monks in mandalay u bein bridge

A Little Nostalgia… A Reason to Love Southeast Asia

In recent posts, I’ve talked about how I’m a bit lost right now in terms of knowing precisely the direction life is taking. Each time I sit to write, that single truth stands out above the rest. I’m in a transition, and those feelings and thoughts manifest in my writing; when I try to ignore …

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A Little Volunteering… Continued Mentoring Years Later

Two weeks ago, I was playing around on Facebook as a way to procrastinate the real work I should have been doing when a chat window popped up—from a sweet young woman I met at the orphanage in Cambodia where I volunteered more than a year and a half ago. Then, a decade later, it …

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A Little Sweet… Six Fun Treats from Around the World

When you travel the world, you discover all kinds of new things: new dishes, new festivals, new cultures, new friends. The list is endless—it’s a parade of new things. Include sweet treats! Sure, over the years I’ve found my favorite signature dishes that I will forever love thanks to sampling them in a new country—some …

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Cambodian Dancer Children

A Little Culture… Learning Cambodian Dance Hand Gestures

One day I sat chatting with the children at the orphanage I volunteered at last year in Cambodia and I stuttered into a shocked silence as they casually stretched their fingers backwards—their fingers dipping so far back over the top of their hands with pressure that the tips could actually touch their arms. I had been at …

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A Little Quandary… When Should You Donate to Child Beggars

The oldest girl in the group of children, she couldn’t have been more than 13, leveled a sly look my way before stating: “Lady, you buy our bracelets or who knows what will happen to your bicycles…” At that point, I think my jaw dropped. The Backstory Laura and I rented bikes for a day …

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Angkor Wat Cambodia

A Little Exploring… The History and Fun of Visiting Angkor Wat, Cambodia

Traveling Southeast Asia these past months has been an incredible whirlwind. Seven weeks seemed like enough to make the backpacker loop through Thailand, Laos, Vietnam, and Cambodia, but that isn’t even remotely the case. I decided to adjust my itinerary and save Vietnam for another trip, which has allowed me to more deeply explore Laos. …

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