Land of the Midnight Sun

OK, I'm trying to keep up on my blogging. After working for a week getting back from PP10, I had the opportunity to meet up with Britt, my old roommate from college and good friend, and Alex her husband and go up to visit Alaska where she's from. We had a great time glacier hiking, regular hiking, seeing many much moosen (thank you Brian Regan), softball, biking, going to Denali, checking out the local farmers market and just having fun hanging out again. It's crazy how late the sun stays up, it really messes with you. I think one night we didn't eat dinner until 10 PM, and it didn't even feel that late. Anyway, a few pictures of the events there. But first, a cute picture I took of my neice right before I left...

Ah. Just great. Love it.

OK, the majority of my pictures are from glacier hiking, because it was fun. So, here it goes...

Big glacier. Yup.

Me, Hyrum (Britt's little brother), Britt, nd Alex. And yes, Alex really is that tall. When we were at church on Sunday, someone walked by us as we were chatting with someone and said under her breath "holy tallness!" It was funny.

I'm not gonna lie, it was fun hiking with the crampons. I could totally see myself getting into mountain and glacier hiking.

Britt and I

The next few are Denali. Which, I never acually got to *see* Denali while I was there because of the clouds, it was still a great time and beautiful.

Matt and Britt.

So, there's a Honolulu Creek on the way up to Denali; and I happened to be wearing my Kona, HI sweatshirt. Coincidence? I think not. Though, it was NOT Hawaiian weather :)

At the Market in downtown Anchorage. It's a model of a dogsled for the Iditarod. Cool.

And, most importantly, proof we played softball. Yes, we look silly wearing our bike helmets, but that's ok.

It was a great time. I had so much fun. And I couldn't ask for better company. I can now check Alaska off the list of states I've visited. Next stop, Las Vegas with Motel 10! I'll explain that in the next post...

Angkor Wat-Cambodia

So, one of the touristy highlights of my trip was being able to go on a tour of Angkor Wat, one of the 7 Wonders of the World. It was quite a  long drive from where the ship was in Sihanoukville, but, in my opinion, totally worth it to be able to go and see this. We left at 10 PM from the pier and drove a good 8-9 hours through the night on a bumpy bus ride (the driver stopped like 5-6 times through the night; I guess everyone needs a break now and then, but really? 6 times? He even stopped to take an hour long nap!). Anyway, we got to spend about 4 or 5 hours seeing the various temples. It was truly amazing, and I can see why it is named one of the 7 Wonders. It really feels like you're walking into an Indiana Jones movie. So much intricate detail on every single wall. Here are some pictures of my experience; you can find more information on Angkor Wat here.

Just hanging out on an elephant.

The details are amazing.

All along those walls are intricate designs of people, fish, trees, boats, etc. Every square inch. According to Wiki, the decoration comes in the form of "bas relief friezes", depicting several different Hindu stories.

Bayon, one of the temples we visited.

Angkor Wat...

The next pictures are of Ta Keo, where Lara Croft was filmed. It's different from the other Wats in Angkor because they allowed the vegetation to grow around and through the Wat, so it's more like a jungle in the Wat than an actual temple. It was really cool to see the massive roots that have grown into the temple over hundreds and thousands of years.

All in all, a super fantastic trip, and totally worth the 16+ hours of driving time to go. I just wish I could have stayed longer. You could totally send a week there and be totally occupied and content. I did this tour thinkng I'd probably never make it back to Cambodia in my lifetime, but after coming to Angkor and seeing all of this, I might have to make my way back again at some point. I'd also love to spend some time in Pmnonh Phenh, the capital, and learn more about the history of Cambodia.

Pacific Partnership was an incredible experience I will not forget. I'm glad I had the opportunity to go-to learn about the military, about the people of Vietnam and Cambodia, and to interact with the people. I hope I made a small impact on the people for the better. I look forward to doing something similar in the future, but for now, it's nice to be home!

Some of my Favorite People From PP10

So, I realize, after looking at my last post, there are absolutely NO military people in my pictures! Which is silly, because I made tons of new friends, and most of them are military (sorry everyone, no "special someone") So, here are a few of my favorite people I met on this mission, both military and non...

Brad, Louise, Kent and Taylor. Super great people.

Ward 1 RNs-representatives include LDS-C (me and Pirrko in the baby blue) US Army, US Airforce, US Navy, Canada, Australia, and Project Hope. Singapore was with us in Vietnam, as well.

Me and the CPTN-US Army

My friend-CPTN US AF :)

So, I was trying to get a shot with me and the Army totally serious. And then our buddy comes in with her floaty and sunglasses...oh well!

One of my favorite new friends from LDS-C, Pirrko!

My "bosses"-super great people.

Another attempt at a serious pose. We tried.

Canada and US Army

AKA Pops

Singapore Whites.

At the Commodore's Reception-Military in their Navy whites, me in my polo and khakis. I felt very "well-dressed" for the occasion.

Next post...Angkor Wat!

The Past 6 Weeks of my Life in a Nutshell

OK, so quick recap on the last six weeks, with pictures...

GUAM

We spend a few days in Guam, a liberty port, and did some sightseeing and hiking after getting settled in on the ship. We were also able to attend civilian church.

Liz and I at an ABC Store. Gary, Liz and I at the end of the Spanish Steps hike. Super great and fun.

The Vietnam LDS Charities group at church in Guam.

Yes, I'm at the beach in my LDSC POLO shirt. Yeah, I felt very well dressed for the occasion.

Only 2 of the many pallets donated by LDS Humanitarian Services.

It took us a week to get to Vietnam from Guam. I worked days in Vietnam, 12 hour shifts, with 2 days off over the course of 2 weeks. I'm so glad I don't have to do that regularly! The following are pictures of Quy Nohn Vietnam on my liberty days.

The "gas station" for the mopeds/scooters.

This is the coolest Vietnamese patient. Super funny and great sense of humor.

After 2 weeks in Vietnam, we *steamed* to Cambodia for 2.5 weeks (that's Navy speak, you know-you don't "sail" to places, you "steam". Like in Titanic where they say "full steam ahead"...or...something...). I worked nights in Cambodia and had two nights off.

Sihanoukville, CambodiaA "tuk-tuk", the primary mode of transportation in Cambodia-essentially a scooter pulling a carriage.

The "countryside" out in the boonies from the "tuk-tuk".

One of the clinics where the MEDCAPs were held.

This was my favorite patient from the whole trip. She was deaf and mute-she stayed with us several nights after her surgery and was so nice, funny and cute. I miss her.

This was a cataract patient who was so appreciative that I gave her tylenol for her pain. Seriously, constantly after giving it to her, she kept bowing and holding my hand. It was a refreshing change from what I deal with in the US.

I also had the opportunity to go to Angkor Wat, one of the 7 wonders of the world. A separate post will be necessary for that experience. :)

After our time in Cambodia, we steamed to Singapore, where we spent a day there on liberty before I flew home. It's a super clean city, where you get fined heavily for anything and everything-gum chewing, jaywalking, eating and walking...

The architecture is great, we rode the Singapore Flyer-the biggest Ferris Wheel in the world, and ate some delish Singaporian food. All in all, a pretty great day after the monsoon rain stopped.

And that, my friends, is my life in a nutshell. Good times were had, good to be back, ready to figure out the rest of my life. Or at least the next few months, anyway...