Before we left for Cambodia I was advised to document all the things that made Cambodia funny to me because, as my buddy explained, “After a few months, they will no longer be funny to you.” So, I compiled a list of sights, sounds and activities that I find comedic about Cambodia. Perhaps this is not for you to enjoy as much as it is created so that I can remember the things that at one time were hilarious about Cambodia and which will inevitably become simply annoying or ordinary.
1) Multi-use motos: The moto is the family coupe of Cambodia and really is more of a utility than any SUV in the U.S. We have seen motos carrying 50 alive but bound chickens on their way to a hot-broth party. Motos carrying three mattresses balanced on the seat, forcing the driver to hop down from his padded throne in order to shift or hit the brakes. Motos carrying a family of five with the toddler between his father’s legs, the mother behind the father, the middle daughter behind the mother and another child standing on the tail light, holding sister’s shoulders. We have seen a moto operated by an eight year-old who was graciously giving his three year-old brother a lift to school. Also, Leanne looks pretty awkward on a moto, but that might just be funny to me.
2) Synchronized Dancing: Working out for Cambodian’s is a bit of a blunder. Many Cambodian’s run, albeit in jeans and polo shirts. Some walk, again with the jeans and usually with a facemask protecting them from the smog. However, the best form of Cambodian work outs are the public synchronized dances (see video). Each morning and evening, groups of Khamers gather to dance to electronic music. The temperature is cool, the jams are hearty and the company is rockin’. These are not work-out’s as much as they are socials for those who like to dance to instrumentals of Lady Gaga, Beyonce or the Black Eyed Peas. Needless to say, I fill in the lyrics over the instrumentals.
3) Cambodians being Cambodian: If you are a baseball fan, you have heard the phrase “It is just Manny being Manny.” Cambodians, like Manny Ramirez, are unique in their own way and culturally as different to Americans as could be in many ways. Staring is okay, traffic lights and lanes are optional, boys sit on the top of family vans if the cab is too full, bus drivers stop to eat a sit-down lunch in the middle of their shift and pedestrians cross the street without looking as if daring me to hit them. The Police expect money when they pull you over, getting a license plate is more difficult than throwing a perfect game and trying to find a place to get colored copies is more difficult than getting a license plate. Bananas and spoons are really small. Waiters hover while you look at the menu and grocery store employees follow you around with a look that guilts me into purchasing some item that I didn’t want in order to not disappoint them.
All of these things make Cambodia unique to us. It has been essential for us to realize that Cambodian culture is not wrong, it is simply different and just because we do certain things in certain ways in the States, does not mean that they cannot be done differently here. It has also become important for us to learn to laugh at these differences. The oppressive traffic, the smog and the buckets of rain are all things that could frustrate us but it has become important that they entertain us instead.
Paul wrote in Ephesians that God serves his creation lavishly and abundantly, missing no detail and planning everything out so that his creation may be filled with great enjoyment no matter where they live. Regardless of how different life here may be, the reality of God’s lavish abundance has never been so clear and so enjoyable.
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