Things we are thankful for at home:

- Clean clothes, washed in hot water
- Dishwasher (Brie's sippies and our Nalgenes are kind of gross!)
- Food choices
- Josh says: fountain beverages
- Refrigerator and stocked pantry
- Clean bathrooms, with TP, soap, and paper towels
- Comfortable (large) bed and nice pillows
- Brie having her own bed/room
- Brie's school, especially her patient teacher... we are not cut out to be full-time parents
- Nights with Grandma Anita and Grandpa John - nights alone  for mom and dad
- Western music
- A/c
- Our own car
- Being clean, not sweaty!
- Quiet
- OUR HOME

Funny things Brie has said this trip (this is more for us to remember, as you might not find them as funny!):
- "Be quiet, guys!" (while we're trying to chat while she's "napping")
- "There's a water tank top!" (water tank)
- "Don't talk like that, daddy" (when Josh whispers so she can't hear)
- "What you guys talking about over there?" (when we're whispering while she's "napping")
- "Tuk-tuk no thank you tuk-tuk!" (to all the guys constantly saying "Tuk-tuk? Where you go?")
- "I love...." (fill in the blank with 'milk, candy, pate', whatever her kick of the day is)
- "Where my wends?" (friends)
- "Don't say no, mom! I'm just..." (fill in the blank - while she is sticking her finger out at us and looking stern)

We may think of more, so this is to be expanded upon, just as Brie's vocabulary is constantly expanding.  She never shuts up!  :)

Here we are, our last night in Asia.  I feel like there should be something climactic, but in reality we've kind of been taking it easy for the last few days of our vacation.  I think we're all a bit tired and ready to get home.  6 weeks is a long time to travel, especially with a little one.  I remember being really nervous about traveling on an airplane with Brie on the way here, as it's such a long trip - seems like at this point we've been through it all, so I'm not worried about it at all.  I guess maybe that's because she was pretty good on the way here as well... all told.  So, tomorrow, we're off.  On our last big adventure, for a while, at least. 

I feel like, to fully get an impression of Asia, you need to be here to smell and hear it.  Especially in a city like Saigon.  As we walk the streets, we smell the smells of market (fish, meat, food cooking...), fruits along the way (durian!), and of course, exhaust.  We're constantly bombarded with the sounds of traffic - here, it's mostly horns honking.  I asked Josh at what point you don't get startled when you hear a horn behind you.  People here love to honk, and since we're almost always walking in the street (the sidewalks are used for motorcycle parking, selling things, etc), I'm always afraid I'm going to be killed.  I don't think they're ever really honking at us - usually at other motorists, bicycles, cyclos (pedicabs), etc.  But, it still startles me. I'm ready to get back to my quiet car!  I have also developed a nasty cough since arriving in the city - everyone here seems to wear masks, and now I understand why.  I would think I would be used to pollution, being from Phoenix, but Josh pointed out that we are always indoors, with air con.  We're rarely outdoors, especially walking on the side of a crowded road.  Good point.  So I guess I'm ready to get back to my insulated car and home!

Yesterday we had all intentions of visiting the Palace, but we walked almost all the way there and got to a playground in the park, that we had passed the day before.  It was Sunday, so there were tons of kids there, along with snack vendors.  We stopped to let Brie play, the time got away from us, and then she was tired.  So, we walked to the market, where we ate, and then came back for nap.  However, we didn't just walk back - it started pouring as we left the market, so Josh nicely bought us some lovely plastic ponchos (3 for $1, you can imagine the quality) and we walked home in the rain.  Josh and I agreed that Brie probably would have preferred no poncho.  She loved the rain, and loved running and jumping in puddles.  Kind of made us enjoy it more.  It was quite a downpour - they seem to get good monsoons here.  We were soaked when we got back, but who cares!  Brie enjoyed that as much as anything else the entire trip.  And goodness knows she doesn't get much chance to do that at home!

