Chapter Two: Cambodia:

Cambodia came as a shock to me.

In the old days, An and I would’ve walked on our journey and it would’ve taken days to get to our destination. However, this was 1999 and we took the bus. Nuns didn’t own cars, so they relied on public transportation in these modern times. There we’re that many people on the bus that evening. I looked down in my lap and didn’t make eye contact. I glanced up at An. From the profile, she looked like a frowning bull dog. I couldn’t even think of something to say.

“Uh…” I spoke up. She didn’t even move.

“Hm?” An asked. I closed my mouth and looked down in my lap again. Never mind. I couldn’t imagine how other people on the bus would be looking at An’s gruff exterior. She scared me when I first saw her. I couldn’t understand why she looked angry all of the time.

“Why is An so angry?” I asked Mother Hoa when I was six years old.

“She’s not angry, dear,” she told me.

“Then why does she always look like that?”

“She’s lived a hard life, my dear.”

I never tried to ask An about her past. There were rumors of her being in a gang or a drug dealer. She did look the part. Still, it didn’t seem likely. In the end, I dropped my shoulders and tried to think about something else.

In two days, we arrived in Cambodia. An woke me up when she poked me in the ribs with two fingers. I lifted my head, opening my eyes.

“What?” I asked.

“We’re here,” An said. I looked out the window. The bus had pulled up to Capitol Bus Stop. It looked like it had just opened for the morning. At first, they looked just like people back in Vietnam. I turned to An.

“Where are we?” I asked.

“Cambodia,” she said. I tilted my head.

“Cambodia?” I asked. I looked out the window again. It donned on me that I could read any of the signs at the bus station. I also had no idea what I was going to be doing once I left Vietnam. I didn’t even think to ask. An nudged me on the shoulder.

“Get up,” she said. “We are leaving.”

“But where?” I muttered to myself.

“You say something?” my guardian asked. I shook my head as I slid out of my seat. I decided it would be best to follow An’s lead and let her take care of everything.

We ended up staying at a hostel near the city. I didn’t really faze me. I was used to sleep on a mattress and the floor. There weren’t many people in the hostel on that first night. Before we got there, we had to go through customs, I think. I don’t know, An did most of the talking and paperwork. In ten minutes, we were free to walk around Cambodia.

It was really warm that autumn. I noticed many eyes on us as we walked through an outdoor market. I looked up at An.

“Why are they staring at us?” I whispered.

“Don’t make eye contact,” An said under her breath.

“But why?”

“Don’t make eye contact!”

I drew my mouth closed and lowered my eyes to my feet. We ate our first meal at a small family-owned restaurant. I wasn’t too sure of why we picked this particular place. To be honest, I had never really eaten out in a public place before. I looked over at An from my menu.

“Is this okay?” I whispered.

“Yes,” she said. “Now pick out what you want.”

“Are you sure that we can afford this?”

“Yes.”

“But how?”

“Just pick out what you want.”

Sensing I wasn’t going to get more out of her, I shrugged my shoulder and went back to my menu. I picked a small soupy dish. I don’t remember what it was called, but it was spicy with little meat. It must have been that bland because I don’t remember much about, but I think An got the same thing I did and wasn’t impressed. Nevertheless, she handled the tab when we left. I didn’t complain.

“So what exactly are we doing in Cambodia?” I asked An at last when we left the restaurant.

“It is part of your training to observe the world,” she said.

“Huh?”

“You have to see how the world is before you become a priestess.”

I still didn’t get it at the time. “Okay… for how long?”

“Three years.”

I gave An a confused look. “Three… years?”

“This isn’t a vacation. Take a look around you and write it down in your mind.”

I still didn’t follow. “And then what happens?”

“That will depend on you.” She began heading towards the temple, leaving me standing there more lost than before I asked.

“Keep up, girl!” she shouted. “I will leave you behind!”

“Coming,” I muttered. I jogged to catch up with that scary old nun. We stayed in Cambodia for about a month, I believe. I trained in a temple during the day. An and I only went out on the town for meals. As I would later learn, the hostel we were sleeping in was just across the street from the temple. I just did what I always did—adjusted and did all of it with no questions.

By November, An and I were on the move again with a few other pilgrims to a new destination.