70 hours of traveling to see 8 million people in a 3rd-world country leading to a 3rd-eye awakening.
Circling back to Phnom Penh was the cherry on top. It is the Beirut of Southeast Asia, the New York City of the Orient. Fresh from a civil war, it’s a puzzle far from solved as men drive Bentleys yet infants sleep on the sidewalk concrete. Corruption in plain sight. Foot traffic that’s nonstop. Six Cambodia money-women for every middle-aged white man. The locals throw stares that may be followed by a smile. A country that gets by on charm and the want for economic and social commerce. Ox and child bathe in the same soiled pond. The country will remind you that every possession in your luggage has no connection to your soul.
Phnom Penh, Siem Reap, Sihanoukville, Koh Rong and back; the Cambodia I got to meet. She’s complicated but patient and continues to survive regardless of her past and hardships.
Now back to New York, where life comes too easily. With this experience in my back pocket I can only hope to gain more understanding, patience and compassion. One step forward as to realize that my life is not meant to be lost in the daily grind. It’s to be utilized, enjoyed, remain vulnerable and most of all, shared.