I just realized that there were two things I forgot to post about the other day, in my haste to finish the post.  It's hard here, because there is only one computer and quite a lot of people.  Also, since they serve free dinner, there are always a lot of people sitting around, so it's hard to know who's waiting for the computer or not.  I feel pressure!!! :)  Tonight, I'm alone - guess it pays to come by late.  Josh wanted me to post about the fact that when we went to Cu Chi Tunnels, he was actually able to shoot a fully automatic AK-47.  Brianna and I did not shoot.  We also did not really appreciate the noise from the shooting range, but that was part of the tour, so there was no avoiding it.  Josh really enjoys guns and doesn't have much opportunity to shoot at home... especially that kind of gun.  So, that was fun for him.  The other thing I meant to post about was food here.  Personally, I love Vietnamese food.  The staple, for every meal, it seems like, is Pho.  A friend from school and I have gotten into it at home, as there is a great Vietnamese hole-in-the-wall restaurant in Mesa right across from MCC.  I have to say, they are very  authentic.  It's just like here.  I love the soup.  Josh says he preferred Thai food...  The other thing that's great here are the coconuts that are everywhere - to drink.  They just slap the top off, slap in a straw, and you're ready to go.  Yum.  Brianna and Josh, not so crazy about coconut milk.  Me, I love it.  We're also lucky here, to get yummy pastries.  As Vietnam at one time was taken over by the French, they still have great baguettes and pastries.  I have been treating myself.  I have an excuse, I'm pregnant. : )

Today we finally decided that it was our last day, and time to visit the Reunification Palace.  It wasn't all that exciting, but interesting to see nonetheless.  We also got to take a cyclo there (Brie likes to call them "strollers") to save a bit of time and energy.  We had also promised Brianna another visit to the playground.  But, mom had been planning on getting a facial as soon as we got home (for a birthday present - and maybe a graduation present, as my dad gave me some money to buy myself something nice on the trip - thanks dad!)... and I read about what was reputed to be the best spa in the city.  I thought, "hey, I can go there and get lots more for the same price as that same facial at home!"  So, I checked it out online - nice.  And within walking distance of the park!  After visiting the palace, Josh and Brie and I walked over to the place - L'Apothiquaire, to check it out.  Fortunately, they had time just then!  So, I abandoned my family (sorry guys!) and spent 4 hours at the spa, for less than the cost of a facial at home.  Also, no pressure to be snotty or buy extras, or even to tip.  I got a long foot treatment and pedi, and then a lovely facial.  Ah, I'm so selfish!!!  Josh and Brie did the park and then lunch and home, and had a good time on their own.  Josh actually commented that he thinks Brianna is better behaved with just one of us than both.  We're not sure why.  I got home around 4, and then we all walked for ice cream and a walk to the river and back.  Then, our finally blowout dinner, and now to bed.  Tomorrow we don't have to leave here until 10:30, so we can have a leisurely morning.  Lovely.  None of us can believe it's all over tomorrow.  I imagine we'll be seeing some of you very soon!  All our love.

here we are, in the last stop of our journey.  saigon, vietnam.  i apologize first-off for the lack of capitals in this post - the 'shift' key on the keyboard doesn't work.  i will be winging it and hopefully i won't need the shift for anything else...

from the book's description of saigon - ho chi minh city officially - i was not sure what to expect.  the book made it sound much more 'city-like' and crowded than bangkok or other asian cities we have visited.  however, we have been pleasantly surprised - there are quite a lot of green areas and parks that we have walked through, and it's quite clean, compared to other places we have visited.  we've seen a lot of city employees who do the clean-up throughout the city daily, so there is some effort here to keep the city clean.  there are also - miraculously - trash cans in the parks and places we walk, which is a really nice change.

the hotel we are staying in is one of madame cuc's three places.  she got great reviews online, and was also recommended by the book.  it's nice, even though the room is a bit modest, we have a/c and a fridge, which is great.  and, a hot shower even with its own enclosure - many on our trip have not had enclosures for the shower.  actually, i think this might be the only one with a shower enclosure.  they provide breakfast and dinner, and even though both are a bit modest, that's nice for three people for 25 dollars a night.

our trip here was fairly uneventful.  the trip was about 6.5 hours, with a stop for about 45 minutes at immigration at the border.  brie was good - slept for much of the time - and we had dinner right when we got here.  our first night we just went right to bed, and then the first day - friday - we walked through the city and visited the war remnants museum.  just as when visiting hiroshima in japan, war-related things here make me a bit sad to be american - you see things through someone else's eyes and, of course, they have an anti-american slant.  that can't be helped.  i have to admit, i know very little about the vietnam war, so i'm not in any position to make assumptions about anything.  i'll have to do some research when i get home...

