1. Description
As soon as I opened the door to the apartment, I knew that my roommate had played party host all weekend long. The first thing I noticed was the smell of cigarette and beer. At the right hand side of the door, empty bottles were lying everywhere, under the couch, on the couch, under the table and on the table. Food was also spilled over the couch, leaving some stains. The beer pong table was still there, with empty and half-empty glasses on top. It was even more obvious when I saw my roommate lying on the floor next to the bathroom’s door. No doubt that it has been a crazy weekend party.

2. Narration
When it was all said and done, I was just glad to call it a day. Since early in the morning, I barely had time to eat or sleep. The wedding ceremony started at around 7 in the morning. I had to run back and forth to host guest as if I was the bride myself. My mother would occasionally call me in to help taking care the bride, since she herself was also tired with all these traditional rituals. Evening came, I was even busier. For there was not many people to help with the reception, I had to run errands, talk with the cook, and the list was endless. At that time, I just wished this wedding party was over. I did not have the energy to celebrate my brother’s big day; all I could think of was the warm bath and soft bed that were waiting for me back home.

3. Illustration
There are many ways that the university bookstore takes advantage of students. First and foremost, the books are so expensive, somewhat more expensive that purchasing them elsewhere. The same thing happens with used books. With Amazon, students can purchase the same used books at a much lower price than that at our school bookstore. Not only does the bookstore take advantage of student with books but also other stuffs ranging from sweater to a bottle of coke. The price is just unreasonable. For example, a bottle of around 500mL coke costs around $1 while one can buy a big 2L from Wal-Mart at around $ 1.5 only.

4. Narration
My roommate has a very peculiar morning ritual. She wakes up very early in the morning. Then she would say some prayer in a very strange language I can’t detect. Her prayer ends with three bows, which she touches her head with the floor. After that, she would drink a cup of milk.

Starting college

Starting college in America is a no easy task, everyone says. There are courses and books prepared just to help student successfully adapted to the new way of life in college. Many people believe that college in just another place to study and get a degree. There is no significant difference from high school and college life. I always wondered if it was true, and I did not get the answer until I have the chance to study at USI that I know starting college is tiring and stressful. However, it is a rewarding experience ever that has a big impact on my academic and personal life. I know I will never be the same person eight week ago again.

At the start of the semester, I was an unconfident and stressful person. Given to my worrywart nature, I was always complaining about the demands and challenges in each and every class. With my friends, I was a talkative person, but I was a totally different person in class. I would sit at the farthest row from the professor, afraid that s/he might notice and ask me questions. This is probably due to the linguistic and cultural barriers I am confronting in American classroom. Nevertheless, thing started to go on smoothly by the start of the third week. I got high grade in almost every test and assignment. My confidence has built up. I am, at least, less afraid in speaking in class. My command of English is gradually improving. I can now understand the difference between American and Cambodian college system, making it easier for me to adjust to college life here.

Furthermore, my attitude toward writing has also changed. First, I viewed writing as a haunting task. I did not like writing at all. In my high school classroom, we were rarely given written assignment. Thus, it was a huge change when I am assigned with at least 2 writing tasks a week. The experience was especially unpleasant with my ENG 490 class. I had to read and analyze tutoring theories practiced in the writing center. They were all the pain in the neck. Gradually, I started to appreciate those written assignment. I noticed that I was able to write faster, but with more accuracy. Moreover, I could effectively blend my reading and experience in real life into my writing, or at least that what my professor told me. Recently, I got a full 100% for my paper which made me extremely delighted. The achievement I have had in that class motivates me to write. Now I’m beginning to like writing. I view it as another way to express my opinion in addition to talking.

Still, there is a long way to go for this semester. I firmly believe that by the end of Fall semester, I would be a different student, a student who believes in the positive transformation college made in students, a person who appreciates the joy of acquiring new experience in college.

"Cash Flow"

When I was in Cambodia, I was totally dependent on my family to support my study and living. It is not our culture to leave home, unless our college is too far to get to. However, usually, teenagers are financially dependent on their parents until they are employed after graduates. I find it totally different from students here in the United States. They are financially independent, at least to some extent. Because I am at USI on a scholarship exchange program sponsored by the US Department of States, my life style hasn’t changed much with the financial matters.

I am here on a J-1 visa, thus I am not allowed to do any paid-job. Yet, I have to study hard to ensure my monthly allowance. I also have to write Bi-weekly report, answer monitoring phone call so on and so forth. I also have to volunteer with the community at least 10 hours for Fall semester. Literally, I am required to do it, but I am more than happy to get involved with Evansville community as I regularly did volunteer work back home. Plus, it is good for me to contribute something to American society since they have already given a lot to my country.

