Cambodia Mission - Day 2 or 3
It is 6 AM in Los Angeles. I’ve been awake since 3:30 AM…is this the start of my jet lag experience? My body knew I was waking up late for church on a Sunday morning. Blessings abound as it gave me some quiet time to pray, text my husband, stretch, brew coffee, and start today’s blog. My two teenage roommates seem to be sleeping like champs. I suppose this internal clock takes years of getting up and going to work to cultivate. Let them rest while they can as I steal these quiet moments for myself. I feel surprisingly good. This brings to mind Psalm 103:5 “He fills my life with good things. My youth is renewed like the eagle's!”
We were blessed to stay at a hotel in LA called the Cambria. The staff here has been most gracious. I anticipated having to lean on Jesus due to rudeness in LA, but everyone we have had a direct encounter with from our shuttle driver to the hotel staff have been gracious and accommodating. Of course, we travel with the favor of God, so it should not have been a surprise at all. In about an hour we head to the airport. Today is the first of international travel. Not sure what to expect other than a long flight. I have heard 12 hours, 14 hours and a few other numbers…honestly I think you have to know “new math” or run a stop watch to calculate the time zones and actual flight times. (I was never a fan of math…old or new.)
I got to see the LAX sign, That was actually pretty cool for me.
We breezed through check-in and security was uneventful. (There is that favor of God again.) It was easy, but there are lines and they are strict about what they are doing. Remember, they are there to protect us.
The concourse was a bit for me to take in. I am not impressed by labels or Gucci belts that cost $550. It was cool for the girls to see these places. We did not eat breakfast before arriving at the airport so lunch and breakfast were a combo at the food court.
If you have never travelled through airports be prepared for sticker shock. These are concert or amusement park prices…maybe higher. It was $4 for a 20 ounce soda, water or lemonade. You can carry an empty bottle through security and fill it with water after. Good tip for the return trip. There were a few familiar food places, but I can eat at those (cheaper) back home. We decided on Umani Burger. Crazy overpriced…$15 for the burger alone. It was very good. Still not sure what the sauce was, but I agree with my teenage companion…I could drink that with a straw. (It was a Cali Burger if you ever need to know.) To be fair I was prepared for crazy airport prices. I have not spent what I thought I might so I am rather pleased to be honest.
I have never seen the Pacific Ocean or anything of the West Coast first hand...till now.
Here is glimpse of the LA coast, a peak further up the west coast that I don't know the name of, but it sure is beautiful, and then what appears to be the result of wildfires. You could see scorched earth for what seemed forever. There was too much cloud cover near Seattle and Alaska, but we flew right over. I
We boarded our plane with relative ease. PRAISE God, there is an empty seat beside me so I am not too cramped. We had to wait for airport traffic but were in the air quickly. We are flying on China Eastern. The review of this airline were a little scary if I am honest. The seats are economy class seats. They are not exceedingly comfortable…especially if you are larger. You may want to get an emergency exit seat since there is a little more room. Food service started almost immediately after we got in the air. This is where I was a little worried. I am not big on Chinese food and this is all Asian food. My meal was a small salad, veggies, rice, and fish. I do not know what the sauce was on the fish but it was mild and pleasant. Better than a frozen meal but I have absolutely had better. Bring a bottle of water on the flight. Spend the money or fill your bottle. Your water or soda will be an 6 or 8 ounce cup that does little for you if you are thirsty.
There is a broad selection on in flight entertainment. All sorts of movies, music, and even games. I watched The Darkest Hour about Winston Churchill and started Star Wars The Force Awakens. I turned everything off in hopes of sleeping but it is about 4 ours into our flight and though I am sleepy – sleep is not coming. I am listening to the Savage Jesus series by Pastor Steven Furtick and writing this blog. Going to try to rest.
I was told I would freeze on the flight. I’m actually quite warm which is why I cant sleep…others are wrapped in blankets like it is winter. (I am 43, maybe my thermastate is dealing with other issues.) On a 13.5 hour flight we have had 3 meals, 2 complete and 1 sandwich. The beverages are not very generous so be prepared if you travel. The First two meals were more Asian like meals in flavor and content and were surprisingly pleasant, the third meal was a very American sandwich and it was kind gross in my opinion.
I did finally sleep for about 1.5 hours on the long flight. I am not rested and sort of feel like I have been ran over by a freight train. We land in Shanghai. It was a beautiful and smooth landing. Due to delays leaving LAX we had less than an hour to reach our connecting flight. We made it. There is something very surreal for me about flying into a foreign country. I never thought of going to Asia. My travel goals have always been Italy and Ireland. This has been pleasant. Most everyone is polite and those that have seemed the least bit rude also appeared to be very tired or trying to expedite things.
