but at that point beauty was lost on me.  I may have been what some would call "grouchy"? I'm not sure, I think that's up for debate. :) Regardless...here's a photo!

By the time we came around to the last temple I started to perk up a bit, and I'm really glad because this temple was absolutely beautiful! It was quite small, but 200 years older than Angkor Wat. The carvings were still so perfectly in tact it was amazing. Apparently when the temple was built they made all of the carvings the depth of a pinkie finger and it was amazing how much of a difference in made. The carvings in every temple were beautiful, but this temple, Bantay Srey, was shockingly different. Again, so extremely intricate and you have to imagine these people didn't use power tools to do any of this!

Entrance to Bantay Srey

Inside Bantay Srey...the carvings were everywhere! Nearly every inch of the place was covered.

This was taken on our way out of the temple. It shows how small the place actually is, but still, so beautiful! The colors were also really lovely. 

Well, the temple day ended and a group of us decided to head into downtown Siem Reap for dinner and drinks. We ended up finding ourselves at a rooftop bar where a Filipino cover band made up of 3 lovely ladies, was playing some truly tragic music. Someone at our table decided it would be a good idea to order a bottle of Tequila....not just shots...the bottle! And it needs to be stated, this someone was not me! I was against it from the start! I'm sure there are some people saying, "yea right Molly", but it's actually true! Anyway, fast forward a couple of hours and you would have found us with an empty bottle of Tequila and myself, along with some of my new friends, on stage singing bad karaoke and I'm sure making people cringe. 

The next morning...I miraculously pulled myself out of bed and we headed to a nearby floating village. I think I may have still been slightly intoxicated because when I woke up I felt ok, all things considered. However, the boat ride to the floating village quickly changed that!!!! I was a little under the weather, but misery really does love company. Thank God I wasn't the only one!!! Once we were out of the really wavy water, we headed down a quiet little river, muddy and brown, but still really beautiful.

We eventually floated into the town area and saw the houses raised incredibly high to avoid water damage, the men and women working on whatever is was they may have been doing, and the kids playing. I especially enjoyed this little guy floating in his tub.





Our boat finally stopped at an area that let us off on the island part of this village. I was excited to be on land, feeling slightly ill and all. But then this happened....

The second we got past the houses we walked into the official "shrimp drying area". 

On a typical day I would have struggled with the smell, seeing as I'm not such a fan of seafood. This day it was especially difficult. I tried to cover my mouth and nose with my hand as best I could to control the smell, and to hide my gagging. It's so pathetic....as I'm writing this I'm thinking about how I started this blog. The stuff these people have gone through and here I am complaining because I'm hung over and don't like the smell of shrimp. Well....I guess we have all areas we can improve right? I should start my list!!!

A woman using excess parts of the shrimp to make food for animals...I think :) 

A kitchen...the woman who was cooking had just climbed up a ladder to get something.

As we made our way through the village, toward the school house, I did notice my hang over seemed to subside for a bit...we were close to the kids and I couldn't wait! I told you in the beginning how beautiful the Cambodian people are. Well it's extremely evident when you look at the children. They generally seem to be very happy, playful and very social. They love to say hello and give high-fives! And they are so beautiful! They have beautiful skin, beautiful smiles and eyes I could look at forever! I fell in love quite a few times.

Here are some of the girls in the school house that seemed very excited we were there. The 2nd girl was giving me the biggest smiles and wouldn't look away. I wanted to go sit down next to her and talk to her, find out her name, find out what she likes to do for fun...but they were supposed to be learning, so I just took a couple of pictures and said good bye.

This little guy was just hanging out outside the school house, and was so adorable. He wasn't quite ready to be social with strangers....can't blame him. But I'd be lying if I said I didn't want to take him home, give him a nice bath and a good cuddle.









The trip had barely begun and already it had been so amazing in ways I honestly had never imagined.

To be continued...

Catching up...

