Mmmmm, Tropical Beaches (Sihanoukville, Cambodia)

So I just spent about 5 days on the white-sand tropical beaches of Sihanoukville in southern Cambodia. mmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmm, ahhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh, ooooooooooh! so nice. Free accomodation (if you agree to eat from their over-priced menu) and fun Cambodian entrepeneurs--10-14 year-old boys and girls walk up and down the sand, weaving among the tourists and locals alike, peddling bracelets, post cards, fruit, seashells, and paintings they've made. I have no intention of buying anything, but my last day, I spend $2 on 4 shrimp-shaped keychains made of embroidery floss (facinating! they say it takes 2 hours to make one) and 50 cents on fruit salad. Send these kids to business school, eradicate corruption from the government, and Cambodia will be on top of the world in 10-15 years. By the way, it only costs $330 to send a child to school for a year in Sihanoukville. I hear it is more like $70 for a year in Phnom Penh...

I had a phenomenal time here--even came up with the idea of going back to grad school through a master's international program incorporating a a term in the peace corps to study public health. inspiring.

oh, and if you ever doubt the existance of God (higher power, unity in consciousness), get thee to a tropical beach and watch the sunset. If your faith cannot be restored there, many blessings on your journey--I suspet it will be a long and arduous one.