TIFFANY TSANG IOM PICK UP.

That's the sign that the IOM driver, Prak Lay held when I stepped into the ARRIVALS section of the Phnom Penh Int'l Airport. I suppose that's also when all of the adrenaline came coursing through my veins. I am in Cambodia now.

There are not many traffic lights so I might just get hit by a car, a tuk tuk, or a moto, again. (I say that in jest) Everyone is really nice, and it seems genuine. My boss, Bruno, has Dengue fever (for the 2nd time) right now, but insists on having lunch with me on Saturday since he couldn't meet me today. His Italian accent is really thick, but absolutely lovely and charming nonetheless and I eagerly await to meet him. My current temporary living situation is called the "Golden Comfort Hotel" and is next to "Golden Gates", "Golden Bridge" and across the street from "Golden Sun Hotel". They are all in front of a golden bridge. I really hope you expected that. All of this appears to be in the NGO area of Phnom Penh as I already have seen Save the Children, some sort of German agro NGO and various other social jusice affilated organizations in one city block. Oh, and my office is across the street from the Embassy of Pakistan, and there are a lot of Indian restaurants on my hotel's street. Halal even if anyone needs. It seems that I cannot get away from all things South Asian! Perhaps I will later watch a downloaded bollywood film in my jetlagged stupor.

In sum...i'm apparently in the "honeymoon phase" of my intercultural adaptation. Conflict and crisis to come soon, but i seem to love it thus far. It's really hot here. However, that thought came secondary to me upon my release into Cambodian air; the first being my sheer delight and excitement in finally living and working in a country I only knew in moving pictures. The city is not as dense as I thought it would be. It's actually quite reminiscent of Havana, or any other post-colonial city in a developing nation. I suppose if I were in Nairobi, I would see similar architecture and urban planning.

Cambodia is nothing like I expected. It's much more and I really can't wait to soak it all in.

I wish I could take a picture from my hotel room, but the window faces a brick wall and another apartment building I think.

However, I expect to spend most of my time at work. They really think that I know quite a bit about HIV/AIDS. I learned this when I visited the office of the IOM (non-religious) Mission to Cambodia today, where I'll be sharing a room with Bruno, my boss. I have learned much about the social determinants of HIV/AIDS prevention and treatment, but much of it remains in North American and southern African contexts. As a result, and thanks to the free internet in my room, I will be reading papers from PubMed about migration health and HIV/AIDS in the Greater Sub-Mekong Region this weekend. Oh, and getting my Japanese Encephalitis shot and hoping not to catch Dengue.

In the meantime, as Bruno and my friend Sadia would say,

Ciao.