Crossing over the Cambodia border the border patrol looks at me sideways and says 'are you Chinese?' in a way that made me think saying 'yes' would mean 'no you can't come to Cambodia'. so I smiled and said 'no'.. and today I am not Chinese. wish I read my lonely planet book a little more closely to understand if there is any conflict between the two countries.
Crossing into Cambodia I was struggling a bit from heat stroke but we pressed on. I drank my water and Adam's water and was still dying in the heat. High humidity, sun directly on us, and I'm guessing its somewhere in the high 90s. As we passed into the green countryside over the rolling hills - we passed poor villages and farms. The children would run into the street, arms flailing and waving with both hands and screaming a friendly HELLO!!!! Every time. Every kid. Why are they so friendly? We are taught as children not to talk to strangers and as adults we act as though everyone is trying to scam or rip us off. I waved hello to every kid.. and as my body got tired towards the end of the ride, I'd be too tired to lift my hand from the gripped bike handle and I'd just yell 'Hello!!!' sometimes not even knowing what direction the greeting was coming from.
The sites and sounds of the back country roads were peaceful and simple. And as we rolled into our lodge - in the middle of NO WHERE... I spent a long time just reflecting on what I saw and read a book.
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