deartraveller

Dear Érica,

I'm missing Portugal so badly. Little did I knew I would cry reading your letter, if I did, I wouldn't had read it in front of Gabriel!

Nonetheless I'm glad you had such a great time in our home. But I must tell you, you caught me by surprise when mentioning that new Lisbon of yours. 'by surprise' not only because I was having lunch (drum roll please) ... at McDonald's, but also because I didn't saw Cambodia in the same way since then.

Officially known as the Kingdom of Cambodia, is a country located in the southern portion of the Indochina Peninsula in Southeast Asia. Bordered by Thailand to the northwest, Laos to the northeast, Vietnam to the east and the Gulf of Thailand  to the southwest, the country's minority groups include Vietnamese, Chinese, Chams (an ethnic group in Southeast Asia) and 30 hill tribes (highland tribes), talking about globalization right?

What I'm trying to say is: strong textiles, agriculture, construction, garments, and tourism sectors led to foreign investments and international trade. So, the two sides of this 'coin', wich is the globalization you mentioned, are actually very interesting.

First, as I don't like it either, two girls with the same t-shirt is the most common situation to happen here. Any idea why? Checking the labels of my clothes I realized that a big part of them were 'made in Cambodia', so it's like I've arrived to a country of twins. Oddly enough the cambodians are world-twins as everyone in the world as access to the same pieces of clothe or shoes. As manufacturing costs are much smaller here this is not only a country of twins but also of factories. It's like walking through Baixa or the Fifth Avenue!

Even this young men tried to sell 'Prada' sandals to Gabriel! It was hilarious!!

But giving some positive outcomes to my letter I couldn´t be happier when I realized I could mantain a conversation with most individuals that I talked with. The man of the sandals had the most remarkable accent and if it wasn't for the cigarette always pending from his lips it would sound almost like our English teacher from the 12th grade. (I think you remember her for her good relationship with time ).

Now this was a serious matter. See the first picture? Let me give you an idea of my face when I saw Gabriel eating: .

Now see my face when I tasted that tidbit on the second picture: .

And it's not a joke. The rumor of frog legs tasting like chicken is more than true! (In case you're wondering what reactions did Gabriel had just switch the faces).

But now amase yourself with the beauty of Cambodia.

Buddhist temple.

Theravada buddhism is the main religion practiced by approximately 95% of the Cambodian population and once again Gabriel got in touch with his ancestors' work. It was amazing, breath-taking and I'm running out of adjectives!

Well my dear friend, my next letter may be a little different from what you're used toread but for now I hope you enjoyed the glimpse of Cambodia that I provided to you, farewell!

Love,

Sara.