last night it rained, so we just hung around here for dinner.  when it finally lightened up - it was a proper monsoon storm - we decided to go for a walk.  we ended up trodding through streets with water up to our knees, which brianna loved, josh hated - dirty - and i thought was fun.  ah well, we each have our take on things.  today we took a bus/boat trip to the cu chi tunnels, another important and interesting experience.  brianna was not crazy about going down into the tunnels - they were about her height, narrow, and quite dark - but she toughed it out with mom.  dad decided it was a bit too small for him.  this evening we took another walk - dry this time - and through some very narrow alleys, which is like communal living at its best.  living rooms about 10 feet apart, separated by an alley... where motorbikes drive.  very cool.  oh, that's another thing about the city... motorbikes, tons of them.  and most people in helmets and also masks.  guess maybe we should worry about lung cancer...

tomorrow we're off around the city again.  home on tuesday.  maybe another update, maybe not.  now, it's time for me to eat my dinner... we're off.

Since we leave tomorrow, I don't know how much internet access I will have in Saigon.  We may have internet at our hotel, but I'm not sure.  Just wanted to record our last day in Phnom Penh (though we don't leave until 1:15 tomorrow, so we will likely spend the morning by the pool here).  Today we went to the Tuol Sleng Genocide Museum, a very grisly and depressing experience.  It's amazing to think that something like that happened so recently, and could so readily happen anywhere (I imagine some of the genocide going on in the world at this very moment isn't so different).  My travels constantly remind me of how lucky we are in the US, and how little we have to worry about on a day-to-day basis. 

As yesterday was quite a hot day with a lot of walking (it's about 90 here, and with what feels like 110% humidity, it's a bit overwhelming to do things outdoors), we decided that would be it for the day.  We were back to our "hotel/house" by about 11.  We changed right into our swimsuits and hit the pool, which was lovely and refreshing.  Then we changed for lunch and tried a Khmer place just down the road from the hotel - it was cheap and had beautiful wood decorations throughout.  I told Josh I felt bad because my first thought was that it must be Western-owned because it was so beautiful and clean.  I felt guilty for thinking that.  After lunch it was back to the hotel for naptime...

We woke up with Brianna about 4, and had decided that we would try out the food at the Central Market today.  The shopping within is very much like any other Asian city (knockoffs, cheap clothes, etc), but the food section was large and very good.  There was a wide assortment of things to choose from, including yummy things like chickens' feet, fried bugs of all kinds, and intestines of what I assume were chickens?  Also, some very large eggs that I'm not sure what they came from.  We did not partake in these things, opting for fried noodles with pork, greens, and a fried egg on top.  It was very good, and considering we got that, a "doughnut" of sorts for Brianna, a sugar cane juice for me, a soda for Josh, and some of my new favorite custard apple for under $3, I would count that as a very good deal.

After dinner, we had planned to walk to the riverfront to a cookie "restaurant", that donates to an NGO here in Cambodia.  There's a publication here called "Stay Another Day" that has sustainable and charitable things to do and see in many cities around the country that we've been getting ideas from.  It was raining, though, so we decided to take alternate transportation, opting to try a "cyclo."  These are slow but a nice way to travel - quiet, good for the environment, and quite an interesting way to travel.  Brianna first called it a stroller, then a "wheelchair like in the hospital."  We ended up taking the same ones home, as the guys wanted to wait for us...  The name of the cookie restaurant is Camory and it had great cookies and a lovely atmosphere for a relaxing cookie and drink.  Josh also got some to take home for work people!

Tomorrow afternoon, our last long trip before the flight home - a 6-hour bus trip to Vietnam.  Wish us luck with Brianna (and the border crossing!)!!!

