Another week of adventure. We’re not sure we can share on a weekly basis, but we’ll try whenever we can. Here’s an update on our life here in Southeast Asia.
Our main mode of transportation in the city is called a “Tuk-tuk” or a modern rickshaw. (Other people have cars). On a daily basis, we travel from our apartment to the radio station office (about 10–15 minute drive depending on the traffic). We thank the Lord for a good tuk-tuk driver, Nara, who drives us to and from the office everyday. Going to other places, we also use a mobile phone app to call a taxi or other rickshaws (like booking an Uber ride).
Visiting the Transmitter Site
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One day last week, we visited the transmitter site of Voice of Love. The studio and office are located in the main part of the city. However, the transmitter site is in the outskirts west of the office site, about 5-6 miles drive, again depending on the traffic. One of the engineering staff took us to the transmitter site. We all rode a taxi.
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David, as a broadcast engineer is happy to see the FM radio transmitter running well. We were delighted also to visit with the faithful workers who keep the transmitter running day in and day out. We were blessed by their hospitality as they served us drinks and snacks.
For the past few months, David and the leadership of the ministry (VOL) with a project team have been planning the construction of a new tower. Currently our radio station is using a guyed tower. Lord willing, the team here is preparing to have a self-supporting tower and other improvements.
Transportation and Language Challenges
After a good visit with the transmitter staff, and seeing the on-going construction, we prepared to book a ride back to town. We found out that it was not easy to get a regular taxi to go back to town, except for a tuk-tuk or rickshaw. Since small rickshaws can only carry 2 people, the staff suggested we take separate rides. So, we booked our rickshaw. When our rickshaw came, just before we drove away, the driver told our staff in the local language that his phone was not working well. The main language of the people in Cambodia is called Khmer (pronounced Ka-mye). We noticed many of the young people speak some English, but others don’t. Communicating is sometimes a challenge.
So going back to our rickshaw story, in the middle of the ride, the driver said something to us that we did not really understand. We thought he said something in English, the word, “cancel”.
So, we said, “No cancel please”. We didn’t know how to say it in Khmer, and we forgot to use our phones’ translation app. We did not know the road, and we were not sure if the driver was taking us in the right direction to go back to town. So, we started praying. In our phone app, the ride was cancelled, so we could not see if the driver was following the right directions in the map. David and I did not know what to do and how to communicate with the driver. We prayed and trusted God to help us. When we got to the middle of the city, we noticed the driver was not sure how to get to our destination (back to our apartment). With wisdom from our Lord, we told him the nearest landmark, a well-known mall near our apartment. After a few minutes, we arrived at the mall. From there, we knew our way to the apartment. We thank our Lord that even amid language challenges, the Lord took care of us.
So, we started language class this past weekend with a small group of 3 students and 2 teachers (a local teacher and an American).
We would appreciate prayer as we study Khmer.
The Creels' Catch 