On My Way!!

     Well I made it to Hong Kong and have only shed a few tears so far. Saying goodbye to my family at the airport was harder than I expected, but getting treated like royalty in first class soon helped me get over being sad. (Thanks to my wonderful Dad who shared his miles with me, I got to fly the 14 hour flight to Hong Kong in first class--not because he waited to spoil me, but because after all the frustrations of waiting for information from RACHA in Cambodia and approval from the BYU travel office that it was safe for me to travel alone, first class was the ONLY ticket still available. So thanks Dad!) First class was incredible! First I got to go to the lounge until we boarded, then once I boarded the plane, they led me to my seat and brought me a drink. I had my own little room it seemed like at the front of the plane! Next they brought me my pajamas, slippers, and a leather travel case full of anything you could possibly need on an international flight. (Unfortunately I haven't figured out yet how I'm going to be able to upload pictures, so those may have to wait until I get back.) The flight attendants were so attentive, almost to the point of making me feel uncomfortable, like I was being watched the whole time ha. They gave me a menu with several different choices, and when they came to take my order, I had no idea that I could order as much as I wanted! I had a lovely dish of lamb chops at about 3 am, then they made my bed for me as I changed into my pajamas. Pampered. When I woke up, I still wasn't hungry, but I didn't know when I would get a good meal again, so naturally I ordered a huge breakfast and some ice cream. =)

     Now I am in the lounge at the Hong Kong airport until my connecting flight to Phnom Penh, the capital of Cambodia. Getting off the plane in Hong Kong at 6 am I could already feel the heat and humidity--gotta enjoy this air conditioning while I can! I've already gotten quite frustrated with everything being in characters, and having no clue how to read or work anything--even the headings at the top of this blog on my own ipad are in characters. Me being new to blogging had to click around a bunch until I happened to come across the correct link to create a new post! The worst news of the day: I was so excited to get a coke here in the lounge, but the Coke doesn't even taste like the coke in the U.S.! Tragic, I know...(P.S.-the man sitting next me has an alarm on his cell phone that keeps going off and somehow he just barely heard it after the third different time it's been snoozed and going off haha. So far I'm feeling surprisingly calm about this whole experience--we'll see once I get on the next plane, things very well could change. The biggest thing that scares me is there are so many unknowns. I know Tol's niece is picking me up from the airport and will be holding a sign with my name on it (although I wonder how many other white girls will be on my flight with me), but I have no idea what her name is! I have no idea what my schedule is going to be like with RACHA either. When I asked when I should arrive for my orientation, my supervisor Ketsana gave me the office hours and told me to show up whenever and the HR guy would show me around and introduce me to people, and then we'd discuss more in person. Great. So who knows what will happen when I show up at their doors, how long I'll be in Phnom Penh before they send me out into the field, or where they'll even send me. All I can say is it's gonna be an adventure! And I hope the girl picking me up brings a taxi big enough to carry my luggage--not just a tiny moped!

     Yesterday at church, my Dad was speaking welcoming a missionary returning back home. He said a few things that really touched me as I embark on this journey. He was speaking about the scripture in Matthew stating that we can't light a fire and keep it under a bushel--that we all have talents that need to be shared and not hid under a bushel. It hit me that I have been prepared for this experience through many experiences in my life and talents that I've developed through my education that I need to share with the world. People often ask me why I would ever want to travel to places like this, how am I so brave to go to these places throughout the world. I often reply that this is my passion--to see the places of the world, and to help people by sharing the many ways that I've been blessed in my life, and likewise learning so much more from them than I ever give to them.

     My only solace through all of this is that so many things have aligned leading me on this path, and for whatever reason, I know this is where I'm supposed to be. My dad also went on to talk about how each of us has talents hidden deep down inside of us, ones that we have to work hard and dig deep within us to discover. I know this is going to be a challenging experience for me, and that I am going to learn so much about myself and discover new things about me that I haven't had the opportunity to learn before. I know the times when I have grown the most have been those times when I've gone outside of my comfort zone and faced my fears. Well time to go catch my next flight. Goodbye from Hong Kong!!!