Well, we're back in the city!  Actually it's not too bad, because the hotel we are staying at, Villa Langka, has a lovely pool that we've been relaxing in on the two afternoons we've been here.  When it's hot in the city, that's a nice way to pass the time.  We passed up some of the cheaper options in Phnom Penh to have a bit of a nicer experience - the pool thing kind of drew me in.  I have also been using Trip Advisor lately, which I've never really used before this trip.  I find you get a better idea of the variety and quality of hotels through it than through the Lonely Planet.  We also have a condensed version of Lonely Planet for Cambodia and Vietnam, so they aren't nearly as inclusive as the one for Thailand was.  So, this hotel was one of the higher ranked places on the list, which is why we chose it.  we've been pretty happy with it - we have an "inside" room, meaning no window to the outdoors, just to a sort of inner court.  We're close to the kitchen, which means it's kind of loud, but the room is large, and the bathroom is one of the best since we've been traveling.  Just couldn't get hot water this morning, but who really needs that anyway?  :)

We finished up our beach time in Sihanoukville and really enjoyed it, but we all agreed (Brie couldn't really voice her opinion, she might have preferred to stay) that it was time to move on.  We also kind of agreed that maybe we should have booked a 4-week vacation with 2 weeks back at home to recuperate before going back to work.  It's going to be kind of brutal to go right back to work after this trip.  I don't think we're really cut out to be full-time parents (need a break with school or grandma time!), and Brianna really needs more kid time.  She gets bored with just us, and though her "friends" at the beach helped break up the monotony, I think she was getting a bit tired of their roughness and the older girls working at the restaurant always trying to kiss her, pick her up, etc.  I guess we'll know that for next time, our next sabbatical (in 10 years, right?). 

After leaving Sihanoukville we took a 4-hour bus ride to Phnom Penh, not too bad for the $7 each we paid - a/c comfort - all we really care about.  We had a pit stop along the way where we were able to pick up some snacks (pretty normal on buses in poorer countries, I've found), and arrived here around 5 pm.  We took a tuk-tuk from where the bus dropped us off to our new hotel without incident, and jumped right into the pool.  Phnom Penh definitely is different than Bangkok or Chiang Mai - it seems smaller, but I don't know if that is just the center, or if it's really much smaller. Obviously it has less money, though what I find interesting is that even though Cambodia is such a poor country, and I know that it's growing economically, but the infrastructure is definitely lacking, there are a lot of new buildings around the city and in the nearby suburbs.  Josh and I both think that maybe it would be a good idea to work on infrastructure before building so many new things... I've never, in all my travels, seen so much trash everywhere.  Really.  It's quite amazing.  However, here where we are staying in the city, by the Independence Monument, is actually quite clean.  There are a few lines of parks, with trash cans (!) and they are pretty clean.  I wonder if maybe that's because they are right around the Royal Palace, but we haven't seen too much more of the city yet, so I can't be certain.

Today we visited the Royal Palace and Silver Pagoda.  What a complete opposite from the country.  I wonder if the king sits in his palace and thinks "hmm, what a nice country I have" or if he really has any idea how people live.  I also wonder if maybe places like this have uprisings and civil wars because people see how the money goes to the monarchy rather than to them?  How can the royalty live so much better than the people and not feel badly about it?  It's really astounding to me, the difference here, and in many poor countries, between royals and the "normal" man.  I wouldn't feel in the US that the president has it so much better than you or I; he doesn't live in a golden palace or shut himself up with high walls and armed guards (though the white house probably has that) - for goodness sake, Bush goes to a ranch in Texas for fun!  But, we shouldn't talk too much about him...

We ate at a wonderful restaurant today, recommended by Lonely Planet.  Friends is a restaurant that supports a program for street kids here in Phnom Penh.  Not only is it a wonderful venture, but it was probably the best restaurant we've eaten in during our 5-week vacation.  I even bought their cookbook.  Great place.  This evening we walked to the riverfront and saw tons of people playing in the park - it's nice to see people come outdoors and enjoy the nice weather.  You don't see that as much in Arizona, maybe in other more "city-like" cities.  I know you see it a lot in France.  We walked to another recommended Khmer (Cambodian) restaurant, which was good but I think we were still kind of full from lunch.  Tomorrow we're headed off to a war museum, and then Thursday we're headed to Saigon, our last stop!!!!  Hope all is well at home!

PS I took my first "moto" ride today (on the back of a motorcycle - the most common way to get around in Cambodia.  We haven't done it because of Brie, but I went to get groceries and didn't want to walk back, so I rode side-saddle (most common way for female passengers to ride here) back to the hotel.  Phew.  Better than walking!!!  While looking for that picture, I also found a good one of the way you get gas here - this cracks me up.

