May 12th (2020)

 

May 12th
According to today's Khmer Times, Cambodia reports no new COVID-19 cases for 30 days straight, only one still hospitalised.

I am awake at 6am today, checking Facebook until 7am  then shower etc and have had a breakfast of bread and bananas.

I wait here, for Phany, downstairs. It's warm. The weather is getting hotter.

Phany is here. She has spoken to her travel agent friend  who confirmed that I can stay visa free for a while yet. It seems odd to me, but these are exceptional times that we live in. At the moment there seems little home of going 'home' any time soon. But still, I am very lucky to be here, in Cambodia and, more especially, in Colors of Cambodia with friends like Phany, Phanin and the young adult students.

Once more Phany and I walk to the Cathay United Bank, which is now open. It doesn't take long to get my card back. Everyone is smiley, smiley and just a quick flash of my passport and a couple of signatures and I am done. I could only withdraw a smaller amount than I had anticipated, but it is better than nothing  and in small denomination notes too. Now I am looking forward to cooking on Sunday.

The question is, do I go out for a meal or not. I have become a little lazy, I must confess. I am in real danger of becoming a little set in my ways here, into a routine you might say. So the decision is made and at 6pm I shall take a walk over to Mr Claton Venis' Jungle Burger, and experience the evening once more. Not to mention a free beer.

With the miracle of modern technology I am able to keep (reasonably) updated with the news. Trump in America and Johnson in Britain have become practically irrelevant. Both have been shown to be the fools that most of us knew them to be. Both countries are awash with the current pandemic, and the massive amount of lives lost is down to those two failing leaders Tweedle Dumb, and Tweedle Dumber.

Within the marginal comfort of this small room, I can access the world with WiFi internet and this smartphone, which is a tad too small for my monster hands. It is a marvellous age which brings video images as well as audio, right to my earbuds. I can access today's Cambodian  newspapers, and those in Malaysia and Britain too, to keep me reasonably informed.

Yes, I know that there is a silent killer in the world, a deadly plague, but this is a counter balance to all the blessings that we currently have. I miss my partner and our former life together, and sincerely hope that I may be able to  return soon. Nevertheless I count my blessings to be able to stay in one of the countries least affected by the pandemic. To date there has been no stringent lock-down, though many businesses have closed, and  with reason, we are allowed out to do most things  except to gather in large numbers.