Also, I have all my meal plans and munch money for everyday meals and other necessity in campus. So there is not much stuffs I have to get with my pocket money from my program.

Nevertheless, I am still cautious with the budget when shopping off campus. In my country, goods are cheap; in contrast, almost everything is expensive. In Cambodia, I usually went out to eat or shop with my friends twice a week. For I am totally by myself here, I need to be exceptionally thrifty especially with eating out and buying stuffs. Goods at Wal-Mart are cheap, but in my country they are even cheaper. Still, no matter how economical I try with my budget, my cash still flows easily like river.

Also, there are some other times which I have to spend money. I am the socialized-type of person, spending my free time dining out with friends or going to the movies. During break like Thanksgiving or other long breaks, I would go out of Evansville to visit other cities. It would the time when I spend the most money. Last time in Chicago, I spent almost 30o dollars just for 4 days. The sum might not be that much for American, but for a student like me, it is definitely a huge sum. In the near future, that is for Winter break, I am going to spend like 3 weeks in Boston and New York and I am sure that I will spend a lot of money on that as well. If I am not careful, I bet that I will be in a huge financial trouble.

My study at USI is financially supported, so does my living. My allowance is not that much, but just enough for me if I am cautious with my budget. Hence, my lifestyle does not change much before coming to USI because I was also financially dependent on my family. The difference is that I have to be careful enough not to let my socializing activities cost too much that I would end up do not have enough money to spend on everyday living.

Behaviors that get on my nerve

Having spent some time living in America, there are aspects which I like and others I do not really like. The ones that I do not really like range from that during my interaction with people from other culture to the living habits of the Americans.

In Cambodia, girl and boy are not to suppose to touch one another. Even couples can show their affection toward one another in public only at some level, at certain time, and in certain places only. The sight of people hugging, needless to say kissing, is rare in public places in Cambodia. It is just our culture not to show physical affection in public. People who do it to me just get on my nerve sometimes.

Living in the Global Community Floor at Ruston Hall allows me to come into contact with people from many culture. There is one particular boy who is from Central America which is especially “touchy”. Whenever he meets other people, he would stretch his hand and say “Come on, give me a hug”. And the way that boy hug is also different from others. His way is particularly closed and more like a couple hugging rather than simple acquaintances, I think. To my relief, he does not treat me with his “touchy” habits like others, at least not until I talked about it in our global community class.

Another physical contact that get me frustrate here is when people do that Latino dance to me. Dance looks horrible. People would just move their hip in a sexy way, at least they consider it sexy and hot. But to me, as a Cambodian girl, I feel offended. I am open and respectful of other culture, but I just do not like people doing that to me. Whenever people try to dance like that with me, I would just politely tell me that Asian girls don’t do that. Usually, they understand and respect me.

Another behavior that I do not like to see is kissing in the public. Well, it is not something that I get frustrated about because I know that people from other countries love that. But I just do not like to see it; it is just uncomfortable for me. There are lots of times when I walk from my dorm to USI and have to ignore couples displaying their love. In my country, couples would never do like that because it is strongly frowned upon.

I also have problems with other behaviors that do not necessarily related to me directly. Probably, one of the most annoying of all is American overconsumption habit. I notice people take shower more than they should. Moreover, they use it too carelessly. The same goes with food. What I mean is that some students at the Loft take a lot of food and they do not finish it all. And this troubles me a lot because as someone from developing country though not poor myself, I have seen a lot of people who do not have enough food to eat or water to drink. But here people just live like the world has everything to support them. No doubt that people say “if others live just like the Americans, even two more planet earth would not be able to support the world.”

I know that this type of people mean no harm or offense to me, but I just can’t help getting frustrated when seeing them doing or acting like that. They should have known that there are others who are from a totally different culture, and that people might not show any physical affection in public, or that they should have been more conservative in the way they consume resource. However, living in American multicultural society, I guess I need to adjust myself more to fit in.

Some Tips for Freshman

College is something that many high school graduates are excited about. They dream of an independent living, away from the watchful eyes of their parents. They dream of the day when they will no longer be forced to study thing they don’t want to. However, things just do not go smoothly as they have thought. Some college students get side-track with the overwhelming change of college life. Thus, as someone of has also experienced the transition from high school to college life, there are some important aspects of college life that I hope to mention about.