Two girls were lost to the ocean today.  And, as I understand, an adult woman as well, but she washed up not too much later and was taken to hospital, still alive.  Though two jet skis and a kayak combed the area ocean for hours after the girls disappeared, nothing turned up.  I imagine the girls are gone, which is a quite depressing thought.  The ocean is quite rough today, especially for here.  Usually it's placid, almost like a lake, with little swells but that's it.  There has been a lot of wind and rain recently, though, and it's churned things up.  The locals can't really swim at all, but they are often out playing in the ocean.  Today it was too much for them.  I understand that the girls were Cambodian but not necessarily local, but you never know what you hear through the grapevine.  ALl of the information here seems to be passed through word of mouth; not really difficult when there's a chain of women and little girls selling things all down the beach.  I was a bit appalled that there was no police response, or perhaps coast guard or something, but I'm sure things work differently here.  I thought what they really needed was a helicopter, but I'm sure by the time one was tracked down and got here, the girls would be gone anyway.  Now everyone says you just wait until they wash up later.  Can you imagine?  Things work so differently here; though realistically I don't know what would happen at a beach at home.  I can't imagine, though, that people would just give up the search after a few hours.  Who knows.

On a lighter note, I have an anecdote to share.  It actually happened a few days ago, but I forgot to share, and Josh thought it would be funny to record, so at least we would remember.  So, when they make our beds here, they are made with a bottom sheet, and either a top sheet, or a "blanket."  However, the blanket is actually a large towel.  Blanket-sized, but a towel indeed.  I feel like I've seen this before, but I can't remember where it would have been.  Brie often ends up sleeping with the towel/blanket because she gets colder at night.  So... we use towels on the beach, towels to dry off after a shower, and towels to sleep with.  Only Josh and I thought that they considered the sleeping one a blanket, so we've been calling it a "blanket."  Anyway, we brought one of our own blankets with us, mostly for the airplane, but we've been using it at most of the hotels who don't provide blankets.  I've been using it here.  They came in to clean our room the other day, and when we came back at night, the blanket was gone. (Ours.)  So, Josh went down and asked them for our blanket, got some blank looks (happens a lot here when there's a breakdown of communication).  He was trying to explain what it was, that it was white, that we slept with it, etc.  Finally, the lightbulb went on, and they said to him "Oh, you mean the towel?  If you would have said towel we would have understood immediately!"  Uh, okay.  So, we don't actually have a towel, but they still call it that?  How strange.  Guess you really do do everything with a towel here. 

Last night was pizza and movie night.  Just to remind us of home.  I don't know if I've posted about it before, but there's a little movie house up the steep road from us, called Topcat Cinema, which has a back room which they rent out for private movie watching.  It has a few papasan chairs, a couch, and a place to lay on the ground to watch movies.  The TV is a flat-screen, maybe 55" TV.  They have hundreds of movies to choose from.  We hadn't had time to finish our movie before (No Country for Old Men), so we went to finish that one and watch another.  Brianna wanted to watch "The Incredibles" again.  So, we went, watched our movie, along with "I Am Legend" and ordered pizza from a place in town called "Happy Herb."  We got an interesting pizza - pepperoni and pineapple like we often order at home.  However, here the pepperoni is more like salami - not spicy at all - and the pineapple is little slices of fresh, instead of canned.  I've also found the pizza crust here to be very sweet, which is interesting since it seems like everything else we eat is really salty.  Everyone has their own idea of what is tasty!  Anyway, it was a lovely relaxing evening, doing something different.  I can't believe we're leaving here for somewhere new in only 3 days now!!!

I also found, in a local newspaper, an interesting article about the cost of food here, and what it's doing to rural people.  I know at home we rarely think about one country specifically when donating, and I doubt many people think of Cambodia.  However, this is a very poor country that could use our aid.  There is an organization called "American Assistance for Cambodia" or "Cambodia Schools" that not only builds schools in Cambodia, but also is now giving food subsidies to families and children.  You can find their site here and the article that I read here.  I guess maybe the $2 we gave the guy the other night for the fish he caught really was a lot of money for him!

