Marketplace/ Travel to Poipet

This morning/afternoon was our "tourist day." We were able to walk around Siem Reap (and ride on the crazy tuk tuk) and shop. We went to this large open air marketplace. It was so colorful. Hot pinks, lime greens, everything was bright and cheerful, and naturally, caught my eye. It reminded me a bit of Anthropologie (the store) but everything costs like $1-$5. Awesome. I bought a lot and only spent like $20.  The market also sold raw fish parts, which were hung up like dried meats. The fact that it's like 90 degrees didnt seem to bother anyone. Hot fish guts, anybody? Crossing the streets here is like a fierce game of frogger - try really hard not to get hit.  Everytime we crossed a busy street as a team, there was a noted "good luck" and "meet you on the other side."  We have a contest to see who can spot the most people on one motorbike.  So far the record is 5: two adults, three little kids.  They have great balance here.  On our drive to Poipet (where we are now) we passed a ton of buddhist temples (obviously), really skinny cows and water buffalo, flooded rice fields (it's worse outside of Siem Reap), and a couple of weddings. The dry season (Nov-Jan) is the wedding season. Most Cambodians get married around 18, and it's usually arranged. Rough.  Their weddings are VERY colorful. Lots of hot pink.  The meals here have been good. For breakfast we had eggs, tomato, and baked beans (like in England) and coffee.  On our way to Poipet, we stopped for lunch at this little side of the road cafe.  We were with two CHO staff members who recommended the place.  They ordered curry with chicken hearts and liver. I ordered veggie curry and it was delicious.  Once we arrived in Poipet, we had a meeting with 3 CHO staffers to solidify our itinerary for the next week. It's pretty full, with two days at the soldier camp, one day at the safe haven (where trafficking victims go), another day at the safe house (where at risk children go, similar to a foster home).  We'll also be working and, hopefully, bonding with the CHO staff.  The goal is to establish a relationship with CHO so teams can continue to come back here.  One of the CHO staffers was in the Cambodian army in 1979.  That means he was fighting against Pol Pott.  We are going to dinner tonight in the casino zone. This is a heavy tourist area. It should be interesting. Tomorrow we're going over to CHO for church.