Day Five of Siem Reap English Camp

Today was an all day field trip, but that didn’t mean that we skipped out on worship choruses and freshie shows. It is delightful to be here and soak up all the joy of the campers and the other teachers. After a shortened worship time, we headed to the buses. Unfortunately, our group was missing Mike this morning, as he wasn’t feeling the best. This morning started out very rainy. It dripped on us as we walked to the church, but once we got there it started coming down harder. Hats and raincoats (polka dot ones, included) were pulled out, as it was definitely wet.  Maxine lamented that she had left her nice raincoat and umbrellas at home. Oh well, we are all used to getting wet and muddy here in Cambodia!

Abby and Marlin, with Angkor Wat in the background

We took the short ride to Angkor Wat. For those of you who don’t know about it, it is an amazing ancient temple, built in the early 12^th century. We stepped off the bus to vendors selling raincoats. They know their market! As we proceeded into the temple, we had a long view of what was to come. It was impressive. Most of the students had been to Angkor Wat before. All Cambodians get in free, but foreigners have to pay. As Bill said, they made it, so they get to make the rules.

Laura and Ray with some of the kids

One of these things is not like the others....

Since the students were our local experts, we had fun listening to what they had to say about the temple. It was another day of relationship building with the kids. Many of them would just come up and say something like, “You having fun?” and then, “I will miss you.” Sometimes it was even students we didn’t know very well doing that, but each of us has a few to whom we have become pretty attached. It will be hard on us and hard on them to say goodbye tomorrow. For today, though, we enjoyed each other’s company. We traveled in small groups around Angkor all morning long, hearing stories and practicing English, loving and being loved. And along the way, we saw some amazing sights! Angkor Wat has complex architecture that has withstood the test of time. Repairs are being made and some areas are worn down, but when you think that it has been here 800 years, that’s pretty impressive. We headed back to the church for lunch, but not until we took a BIG group picture (all the teachers and all the campers). I hope to get a copy of that from someone (I think Kim had one, hint, hint). On our way back to the buses I saw a sight that didn’t surprise me very much, but I did find worthy of comment. We looked across a field to see our buses, and there was a cow grazing in the field. Cows are everywhere here in Cambodia. They are in the ditches, in the middle of town, at the war museum and at Angkor Wat. That’s just the way it is.

As we walked back to the buses, Maxine's friend held her hand.

After eating our lunch together, we all got back on the buses to head to another ancient temple. This one was called Ta Prohm. It is famous for the trees that have grown through and around it, and that was a sight to see! The students could tell us about this temple as well. We traveled around for the afternoon, fully aware of the force that the natural world can inflict on man-made things.

Marti and Sandy with some of their friends

Tonight we were done for the day after supper. Tomorrow will be an emotional day, so we better turn in early. God is helping us each to learn different things in accordance with his plans for us.

It's all about sharing the love of Christ!

Praises:

1.       God gave us a great worship time this morning.

2.       We are thankful for the cooks who make meals for us and all the students every day.

3.       We praise God for the lessons He has for each of us here in Cambodia.
4.     Angkor Wat and Ta Prohm were amazing. We are thankful for the opportunity to tour them.

Prayer Requests:

1.       Please pray for Mike to feel better. Also pray that Laura would feel relief from pain.

2.       Please pray for the parting words that will be said tomorrow, for hearts to be changed in the name of Jesus.

3.       Please pray that we will be diligent in processing all the lessons God is teaching us while we are in Cambodia.