Well, apparently you can get everything here at a price (and, the price is higher if you are white!).  Although I imagine this is also true in Western countries, we can't afford it there, so it's not really applicable.  Here, well, we can usually pay the price.  :)  Last night some Cambodian people staying at our guesthouse (they live in Canada) bought some fish from a local fisherman and had it cooked up at our restaurant.  Multiple guys go out in the morning and in the evening and fish just off the beach here; standing in the surf, using little nets that they spread out and then collect.  We've watched them many times but I always assumed they were just fishing for their families... The Cambodian people bought two little what I assume were sunfish from them for $1.  Today while we were sitting by the water, I said to Josh "do you want to get some fish for dinner?"  He said sure, so we sent our "little helpers" (Brie's two Cambodian friends, who are now our explainers, go-getters, and anything in between) to buy us some.  They took $2 (we knew it would be more for us) and brought us back 3 fish.  Yum.  The restaurant cooked them up for us in sweet-and-sour style (whole fish, so we had to fillet ourselves) with rice.  It was really yummy.  We're always up for new things here!  I can't believe what a good sport Josh is about all this - and keeping in mind this is his first trip out of the West, and I think only his third trip out of the country.  It was probably one of the freshest, most local fish I've ever had... when we got them from the guy fishing, they were still trying to breathe.  Made me kind of sad to see them dying, but I guess that's just the part we normally don't see at home. All the meat/fish/chicken we eat has to be killed and processed by someone - and I imagine in many ways this is more humane and better for us than the ways our food is killed at home.  I'm sure if you had to kill your own food every day you would get used to it!

Today we also ate some yummy fruit that the girls turned us onto.  The women walking the beach with it on their heads don't even stop at white people - it's one of those things that I think they don't get much business from Westerners from (like the crickets, spring rolls, the strange tomato/cherry things... etc).  I had no idea what it was called, because they didn't know in English, so I Googled "Asia lumpy green fruit black seeds."  Guess what, the first picture hit was it. That makes me laugh. Amazing, this internet thing.  I guess what I previously thought was custard apple wasn't (now I need to figure out what that was!) and this is actually that.  Tastes a lot like pear, but looks nothing like it.  It's really great.  Maybe you should go to your local Asian market and pick some up.  Josh and I were talking about how funny it is how we have no idea what things are here, and how many things taste really strange to us.  I wondered if Asians moving to the US felt the same way - if they walk into supermarkets and think "what the heck is this stuff?" and try things and hate them.  Josh pointed out that one of Brie's Cambodian friends here, Sreyoun, hates mustard.  I got her to try a little the other day, and she thought it was terrible.  Of course, Brie and I thought this was hilarious.  It reminds me of how the French hate peanut butter.  Funny how our tastes grow with us. We have found out that Brianna loves the "lobster" on the beach here - fried and then they  hollow out the innards for you to eat, put salt and pepper and lime juice - yum.  I'm not really sure they are lobsters - seem more like prawns or what we call crawfish, but maybe they're all close to the same.

Today we took a book trip to three little nearby islands - Bamboo Island being the biggest.  We did a bit of swimming (snorkeling here during the rainy season isn't really worth the effort, as you can't see anything anyway), beachcombing, playing with cows on the beach (?!?) and enjoyed a lovely lunch of barbecued barracuda (at least that's what they said it was, but it was really yummy... even Brianna ate it) bread and coleslaw.  We took one of the local longboats with about 15 other people and it was a really perfect, sunny day for it.  It's nice to do something different for a day.  We've kind of changed our minds about Vietnam - the island we were going to go to turns out to be quite expensive and the beach itself doesn't look as nice as here, so we've decided to stay on here a bit longer (maybe one more week) and then head to Phnom Penh for a couple of days, then to Saigon for our last few days before heading out.  It's nice not to have plans set in stone, so now that we've found somewhere we like, we can stay a bit.  We're going to do a few more things with our extra time here, just to get off the beach for a change of pace.  Hopefully they will be as nice as today!

