Differences

As I've been beginning to prepare for going back to Cambodia I've been putting some serious thought into how I spend money differently there as opposed to here in America.  Some of the difference are really big ones and quite sobering while with others, I'm able to just kind of shake my head at and laugh... As I considered monetary difference I began to remember others and I thought you might like to share in some of my findings:

• In America one 12oz. latte will cost me either $3.50 at Starbucks or $1.10 at QuikTrip.
• In Cambodia, I can get a 20oz. iced coffee with sweet milk for $0.70 or an entire 20oz. french press of coffee for $1.00 (I will admit though that a smoothie or frappuccino type drink does cost anywhere from $3-$5)
• In America a fast food lunch (sandwich, side and a drink) will run you anywhere from $3.50-$8
• In Cambodia I can buy numerous lunch combinations from local vendors for no more than $1.50 (fried rice, a filled pork bun, lettuce wraps, dragonfruit...). However, fast food such as KFC or Pizza Company/Pizza World costs you anywhere from $4-$10 :-)
• Milk. A half gallon of "fresh" a.k.a. "cold" milk will cost about $4.50. 
• It's okay though, because you can buy a cardboard box of "milk" that has been sitting on a shelf for a while for about $2.00 :-)
• Cereal. This one is a big one for me. So, first, I have about 100+ options to choose from here in America. And they cost anywhere from $2-$4.50
• Not so in Cambodia. At the western grocery store I can find 3-5 options during a good week. The prices? Anywhere from $6-$13! (Lucky Charms was once $13.50, no joke)
• Strawberries!!! I am currently enjoying all the wonderfully flavorful fruits I can while I'm in America and saw strawberries on sale today for $0.96/lb.  I know, they can cost as much as $3.50/lb here. 
• But, would you pay $9.60/lb if you were in Cambodia, where, there is not even a word in the Khmer language for strawberry (talk about a delicacy!)? I haven't...yet...I'll let you know if I cave and buy them sometime :-)
• Snacks. When asked to bring a snack to share for a party here in America people bring things like potato chips, popcorn, cookies....
• My Khmer friends bring things such as bags of fried crickets, durian fruit (also called the "smelly fruit") or cans of bright, almost glowing, Fanta.
• Water. When I first got back to America last November I was asked to pay $1.75 for a 20oz bottle of water! No thank you, I'll just go turn on the tap and run it through a filtering pitcher (maybe, if I'm being really picky)
• In Cambodia I would NEVER drink water from the tap and there are no filtering pitchers. BUT, it's all good because I can get a 20oz. bottle for $0.25 or a 5 gallon jug delivered to my apartment for $1 :-)
• In America it will cost you on your electric bill when you do laundry with your washing machine and dryer.
• In Cambodia you'll be charged a minimal amount for the water used while you wash your clothes but the real cost is the TIME you'll spend! And then, please, oh please, don't rain as soon as I've hung my clean-smelling-of-laundry-soap clothes on the line to dry....
• If you were to go into a store here in America without shoes on your feet you'd more than likely be denied service, at the least.
• Go into a store in Cambodia with your shoes ON and you're likely to be scolded and shooed out the door to remove your flip-flops.

These are some of the things I've missed while being in America. Not necessarily missed them because they are all so wonderful but, rather, because each of these differences was discovered for me during some kind of memorable experience with lots of people who I'm so glad to know and have be part of my story :-)

I'm looking forward to going back, to continuing to discover the differences and embrace the memories that will come from each day there.