Wednesday morning in the library at Cambodia Adventist School, I waited for the email to load that would tell me if I was going to Thailand that weekend. Olivia, a friend in Bangkok from Tennessee, and I were considering rock-climbing. It finally loaded and I read that it wasn't going to work out that weekend. So I began to make new plans. The next morning at 8.15a, I crammed into a truck taxi with seven others
and one who sat on the back high above the heavy cargo. I was headed to Mundul Kiri in northern Cambodia. The first half of the drive, I and another guy sat a bit uncomfortably to the right of the driver and the stick-shift. The second half, I convinced them that I could sit on the pile of things in the back. I shared it with four more we had picked up along the way. It was dusty, but much more spacious. I enjoyed the wind and the scenery. Soon we were up in the hills. The cool air and clouds and unfamiliar yet recognizable scent of rain eventually yielded a splash from the sky and I was cold for the first time in over a month.
Atop the cargo in back of the taxi over the hills, wind blowing, the scent of rain, and a bit of dust on my nose.
I arrived at 6p and was welcomed into the Pewitt home--Braden, Johanna, and Keenan their 14-month-old son. Within a few minutes we sat down to a freshly cooked meal. We got to know each other better and soon began planning the next day's activities. After dinner, I was washing dishes when I heard rain on the roof! Genuine, heavy rain--quite odd for March. The rainy season usually doesn't start until late April or May. It was exciting. Then I was shown my very own 'bathroom' and guest room complete with mosquito net as it is malaria area. That night I slept coolly without the customary required fan.
I was awakened the next morning shortly after six for a morning walk with Braden. We moved along a slightly muddy road and collected a bit of clay on our shoes as we strode towards a nearby hill. The air was wet and misty. We reached a set of steps and marched up to where a few spirit houses had been built. Braden also showed me some missile craters from Vietnam days; the Vietnam border is not far away. We couldn't see too far for the low clouds and mist, but much farther than in flat Phnom Penh. Then we headed down and we talked about girls the whole way back. We still had much to do that day.
The elephant gets a bath before our trek.
We packed a breakfast (and lunch), donned our helmets, and took off on the motorbike. We were headed to the Pnong hill tribe that is so frequented by Johanna and Braden. We rode out of the small town and onto a dirt roade. Our speed increased as we rode over the high ground. We talked about the beauty of the hillsides and how we could see so far. Soon we descended into the valley of the Phnong village. We met and Braden talked with some of the villagers there including the chief. But you wouldn't know it. He was a normal looking man, dark skin and black hair, unshaven in dirty western clothes. But it was his elephant we were going to ride. We ate our banana bread muffins breakfast and sat and talked under the shade of a low thatch structure that was the 'front porch' of someone's house. The man who was going to guide the elephant came and left again to go get the elephant. Braden and I decided to go along to find the elephant. She couldn't go very far because her front legs were tied. She wore a small bell round her neck as well so we could hear her. We followed the guide and found her in the woods. He untied her front legs and gave her commands. Soon he was on top of her head and leading her back towards the village. Braden and I followed. Back at the chief's Khmer house, the elephant was being prepared. They put a thick palm bark saddle on and a sort of bamboo cage seat for Braden and I. We went to the top of the steps and climbed on, stepping around the guide, walking on her head.
That's a sling shot around his hat. He used it frequently on birds along the way...but missed every time. Of course, Braden and I weren't the most quiet passengers at those times. We were rootin' for the birds.
Then we were off, down the dirt road and up and off the road and up the brown grassy hill and up and up. The guide sang a traditional Phnong love song. And we listened quietly to the song and the creaking of our saddle and the wind. We were relaxed and amazed at the strong of this animal. We went up quite steeply. Later, we strode down into a riverbed. The elephant went down with its front feet then down on her knees with her back legs and dragged them. This made it quite a bit more level for us and very stable for her. Elephants are smart. I was amazed at all the one word commands this large animal obeyed. In the jungle, she cleared her own path for us. Our guide would sometimes tell her to break branches or remove thick high vines that would otherwise take out her cargo. It was amazing. Other times, we would pause and wonder which way we were going to go round a tree or dense vegetation. About three times, we were amazed when the meaty mammal would simply go straight and carefully mow down the tree! We heard some strange and beautiful bird calls, spotted a few including a light brown owl and the green swallow-like bee-eaters. We stopped at two small waterfalls. There, we studied the peculiar leeches. They come from nowhere and follow you. They must smell you or sense your heat. We could watch them come out of the leaves towards us. Then, we would move to another rock and they would turn around and continue towards you. It was a little freaky.