What to post about first?  Seems like tonight I have so many things to tell you about!  I guess things do happen at the beach.  Okay, first let's discuss maybe the most disgusting toilet I've ever been in.  Josh responded with "really?"  Really.  Tonight we visited our local Khmer food place down the beach, where the kids hang out and Brie gets to watch cartoons while she eats her egg omelet and rice.  The food was just as good - I had a different meal this time - fried noodles with vegetables rather than fried rice.  Yummy.  Josh had his normal noodles and beef.  Anyway, Brie told me she had to pee, so I kind of asked/motioned to the kids if there was a toilet.  The woman motioned for them to take me.  So, we headed through the "kitchen" area - first mistake - you don't really want to see that.  It was quite dirty and I imagine no running water or any of the normal amenities we're used to... anyway, the kid picked up a candle and I knew we were in for it.  He lit it, walked us out the back "door" - no door, really - and pointed to a shed.  uh, okay... Wasn't sure where the door was, so we walked around it, candle barely flickering, and found a "door."  This was really just a lean-to shed with corrugated metal walls.  And, as I noticed as soon as we stepped in, no ceiling.  Okay... holding the candle (where was my flashlight when I needed it) - I tried to see in past the metal gas canister standing in the door (it's night so I have no idea what that held or what it was for)... and saw a porcelain Turkish toilet.  Strange, that they have an actual toilet (well, "toilet") in a lean-to shed with no roof and dirt floors... wouldn't a hole in the ground work just the same?  Anyway, Brie isn't very good at these toilets, so she did it, but kind of managed to pee on her pants also.  Anyone (woman) who has tried these toilets will understand.  Ah well.  Good enough.  So, that was an experience!!!  Then, back to eating.  Don't worry about washing your hands, there's nowhere to do that, and if there was, there definitely wouldn't be any soap!!!

So, on to our next fun topic for the night.  Maybe if that one didn't turn you on because it was disgusting, this one will be okay.  Josh has decided that we are like the "high rollers" in Vegas here in Cambodia on the beach.  While you get freebies in Vegas, we get freebies here.  Maybe not the same, but fun nonetheless.  Our little girls who play with Brie every day (I've taken to paying them for "babysitting" as it gets her out of mom and dad's hair, but they won't accept just money, so they insist on making something... I've ended up with quite a few headbands and bracelets for Brianna...) have bought me peanuts (they eat them raw here... just in the shell and then you eat them, not cooked or roasted like at home), some weird fruit thing, and then today one of them bought me a snack in the afternoon - a sort of custard with what tasted like sweet ginger flavoring.  Interesting.  And, the woman we buy spring rolls from at lunchtime (for $2-$3, mind you), gave us a scarf yesterday - must be because we probably pay her twice what the locals pay.  :)  She is cute, gets really excited when Josh goes up to buy our spring rolls each day.  Even gave us table service today from her thing she uses to carry the food around the beach (see "Carrying Baskets" on this link).  I think she's memorized now what we get.  Funny.  One benefit to looking different to everyone else is that people remember you!  The guy Josh buys the dessert snacks from each night recognizes us when we walk up - and Josh points out that Brie is like a celebrity here on the beach - as we walk around or play in the water, all the little kids and women are yelling "Brianna..." to try to get her attention.  Actually, I think they think her name is "Rihanna" like the singer, as they have heard of her and think the name is the same... Now all we need is for them to start snapping pictures...

Josh and I are quite happy now, as Brianna has grown more courageous in the water, and will walk out a bit on her own, and loves playing with her "friends" in the water each day.  Every time we leave our room she asks "Where's my friend?"  meaning either the English girl staying at our place, or one of the three Cambodian girls who plays with her in the water each day.  Guess she's done with mom and dad.  It's great, though, that she doesn't mind the water getting in her eyes/mouth as much now - she is definitely getting more confident.  Guess she'll get to love this place and then we'll leave for the next!  :)

I'm sure there's more to say, but I'll save it for another post.  Oh, check out the pajamas that everyone wears here as normal clothes - it cracks me up.

The days seem to kind of blend together here, which is why I haven't been posting a lot.  While we're walking around, I keep saying to Josh "oh, I should write about that" but then when I actually sit down at the computer, I seem to forget what it was.  Once you're here for a little while, things start to seem "normal" and then you almost forget that to people at home, it's entirely not normal.  :)  I find it's the same problem with taking pictures - you get so accustomed to seeing certain things that you don't take pictures, and then when you get home friends ask "oh, can you show me a picture of that?" and you're like "oh, you've never seen that before?"  Haha.