I had a lovely seatmate from Thailand named Gun (I'm sure that spelling is wrong). She was travelling home from the US. She too was on a relief effort. She and her family bring clothes, shoes, and food to her home village. She shared with me how the monks in the village provided food for the people but it just was not enough. She was amazed to see how young some of our team is. That even amazes me. As we departed we shook hands and she said God bless us in our efforts. He already has people, he already has!
Understand we are group comprised of equal parts teenagers and adults. We have had a minor melt downs which I really believe was more about exhaustion than anxiety. The young lady is fine and bounced back in true youthful style. One of our young men who is on fire for God, has to develop the maturity to match his fire. We have had little turbulence in the air or among a very sleepy group.
This is the view as we were coming into Shanghai and the photos of the final plane we would take to reach Cambodia.
This is supposed to be the day 2 blog but I just signed my paperwork July 9th, so perhaps this is day 2-3 instead. It is a lot of travel and it does mess with your brain in terms of “when” you are. Our final flight from Shanghai to Siem Reap, blessedly, is much cooler. Right after takeoff they set out to serve a meal. This was a beef noodle meal. I did not get a photo of this one. The meal tasted fine, just rather salty so I did not eat a lot. First of all, I am not really hungry and I did not want to overdue the salt. It was served with something in a bowl with foreign writing, Chinese I assume. The bowl contained a slightly sweet tasting bean or lentil of some sort. It tasted like beans, very earthy and bland but pleasant nonetheless. There was another side with the meal that honestly looked like pieces of squid. I was later told it was mushrooms and onions. I do not know and I did not try those.
The inflight entertainment on this leg of the trip is sort of nonexistent. There are screens with something playing but it is not a movie. I have seen funny animal videos, cooking snippets and now there appears to be some sort of show playing. I cannot read Chinese subtitles and I chose to forgo the headphones. I am going to make another attempt at sleep.
Let me explain something about where we are staying. Our team lead is of the mind that volunteers should be able to relax and recharge. For the same cost as many other mission trips in this part of the world we are able to stay in a luxurious convention center. Some of our meals are taken at this location and they provide a place for us to have culture and training classes. It is gorgeous and comfortable. I will get photos during the day to show its splendor. We landed at night so I still do not really know what Cambodia looks like first hand.
It is now 1:23 AM on Tuesday July 10th. I am finally going to get some sleep. Please give a measure of grace on this post…I am half asleep.
Praise God the adventure has begun!
We were blessed to stay at a hotel in LA called the Cambria. The staff here has been most gracious. I anticipated having to lean on Jesus due to rudeness in LA, but everyone we have had a direct encounter with from our shuttle driver to the hotel staff have been gracious and accommodating. Of course, we travel with the favor of God, so it should not have been a surprise at all. In about an hour we head to the airport. Today is the first of international travel. Not sure what to expect other than a long flight. I have heard 12 hours, 14 hours and a few other numbers…honestly I think you have to know “new math” or run a stop watch to calculate the time zones and actual flight times. (I was never a fan of math…old or new.)
I got to see the LAX sign, That was actually pretty cool for me.
The concourse was a bit for me to take in. I am not impressed by labels or Gucci belts that cost $550. It was cool for the girls to see these places. We did not eat breakfast before arriving at the airport so lunch and breakfast were a combo at the food court.
If you have never travelled through airports be prepared for sticker shock. These are concert or amusement park prices…maybe higher. It was $4 for a 20 ounce soda, water or lemonade. You can carry an empty bottle through security and fill it with water after. Good tip for the return trip. There were a few familiar food places, but I can eat at those (cheaper) back home. We decided on Umani Burger. Crazy overpriced…$15 for the burger alone. It was very good. Still not sure what the sauce was, but I agree with my teenage companion…I could drink that with a straw. (It was a Cali Burger if you ever need to know.) To be fair I was prepared for crazy airport prices. I have not spent what I thought I might so I am rather pleased to be honest.
I have never seen the Pacific Ocean or anything of the West Coast first hand...till now.
