pictures of our apartment

We know many of you are anxious to see where we are living...here are a few pictures :)

The patio
bathroom #1

the hallway
bathroom #2 in guest room
guest bedroom
washing machine!
bathroom #3 in master bedroom
master bedroom
living room
kitchen

living, eating, and walking

Our first week in Phnom Penh came and went so quickly! We have been so busy getting to know the area and setting up our new apartment. Yep, we found a great apartment and are getting settled in nicely. We spent a few days at meetings for PUC (Pannasastra University of Cambodia), but most of our time was spent doing what we wanted.
We were shown an apartment by one of our colleagues, but decided to look at a few others just to get an idea of what was available. We were expecting to pay between $300-350 for a decent apartment within walking distance to work. The first one we looked at was $450, and had 4 bedrooms…way more than we needed. Later we looked at one that was a one bedroom, one bathroom with a huge private rooftop which was awesome. That was $370 and somewhat far from the main campus area where we will be working. We found a really cheap one bedroom, one bathroom—only $150 but….it didn’t have a private entrance and we are pretty sure that it was located above a brothel. Not exactly what we would consider to be ideal. We looked at a few others in the area, but decided on one that is located between the two campuses where we will be working. It is a two bedroom, three bathroom apartment with a nice porch, washing machine, air conditioner, and nice kitchen. (pictures will be posted ☺) The landlord has a daughter that attends PUC and speaks very good English. The family is so helpful and were kind enough to take us to the market to buy the essentials for the apartment (towels, sheets, coffee pot..you know…) We have made ourselves at home and are very happy so far.
On Aug 22nd we went to meet with the director of the academic program and learned that I (Chantelle) will be teaching environmental science for the first accelerated term and will add health courses to her schedule later. He invited us to attend the orientation meeting for new instructors on the 24th. We went to the meeting and got a run through on how the system works at PUC (grading, payroll, conduct etc.). On Aug 25th we met with the director of the Pre-Academic English program. We figured out a rough idea for our schedules so that I (Chantelle) would be able to teach at both South Campus and at one of the Central Campuses and Keith could work full time in the Pre-Academic English department. Now we are working out our lesson plans and getting our things together so that we are ready for the first term.
We moved into our new apartment on Aug 26th and went to a few different markets to buy what we needed. The last time I (Chantelle) was here I only visited two of the big local markets the Russian Market and the Night Market. Now we have been to two others the Olympic Market and Orussei Market. Yesterday we visited a grocery store called Lucky Market and bought meat, grains, fruits and veggies so that we can prepare healthy and sanitary meals in our apartment. For the first week we were eating breakfast in the hotel (granola bars, peanut butter, protein shakes and bananas), lunch at local cafes/restaurants (some great, some not so great), and dinner in the hotel (instant rice noodles). Now that we can make our own food, we can have more variety and know how it’s being prepared. So far neither of us have gotten sick from food or water and we would like to keep it that way!
Since our trip home to the east coast was so crazy busy, we decided to keep our first week somewhat mellow. During the day we have been walking A LOT to try to learn our way around and are completely exhausted at the end of the day. We both had a little trouble adjusting to the time change at first, especially me (Chantelle). Now we are used to the difference, but are still enjoying just chilling for a few more days. We may try to go to either Seim Reip or Sihanoukville before our classes start…but for now we are going to take it slow and enjoy the relaxation. Love you all!
Chantelle and Keith

The first 48ish

It is 11:32 p.m. here in Phnom Penh. Keith and I just woke up from a "nap"...well more like a sleep. The last two days have been great, but we are still adjusting to the huge time change.

On Aug 18 we boarded our flight in Dulles, Washington for Phnom Penh. We flew for 15 hours, stopped in Seoul, South Korea and then for another 5 to Phnom Penh. The flights were long, but we had an array of movie, shows, games, and food to keep us from getting too bored. We arrived to the airport in Phnom Penh with our 3 bags weighing 50lbs, 2 carry-ons weighing close to the same amount, and two "personal" items...who knew we had so many things that could fit into a "personal" item! Our dear friend, Phun and two of his schoolmates, picked us up and helped us get ourselves and all of our luggage to our temporary home- Long Live Hotel.

After a good night's rest we ventured out into the city so that we could check out a local market and try some local food. We bought a bunch of tiny bananas, a dragon fruit, bottled water, bowls for cooking, a knife, some noodles, laundry soap, dish soap and a few other essentials for less than $10. The prices here are fantastic, but some of the smells/sounds/sights take some getting used to. After checking out a few other stores and a coffee shop we headed to Main Campus for Keith to try Khmer Kickboxing. He had a great time trying out some of the moves and I had fun watching and laughing. All of the students are so friendly and eager to speak with us.

Today we started pretty early. Neither of us could really sleep so we got up and organized our room a little. Our hotel room is pretty small so we have to keep things tidy or we end up tripping over everything. Our first stop was to buy local cell phones, but we needed our passports to do so and didn't have them at the time. So we started walking towards our next stop--the spa! One of my personal favorite things about Cambodia is the amazing massages for $10 or less. Keith tried a traditional Thai massage which consists of massage and assisted stretching. I stuck with the back/neck/shoulder massage. IT WAS GREAT! We both were feeling a little tight after 20+ hours on a plane or in an airport. Afterward, we hit up a cute little lunch spot called the Corner for lunch and free wifi. The food was great and the staff was very helpful. We got some much needed help with our pronunciation and will continue to practice each day so that we can surprise our fellow staff and students with our amazing Khmer! Keith was planning on meeting for kickboxing practice again, but it started to downpour so we weren't sure it would still take place. After about five or ten minutes of really hard rain the skies cleared up. At this point we had both decided that it would be better to stay in since we haven't had much down time.

Now it is late and I'm awake...hoping that I will go back to sleep tonight, but who knows. Keith is still sleeping. He is living up to the nickname I gave him...bear...because he can sleep like a bear in hibernation. Well friends, that's all for tonight. Tomorrow we are meeting with some of the people from Pannasastra to learn about our upcoming semester. We love and miss you all and will keep you up to speed throughout our time here.

<3,

Chantelle (and sleeping Keith)