We were initially going to go to the Vietnam consulate on Monday, but it turned out to be the first consistently sunny day since we've been here, so we decided to scrap that plan for beach time.  An entire day in the sun seems to be too much for us, though, as we all three got a bit burned.  My face is fried to a crisp - it's hat time for me now until it either peels off or turns into a tan.  We've been postulating, Josh and I, on what would have happened to us in the days before sunscreen - how did our parents stay in the sun all day with only baby oil - even not that, but how did our ancestors work in the sun and not get so fried as we do?  Perhaps the skin would be tougher had we been exposed more as children. Or perhaps our family would be dead from skin cancer?  I don't understand how we get so burned in only one day when maybe just 30 years ago people didn't wear sunscreen at all.  Now we're slathering with 50 every day to keep from getting burned again!  Although, today and yesterday afternoon, more rain, so that saves us from the sun a bit.

We also bought Brianna a little airplane floaty toy on the second day we were here - she was unwilling to get in it for the first few days - mostly I think because she didn't like the waves and the water getting in her eyes.  However, once the water calmed a bit yesterday and the day before, she's been a fiend for riding in it.  She loves riding the waves now - the second we go outdoors, she wants to go in the water with her airplane.  Guess we've turned her on to the ocean!  Yesterday, however, we decided we would go to the consulate, just because we didn't really know what to expect with how long it would take to get the Vietnam visa.  I've heard in Bangkok it takes 2-3 days, and in the US it takes 2-3 weeks.  So, who knows.  We took a tuk-tuk over there yesterday (actually agreed to hire him for a few hours so we could also go to town while we were out there).... turns out it's pretty empty.  We were the only people other than a Slovakian guy by himself.  It cost $37 per person (compared to $60 at home) and took about 15 minutes for all three of us to come out with visas.  The guy even gave Brie some cookies and candy!  Can't get much better than that.  Now I'm glad we didn't bother with it in Bangkok - made me a bit nervous to send my passport off while in a foreign country.  When speaking to the guy at our guesthouse, he's heard this consulate (in little Sihanoukville, Cambodia!) is one of the best in Asia.  Strange.

Our other fun for yesterday, other than walking around quite a filthy downtown and seeing some trussed up live chickens ready for the buying, and then getting caught in a rainstorm while downtown, was going to see  a movie. There's a place at the top of our rocky hill called "Topcat Cinema" where you can rent a room with 50-something " plasma TV, couch, chairs, and about 500 movies.  You choose your movie, pay by the hour, and watch your movie.  It's pretty cool.  A/c and everything!  Josh and I put "The Incredibles" in Brie's movie player and chose "No Country for Old Men" for ourselves and relaxed for a couple of hours.  We didn't actually get to finish our movie b/c the people with a reservation after us came before we were done (the only disadvantage), so we will need to go back and finish another time.  It was a nice way to pass a few hours, though.  Maybe if it continues raining today, we'll have to go back.  I told Josh this morning - this is what rainy season really means.  Ami and I never had rain like this when we were traveling in Thailand in the summer - I've heard from a number of people that you get it much worse here.  I wonder if it's about geography - check out where we are on the map.  Kind of at the tip... maybe that's why.

Let's see, other than that, I can't think of anything exciting to report.  We tried some of the beach spring rolls the other day - they were really good.  If it stops raining today, we are hoping to have some for lunch today.  You can get fried and uncooked (the uncooked are Vietnamese style), and they are served with a lovely sweet/sour sauce.  That, coupled with the fruit on the beach, is a perfect light lunch.  But, if the rain keeps up, no sellers on the beach!

I'll keep you posted on any fun updates.  We're loving our accommodations - what they lack in cleanliness and personality in the room, they gain in personality of the hosts. The owners and staff are great - they love Brianna and babysit her constantly.  They also are a wealth of information on everything here, which is really nice.  We're quite happy here - have to move on sometime, though!  I think we've decided the next step is beach in Vietnam, and then just finish up our trip in Saigon/Ho Chi Minh City before flying home.  We'll keep you updated!