We spent the morning reviewing and then giving the final exam...they all passed with flying colors of course! We played a few rounds of their favorite games to celebrate and got laughing so hard. That will be one of my fondest memories, how wonderful their laughter is. They just let it go and get hysterical, and it is contagious! After lunch we sent the girls upstairs and we started decorating. Let me tell you, that room looked sooooo good. It was truly the setting that they deserved! Clay's brother took photos and although we cannot have any that show the girls' faces I am hoping he will be sending us some safe ones that I can share. We did the whole pomp and circumstance with diplomas, hand shakes, flowers and photos. After that was done we handed out the gift bags and then the whole audience covered them in silly string!
Next we were told to go upstairs and a little later they led us down with our eyes closed (let me tell you, going down 3 flights of stairs led by a girl that can't even speak English is a test of trust!). They surprised us with a beautiful cake that was delicious but in true Khmer style they started a CAKE FIGHT that left us all covered in pink and white frosting. In our hair, up our noses, and completely covering our faces...but believe me, we got them pretty well too. It was so much crazy fun!
The day was finished with a trip to their fair. It is a combination of a swap meet and a fair actually. It was incredible to step into their culture and see what they do to have fun. We walked through the swap meet part first, the people sell new and used clothes, toiletries, and even school supplies right along the roadside. Then we rented a mat to sit on by the river and ordered from the stands that serve food. There are photos below and yes, I did eat it! That was followed by a wild time on some bumper cars, throwing darts at balloons and lastly jumping on a trampoline. Of course that little voice inside my head said, "Beth, you are 54 years old and you should NOT be jumping on a trampoline let alone with 6 other people inside with you" and my little voice was right again! I heard something pop/tear inside of my left knee and I am sitting here on 800 milligrams of ibuprofen with my knee elevated and an ice pack (thanks to my very kind and sweet roommate Heidi!). I am asking for prayers that it is better in the morning since we have big plans tomorrow...you will have to come back to see what it is!
In the mean time, here are some photos from our day...
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| Here we are getting everything prepared for the girls' big day tomorrow. So wonderful to have these two to share in this special moment! We pulled it all together with happy hearts because we love these girls so much! |
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| The fish and chickens are squeezed between bamboo sticks and grilled. I think the chickens look more like roadkill! |
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Some of the swap meet area to the left and above. |
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| Our wrists decked out in some of the beautiful things the girls gifted us with. We got so many necklaces today that it was hard to hold our heads up, lol. These girls have such generous hearts! |
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| This was dinner. I tried the fish and chicken from above and actually loved the fish. It came with rice and they sit and use their fingers to scoop the rice into their mouths. One of the girls gave me a lesson and it was fun eating with my hands (thank goodness for handiwipes in my purse). I drew the line on the little bird. As you can see, Kali gave it a try though... brave and adventurous girl! |
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| Bella and Peter were our tour guides for tonight. They sure know how to show 3 American women a good time. Love these two! |
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