Well, it's the monsoon/wet season, so it rains every day or so. but most of the time its just hot and sunny. I managed to get a slight sunburn on the back of my neck yesterday, because I forgot to put sunscreen there. Cold showers are wonderful things in this weather...The evenings and mornings are the best, with the tropical breeze and smells and birds and frogs and bugs all humming... :D

Orientation was amusing. We have a professor who degrees from Standford, University of Chicago, Grottenburg in Sweden, and University of Hawaii. He was the first Khmer person to get a bright flight scholarship, and he's really fun and nice and awesome. The white guy in charge of our program is kind of an offensive dumbass... He's quiet and shy, and nervous. I think he needs some valum or something. He gave the safety talk today, and went on for an hour and a half about all kinds of horrible things that could maybe possibly (very unlikely) happen. Like, you can't tell girls to NOT carry purses. Everyone carries purses. There is a right and a wrong way to do it, but I didn't trust his advice at all. He was not knowledgeable, or friendly. He seems to be a nervous wreck. It was ridiculous, just to try to scare people... I don't like people like that, who worry excessively...We could all tell that Dr. Sedara was offended, but he took it really well, saying that he had to say that sort of stuff because it's the crap the state department says, and insurance and blah blah. It's a bad job, but I guess someone has to be the annoying worry wort.
But the intro to Khmer language was fun, and we got two free meals today at really nice places, so that was awesome. I've decided Fish Amok and Khmer curry and Sour Soup are all delicious!! I love the food here!

Tomorrow we have our first full day of classes/a little more orientation stuff. We had dinner with students from the local Khmer university, and they were very nice! Some of the guys kept awkwardly whispering and it was amusing. I wish I could have understood what ridiculous things they were saying to one another. So much awkward and amusing.

I have made friends with one of the young ladies who works at our guesthouse. She's so nice and we have been helping each other with languages. She helps me with Khmae, and I help her with english. It's so much fun!! Her name is Sokham. We briefly met our khmer teacher, and his english is impeccable! I'm excited to take his class, I think he will really know what he is doing. I'm pretty sure I'm going to audit the Nations Building class, and take the Khmer class for credit.

I hope this is a good decision. And I stay as excited about the language as I am now. I love learning in the real, natural setting. It's so much better than in a classroom... but now I will have both!