We boarded our plane with relative ease. PRAISE God, there is an empty seat beside me so I am not too cramped. We had to wait for airport traffic but were in the air quickly. We are flying on China Eastern. The review of this airline were a little scary if I am honest. The seats are economy class seats. They are not exceedingly comfortable…especially if you are larger. You may want to get an emergency exit seat since there is a little more room. Food service started almost immediately after we got in the air. This is where I was a little worried. I am not big on Chinese food and this is all Asian food. My meal was a small salad, veggies, rice, and fish. I do not know what the sauce was on the fish but it was mild and pleasant. Better than a frozen meal but I have absolutely had better. Bring a bottle of water on the flight. Spend the money or fill your bottle. Your water or soda will be an 6 or 8 ounce cup that does little for you if you are thirsty.
There is a broad selection on in flight entertainment. All sorts of movies, music, and even games. I watched The Darkest Hour about Winston Churchill and started Star Wars The Force Awakens. I turned everything off in hopes of sleeping but it is about 4 ours into our flight and though I am sleepy – sleep is not coming. I am listening to the Savage Jesus series by Pastor Steven Furtick and writing this blog. Going to try to rest.
I was told I would freeze on the flight. I’m actually quite warm which is why I cant sleep…others are wrapped in blankets like it is winter. (I am 43, maybe my thermastate is dealing with other issues.) On a 13.5 hour flight we have had 3 meals, 2 complete and 1 sandwich. The beverages are not very generous so be prepared if you travel. The First two meals were more Asian like meals in flavor and content and were surprisingly pleasant, the third meal was a very American sandwich and it was kind gross in my opinion.
I did finally sleep for about 1.5 hours on the long flight. I am not rested and sort of feel like I have been ran over by a freight train. We land in Shanghai. It was a beautiful and smooth landing. Due to delays leaving LAX we had less than an hour to reach our connecting flight. We made it. There is something very surreal for me about flying into a foreign country. I never thought of going to Asia. My travel goals have always been Italy and Ireland. This has been pleasant. Most everyone is polite and those that have seemed the least bit rude also appeared to be very tired or trying to expedite things.
I had a lovely seatmate from Thailand named Gun (I'm sure that spelling is wrong). She was travelling home from the US. She too was on a relief effort. She and her family bring clothes, shoes, and food to her home village. She shared with me how the monks in the village provided food for the people but it just was not enough. She was amazed to see how young some of our team is. That even amazes me. As we departed we shook hands and she said God bless us in our efforts. He already has people, he already has!
Understand we are group comprised of equal parts teenagers and adults. We have had a minor melt downs which I really believe was more about exhaustion than anxiety. The young lady is fine and bounced back in true youthful style. One of our young men who is on fire for God, has to develop the maturity to match his fire. We have had little turbulence in the air or among a very sleepy group.
This is the view as we were coming into Shanghai and the photos of the final plane we would take to reach Cambodia.
This is supposed to be the day 2 blog but I just signed my paperwork July 9th, so perhaps this is day 2-3 instead. It is a lot of travel and it does mess with your brain in terms of “when” you are. Our final flight from Shanghai to Siem Reap, blessedly, is much cooler. Right after takeoff they set out to serve a meal. This was a beef noodle meal. I did not get a photo of this one. The meal tasted fine, just rather salty so I did not eat a lot. First of all, I am not really hungry and I did not want to overdue the salt. It was served with something in a bowl with foreign writing, Chinese I assume. The bowl contained a slightly sweet tasting bean or lentil of some sort. It tasted like beans, very earthy and bland but pleasant nonetheless. There was another side with the meal that honestly looked like pieces of squid. I was later told it was mushrooms and onions. I do not know and I did not try those.
The inflight entertainment on this leg of the trip is sort of nonexistent. There are screens with something playing but it is not a movie. I have seen funny animal videos, cooking snippets and now there appears to be some sort of show playing. I cannot read Chinese subtitles and I chose to forgo the headphones. I am going to make another attempt at sleep.
Siem Reap
Sleep attempt was an utter failure. Trip home I will utilize a sleep aid on the long flight, just saying. The hop form Shanghai was about 3.5 – 4 hours. I did not sleep but I dozed a time or two. Touch down was once again an easy landing. THANK YOU LORD. We made it quickly through customs, baggage claim and on the bus for the hotel.Let me explain something about where we are staying. Our team lead is of the mind that volunteers should be able to relax and recharge. For the same cost as many other mission trips in this part of the world we are able to stay in a luxurious convention center. Some of our meals are taken at this location and they provide a place for us to have culture and training classes. It is gorgeous and comfortable. I will get photos during the day to show its splendor. We landed at night so I still do not really know what Cambodia looks like first hand.
It is now 1:23 AM on Tuesday July 10th. I am finally going to get some sleep. Please give a measure of grace on this post…I am half asleep.
Praise God the adventure has begun!
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