Religion Week: Cambodia

Cambodia was the next country on our trip around the world. Cambodia was plagued with a civil war for  years. The Khamer Rouge led by Pol Pot, took control of Cambodia by force in 1975. The repressive regime took Cambodia by force, and made everyone work on farms. Everyone who protested were killed. It's estimated that the Khamer Rouge executed three million Cambodians. The Khamer power was eventually removed from power by Vietnam. But fractions remained, causing unrest until the mid 90s. 

Today, Cambodia is once again safe to visit. 

Some fun Cambodian facts: 

Wild animals roam the streets. 

You can risk your life flying through the streets on a motorcycle taxi. 

There's even Cambodian caviar to eat (although it's actually fried tarantulas). 

Cambodians don't leave the house without their kramas, a traditional patterned garment (usually in red or blue) that can be a scarf, a bandanna, a baby carrying sling or even a hammock.  

But the main draw of Cambodia is the Temples, know as Wats. Angkor Wat in Cambodia, is the world's largest religious monument, and one of the wonders of the world. Built in the 12th century, it was originally constructed as a Hindu Temple of the god, Vishnu, but over time it transformed into a Buddhist Temple. It is reported to have taken over 300 years to build, and is known as the 'city of temples'. The ruins of Angkor contain over 70 temples scattered over 200 square miles, and is the primary tourist attraction in Cambodia. 

We finished up learning about Buddhism, with Wesak Day, the Dalai Lama, and Monks. 

And we made our own little mini zen garden. 

The boys made some nice Cambodia postcards. 

For dinner we had Num Pang Ang Chia Mui Sach Ko (Cambodian French Bread with Beef), Sweet and Sour Vegetables, and CheK Chien (Fried Banana Nuggets). 

Dinner earned two spoons up, from Calib and Asa. 

The only thing Calib didn't like was the bananas, which I liked, so we combined for a spoon. But overall, it was one of my least favorite meals. I think part of it was that in my head I knew it had fish sauce in it, and I just couldn't get over it.  I can't wait to get out of that part of the world, and move on. 

Hayden and Peyton picked at it, but generally liked the veggies, minus the pineapple. They were also banana fans. 

So there we are, four religions down, two to go. We did a pop quiz today for pennies for the boys jars, and they did pretty good! 

And that's it for Cambodia. 

32 Down, 161 to go! 

Up Next: India and Sikhism 

Olympics Day 6: Ice Dancing & Laos

Wednesday we finally got around to our Laos lesson, since we had gone to the Buddhist Temple on Sunday for food. It was Valentine's Day so we had a dinner planned anyway. 

Anyway, Laos, the country that rhymes with 'cow' not 'house' for those of you looking for the proper pronunciation. 

The Buddhist Temple was a good fit for this country because 67% of the nearly 7 million people in Laos identify as Buddhist, and you'll find nods to Buddhism scattered all over the country. 

Laos full of religious stupas, wats and pagodas. They even have Buddha Park with over 200 Buddhist and Hindu statutes, including a giant reclining Buddha that's nearly 400 feet long. 

 Our landmark is That Luang, a gold covered Buddhist complex in the capital city of Vientiane. It's a national symbol, as it appears on the official seal, and is considered the most sacred monument in the country. It looks like a giant gold fortress, with monks carrying the traditional paper umbrellas walking through the complex that features two temples and multiple stupas. 

Laos, like it's neighbors Vietnam and Cambodia have had a hard time finding their footing since the Vietnam war tore them apart. In fact, Laos has the unpleasant distinction of being the most bombed country in the world. 

It's estimated more than 80 million un-exploded bombs that were left after the end of the Vietnam war, remain undiscovered. 

There is a U.S. Department of State Travel Warning due to the unpredictable security situation in various parts of the country. It is only considered a 'Level 1/Exercise normal Precautions' though, so you can visit, just be aware of where it is safe to travel, and where it is not. 

Thank goodness you can travel here too. I have a new bucket item list. Apparently there's this tourist attraction called the 'Gibbon Experience' where you sleep in some of the tallest tree-houses in the world. They're thatched, open-air observatories surrounded by panoramic views of the forest full of black gibbons! 

Even more exciting, the only way in and out of your air-born abode is via zip-line. Woman from nearby villages fly in your fire-cooked meals each night. Every morning you wake up, slide on a harness and essentially toss yourself off a 15 story building into a monkey forest! 

Just, you know, watch out for the King Cobra. They're all over the country. 

And I would also totally like to visit the night markets, but I'm not sure I would want to try the fried rats or bats. Basically they say in Laos, if it moves, it can be eaten: grasshoppers, worms, crickets, caterpillars, wasps termites, stink bugs, water bugs, beetles, worms and dragonflies. 

All gross, I mean I might try a bug. But, I'd rather eat the King Mekong Fish (and you know how I feel about fish) than those things. The Mekong giant catfish is the longest freshwater fish at the world, growing up to ten feet. 

The boys made their very last Asian postcards. 

Calib's featured zipling out of tree houses. 

Peyton put the Buddhist Temple up in the mountains. 

And I really liked Hayden's version of the tree houses. 

Laos was on Valentine's Day, which is when we always have Fondu dinner. 

But we had our Laos meal the Sunday before at the Buddhist Temple in Tampa. 

I waited in the Pho line to get the angel hair noodles with the pork. 

Calib went off to get his dumplings. 

Mom stood in the line for fried sweet potatoes and fried bananas. 

While Asa nabbed the Thai Coffee and the Longan Tea, and some basil chicken over fried rice. (Sticky rice would have been more appropriate for Laos, since that's like their thing- but they didn't have any. 

We nosed around at the Temple a bit, and then mom bought us some more fun plants to bring home. 

You might have noticed Peyton and Hayden missing from the Buddhist Temple. You have to get there early (like before 10 AM to ensure a parking spot, so they didn't want to get up.) We brought back some stuff for them instead. Peyton is a big fan of the Spring Rolls, and Hayden enjoyed the lady fingers dessert. 

That night we held our Ice Dancing Competition, which is really just like a Lip Sync Battle where Asa and I are the judges. 

Costumes are very important here, as you can tell. 

But, performance is also important. (I have less pictures because I did video of their performances, which is amazing. I don't think Blogger does video though, does it?) 

Peyton was the winner, though for his rendition of Bohemian Rhapsody. 

Our Ice Dancing Medal Ceremony. 

We recorded our medals (check out the Netherlands- they are RAKING it in for Hayden!) 

And we tallied everything up to see who was in the lead. 

Peyton got the honor of coloring in the very last Asian country. Laos got a dark blue coat, surrounded by green China, light blue Thailand, dark red Cambodia and yellow Vietnam. 

That's a wrap for Asian Countries! 191 down, ONLY FIVE TO GO!!! 

Next Up: Snowboarding & Ethiopia