Karaoke! Meditation! Just not together!
Sunday was a day with family. The Koop Liechtys had the privilege of having delicious waffles and cookies delivered (ordered via Facebook) by Andrew and his host brother, Bong Veasna. Andrew had helped his host mother make them that morning at the market near their house. Those and a Nescafe are a great way to start one’s day.
In the evening, we had a group get-together. The men met Dan and Cormac at Tamarind Restaurant. We had a wonderful meal on their beautiful roof. The women met with Jill and Elsie at Brooklyn Pizza. They all sampled pizzas and calzone and had a great time connecting.
Afterward, we all ended up at a mall for some family karaoke and arcade time. We decided to go there because some karaoke establishments offer illicit activities having little (okay, nothing) to do with singing. As a Westerner, it’s hard to distinguish between the two types so we went for the safe route.
Today, we had a diametrically opposed experience when we met at a local wat (temple) to learn more about Buddhism and have a meditation experience. We met with the venerable Yos Hut Khemacaro. He lectured on Buddhism and then led us in a short meditation.
Tomorrow, we have an afternoon lecture and then we end the week with a series of field trips and a weekend trip outside the city, where we’ll get our first group experience of village life.