It's been so long, I'm not really sure where to start! I'll begin with an apology to those of you that I made promises to, that I would blog more. I suppose I'm not off to the best start. I like to think of myself as more of a quality vs. quantity girl, so hopefully this doesn't disappoint. ;)

Gelina, Kandra, Claire and Kenzie...making
"Chinese" look good. :) 

I'm so lucky I got to go home and spend Christmas with the best family ever! It was too short of course, I didn't get to do everything I wanted to do, but it was still awesome. I watched my niece Gelina kick butt in basketball, I was able to spend lots of time with my sister Nancy which was so special to me, I got to help my sister Suzette give her over-confident husband Josh and my feisty little niece Gelina a beat down in basketball (okay, maybe we didn't win according to the score, but it was a moral victory), I had some great times drinking wine and playing ridiculous board games with some of my best friends and I got to spend a really wonderful Christmas Eve with my mom. We went to midnight mass together, and then came home, popped in White Christmas, opened a bottle of wine and talked while wrapping Christmas presents until 4:00 in the morning. :) I'm so thankful for these memories.




After arriving back in Wuxi I had 1 week of school and then was off for the weekend to Harbin, China....coldest place I've ever been! It's located in NE China, close to the Russian border. It's sinfully cold in the winter and is known for their Snow & Ice Festival. The festival was very cool, but different. I think slowly I'm learning that if something is supposed to be beautiful in China, you need to expect an element of pure cheesiness to accompany it. During the day, the giant sculptures made of snow and ice were pretty amazing...I do have to say. But at night, the neon lights turned on and everything went from amazing, to straight up corny. That was kind of okay with me though, because after walking around for 6 hours in nearly 50 below, my breath freezing on the outside of my face mask, and my eyelashes growing icicles, I was absolutely fine sitting in a little cafe with a cup of....what I guess you call coffee, while the others walked around, took pictures and slid down slides made of ice.

View from the highest point...it shows most of the festival. 

I HAD to sport the Trailblazers t-shirt and mom and dad....I hope you really appreciate this because
it was freakin cold!!!!

One picture at night...I guess it is kind of cool looking, but trust me, it was way over the top! Thanks to Doug for taking
the picture when I was unwilling to bear the temperatures or the bright lights. ;) 

Because of it's location, Harbin does have a fairly strong Russian influence in town- the food, languages heard and seen and the architecture. We stumbled across Saint Sophia's Cathedral; it was beautiful and kind of refreshing...it suddenly felt like we were not in China anymore.

After Harbin I had only 2 weeks left of school before heading to SE Asia for Chinese New Year holiday! What a rough life I lead. ;) It was so nice though...to break up those 2 long, agonizingly painful weeks of work, we had a Chinese New Year dinner. The whole staff went to a local Chinese restaurant. It was so much fun eating interesting food (eel anyone?), drinking wine (perhaps a bit too much) and celebrating with the staff, both western and Chinese. It rarely happens that everyone gets together, so I thought this was really special and I enjoyed it very much! 

L-R: Tina (best office I can imagine!), Michael (American who secretly
loves the Seahawks and Skittles), Daniela (Slovakian/American who, I'm
pretty sure, sleeps with a Seahawks pillow at night). 

My Russell Wilson jersey (courtesy of my sister Suzette) was my date for the night...he never disappoints as we all know. :) He was very social and made his way around the party, introducing people from all over the world, to a little team called the Seattle Seahawks. It was a proud night for both of us and I think I can safely say, Wuxi, China...loves the Hawks!

 

James, the IT manager at school, loves anything American! I think I totally converted him. :)

Simon Saunders, Head of School. I'm pretty sure he's not a huge fan of American football...but he was a great sport!












This guy wins the award for my favorite Seahawks fan...little Nadeem Ahmed. While his mom and  especially his dad may not believe that American football is in fact...football....Nadeem is a HUGE fan! I suspect his big brother Zav is probably a fan as well. :)

This past Sunday I got home from an amazing two weeks traveling in SE Asia. I spent a couple of days in the vibrant and bustling city of Bangkok, Thailand, spent 10 days traveling all around Cambodia, and ended the holiday with a couple of days in and around Ho Chi Minh, Vietnam. I'm still working on editing the pictures from the trip, but I'll share a couple with you now... 

Zaijian 再见