Of course, first and foremost is taking class. Many students want to rush in grabbing more credits than they can afford, so that they can finish off faster than normal student. 5 classes a week might be fine, but it would be too overwhelming for some students who cannot adjust themselves to class workloads in time. Hence, I would suggest not rushing in grabbing everything you can get. 4 classes sound perfect. Sure, you want your first experience of college life a happy one, so why not just relax a bit and enjoy.

Some students have to be away from their long-term friends to get to college. They would feel lonely and isolated if they don’t make any new friends soon enough. If it is the case, it might be because you don’t give yourselves chance to socialize with others. So try to talk to your classmates in any class, join any campus activity such as student club of your interest, volunteer service, etc, that bring you to interact with others.

Many students complain that they are not in a good relationship with their roommates. “They are too immature, lazy. I don’t like them watching TV late at night”, they might say. In fact, it is unavoidable for human being to have clash with one another, needless to say those who are living together. What you should do is try to be honest and straight with them, should you not like anything they have done. Remember to be polite and open. Maintain a good communication with roommates in order to prevent any misunderstandings between you and them. If possible, spend some time hanging out or doing something together. Probably you would find your roommates nice companions. However, if thing still does not go well, I would say you and your roommates are not made to be with each other, then it is time for you to make a more harsh action: go and talk to your Resident Assistant for help. But bear mind that you are not always right, though you might think you are.

College life should be one of the happiest experiences in anyone’s life. It is when we learn to be independent, adapt to a different way of living, and learn to interact with new people. The transition from high school to college might be overwhelming at first, but with right actions, you will find yourselves having one of the best times in your life.

The Exotic Food of Cambodia

Last weekend, I went to the Fall Festival with other International students of the International Club. I heard lots of people talking about different types of food. Probably, one that arouses the most interest is the so-called “Brain Sandwich”. Just the name of it makes my friends cringe. I just shrugged and said “What is it about brain sandwich?” And so I bought one just to see what it tasted like. My decision to buy that sandwich was met with many kinds of reaction: “You’re gross”, “You’re so brave”, “Are you sure?” Well, what was the big deal about it? It’s not my first time to eat pig’s brain. In fact, many types of food that is considered gross, or not common in the States, make tasty snacks and meal in my homeland, Cambodia.

Cambodian people believe that pig’s brain is particularly healthy for human. We believe that it helps lessen migraine headache and stimulate intellectual development of children. The mother would make her child who has limited intelligent eat pig’s brains for seven consecutive days. In whatever form it takes, I have to admit that the brain tastes incredibly good, I mean the one cooked in Cambodia, not here in America. The brain is wrapped in the pig’s gut, and then steamed for around 2 or 3 hours.

Another typical Cambodian food that might taste weird to the American is frying cricket as well as other types of insect. It is also my favourite snack. Crickets are deeply fried using vegetable oil. It is eaten with a special sauce, made up of pepper, salt, and lemon juice. Just the thought of it makes my mouth water. Similar insects that make mouth-watery deep-fried snack includes deep-fried “a-ping” (tarantulas which we believe to stop breathlessness), fried “kantes-long” (a black beetle), deep-fried “kantea-touk” (a menthol tasting beetle), fried “mea phleang” (winged termites), fried pupas, dried clams, “lies” (freshwater clams), “kchorng” and “kchav” (types of snails). They are found everywhere and available throughout the year. For Cambodian people who know the flavours of those insect, they are mouth-watering, but for foreigners, they might be grimacing with disbelief.

Another exotic animal is snake. People ferment it rice and other fruits to make alcohol. It is believed to additional strong flavor to the drink. People who are sick might also drink that alcohol as medicine. Other than that, snake is roasted and eaten with beer or wine by some men. I have never tasted that before but heard that it is not bad.

Nonetheless, we also have delicacies that foreigners considered “normal” in Cambodia. An ordinary meal would consist of a bowl of hot watery soup which is made of meat and vegetable, a plate of stirred-fried vegetable, and a bowl of rice. There are dozen types of soup in Cambodia. It varies according to the ingredients used, such as meat, vegetable, or special flavours. Cambodia also has an abundant amount of freshwater fish. That is why we eat fish almost in every meal. One rarely finds such food sold here in America except in some major cities where a large population of Cambodian people can be found, for example, Boston and Long Beach.

In a nutshell, if you have chance to travel to Cambodia, don't forget to give a shot of Cambodian typical food. It might not taste delicious for you, but it’s really worth a try. Trying different types of food do not only add new variety to your meal but it also allows you to experience different cultures.