The sun shines through and enhances a translucent leaf.
Looking up at the high falls.
The coolest leaf ever!
At the second and larger waterfall we stuffed ourselves with a wonderful lunch of bread, hummus, green peppers, tomatoes, and cucumbers. We ate by the water and talked about interesting things. We also explored around the falls; the water mostly drips down the long roots of the plants high above. Here I found a large, very cool leaf I had first seen from the back of the elephant. I kept it, folded it in half and pressed it in my journal. To get back on, the elephant would lay down and lean over for easy access to her back. I could barely lift a long leg in and lift the other leg off the ground no sooner than she would get back up with perfect timing. It was pretty smooth. On our way back up a steep section, I discovered a few leeches crawling on my feet. I peeled them off with a leave (they stick to your fingers) and found only one that had attached sneakily between my toes. He wasn't real big yet and I didn't bleed much. And now I have a good story to tell.
She lies down so we can get back on. How polite.
I tried to drive her. Apparently I wasn't doing it right; she didn't budge.
Braden and I. Our villager guide took the picture.
Elephants are my new favorite animal. They are amazing! Time after time, Braden and I would remark on how incredible this was. We were aboard for several hours and it never got old. I loved it. I was fortunate to have such a forge your own path, non-touristy, incredible experience.
Back at the village, we didn't spend much time. We wanted to get back before the possible rainstorm. We still had a 30 minute motorbike ride. We took of up the knoll and when we came up over the top of the horizon, the hills unrolled again before us. We stopped and Braden let me assume the driver position. It was fun going fast over the hillside and looking out at the clouds. The sun was getting low and it was beautiful.
That night, several other local missionary families came to the house for fellowship and worship and singing. A nice way to begin the Sabbath. Sabbath morning, we went to church in a small traditional Khmer home where the three of us made up half the people present. Johanna translated the Khmer to English for me. It was interesting and moving and everyone had a little input. I especially liked that we have value because God created us to be His friends. He held out to us His vulnerable heart, knowing we would crush it, yet He still did it out of His truly extreme love for us. He continues to love us unconditionally and there's nothing we can do to make Him love us more. After about an hour at church, we returned home. It was 9.30 am. We still had the whole day! We sat at home and relaxed and talked. We read some and used the internet some (at the house). A few hours later, lunch was ready. We packed up and set out for a picnic under the pines. We took the truck and once there discovered one of the families at the house the night before. So we joined them and had a nice time. More GOOD food. It was nice under the pines. I went barefoot on the pine needles and it felt good. I heard the rustling of the wind. I hadn't experienced trees or forest since the last week of January in the jungle of Previt Heir Province with the Seniors. The little girl and her father were running around catching butterflies with a graceful butterfly net. I heard the murmur of voices beneath the sounds of my own thoughts. It was peaceful.
Picnic under the pines.
On the way back, the little girl, a Swedish volunteer, and I rode in the back of the pick-up. We dropped them off and continued home where we chilled some more. As the sun was setting, I read my Bible out on the porch and watched the motos and people go by on the not too busy road below. When it got dark, I went in and talked with Braden again while he made popcorn. When Johanna had nursed Keenan and put him to sleep, we went down the ladder to watch October Sky on the computer. We ate chocolate, popcorn, and watermelon. It reminded me of the same menu with my brother and sister-in-law, Nathan and Jessica, our cousins Josh and Danielle, my friend Emily, and Grammie and Grampie at their house last summer after a rafting/canoeing trip down the Hiawassee. It was special--the first Saturday night I've had like that since I left Tennessee. In the morning, it was back to sweaty Phnom Penh. This trip was more spacious (and more expensive) with only three in the back of a Camry taxi. It was also only eight hours--2 shorter than on the way up.
It was a marvelous trip and rejuvenated me for another week of school, even though it didn't help me get any grading done. But then, grading is not actually what life is about.
