Meanwhile, Back in Phnom Penh

The Graber Millers enjoyed a momentary respite the first week after SSTers left for their service assignments. Ann and Keith took the opportunity to do a five-hour Cambodian cooking class at The Frizz near the National Museum. With Mennonite Central Committee volunteers Ron and Roseann Sachs and five other random people, they learned how to make Cambodian fried spring rolls and fish amok, a common Cambodian delicacy.

Roseann and Ron Sachs work with the Royal University of Phnom Penh, where our SSTers did their Khmer language training. During her sabbatical year from Messiah College, Roseann is teaching Chemistry at RUPP, and Ron (usually a youth pastor) is teaching English. The Graber Millers and the Sachs have gotten together a couple of times for dinner, and their nearly-same-age children have enjoyed playing together.

During the past week while Keith was out visiting students in the eastern provinces, Ann and the kids bought a small blow-up pool and now use it out on the deck as a break from the intense heat. Temperatures have gone up some five degrees since students left town, and this week it will hit just over 100 degrees (38 degrees Celsius) and then continue to increase between now and mid-April. The whole family will leave for Rattanakiri and Kampong Cham provinces on Sunday and be gone for about six days. During that trip they’ll see nine of the 19 students. Posts about the visits to Svay Rieng and Prey Veng provinces will follow later this morning/afternoon.