My ambition

“You are very ambitious. If I were you, I wouldn’t do it”, one of my friends told me. It was in January two years ago when I told my friend about my decision to apply for an exchange program to Australia namely “Peace Scholarship”. Given to the limited seats available, that program was very competitive, only the best of the best had the chance. And I was not.

Applying for the Peace Scholarship Program was a long complicated tiring process. First, I had to take the International English Language Testing System (IELTS). I spent like a month to prepare for that English test; however, the result was very low, at least low to my expectation, though it met the program requirement. Filling in the application also took another month to do so. I had to do research so as to write essay that sound more appealing than others. The application form itself was around ten pages long and many of them were essay-format questions.

To others, the application process, but to me it did. Probably because I wanted the scholarship too much that I gave away all my attention to make myself one of the outstanding candidates. I also worked hard in getting that scholarship also because everybody was counting on me. Since I was one of the only 9 students to receive the most outstanding student award of the year, people thought I would definitely get that scholarship. This put even a heavier pressure on me.

Nevertheless, no matter how hard I worked, I was not successful. I felt down upon hearing about the result. Everyone pitied me because they knew I had been preparing to apply for that program for months. I felt totally lost. After some time of thinking and looking back at what I had done, I felt better. Better because though I wasn’t selected to go to Australia, there were a lot I had learnt during the application process. I was able to identify my strength and weakness. I learnt to look at and describe my good personalities. More importantly, I learnt to appreciate the process not the result itself. I mean, getting to study abroad was good. But even if we are not successful, it is not a total a waste of time, because along the way to get the application done, it prompts us to think of many things. And that many things wouldn’t come to our mind if we were not asked in the application form. By the time I finished with the application form, I knew more about myself.

Knowing about myself also helped me to consider why I was not successful. Despite my strong academic background, I didn’t have enough experience in social work, which was one of the most important criteria for successful candidate. Moreover, we needed to demonstrate extensive knowledge of our society in our, but mine was just what I learnt from books, not from hand-on experience like those successful candidates. Thus, they were selected and I was not.

Though I couldn’t get to the Peace Scholarship Program, I am happy for taking the opportunity to go for that. At least, I have done my best and learnt something during the selecting process. Actually, those knowledge and strength have helped me to be even more successful in my academic and social life ever since.

First Day at School

All my cousins who were at my same age were ready. Everyone but me was ready. The night before, one might have noticed my sensational mood for the next day. I would tell everyone at my house that I would no longer be a baby, and that I would go to school and learn to read and write and draw. However, standing in front of the school gate the next morning, the sight of so many kids running, screaming, and crying just scared me off. I realized that I was not ready. "No, I won't go to school. I want to go home", I mumbled, tear in my eyes. "It's going to be fine, sweetie. You will love it. You will have lots of fun with your new playmates", my mum soothed me. Still that did not calm me; I kept crying like I always did, begging to go back home, though this time without success. This was on my very first day starting school.

Since I was the only new pupil, who also was constantly crying, I attracted many attentions froonm my fellow classmates. Throughout the class period, my classmates occasionally stared at my teary face. But I was not embarrassed at all. Surprisingly, no matter how much I cried, as long as I didn’t make any disturbing sound, my teacher paid no attention to me. She just let me be on my own self. The outsiders might have viewed this as a harsh treatment a four-year-old kid like me, but if she bothered talking sweet words to me, I swear I would cry even louder; it’s just my personality, I guess.

I had no idea what we had been doing in class because I was crying and tear blurring my eyes throughout the first class period. Then, when the bell rang, every kid just burst out of the classroom to the playground. They were forming into different groups and playing games. Look like they were having a great time. Having seen all the merriness, I stopped crying. I wanted to join them; however, I was reluctant because I knew none of those kids. Fortunately, out of nowhere, a cute chubby little girl came and talked to me: “don’t be like a baby, crying all the time. Stop it, come and play with us”. Thus, there I was, playing with my new playmates and laughing incessantly. I spent the rest of my first school day playing, drawing, singing, doing all the stuffs that other kids were doing. Given my sobbing nature, I cried again, but this time for a totally opposite reason. I refused to go back home when my mum picked me up. “Mummy, I don’t want to go home, I want to play with my friends.” My mum just laughed hysterically and let me be with my new friends for another 30 minutes till most of them got picked up by their family too.

What seemed like a teary morning on my first day at school ended up to be one of my most joyous days of my childhood life. Thinking back about those days, I just burst out laughing. Children’s nature is so pure and uncorrupted. They laugh when they are happy, and cry when they are upset.