We are still alive and well!

We are alive and well and being treated like royalty in Manila. We arrived yesterday and were met by Eddie's cousin, Mary Tess, and escorted by a police officer through immigration in a matter of minutes. Eddie's uncle Dilberto is a supreme court justice here, so we are VIPs and treated accordingly. We were then delivered to his uncle's house where we had an amazing spread of tasty Philippino dishes for lunch, again in a few hours for dinner and then again for breakfast. They definitely know how to eat here.

Eddie's family is amazing -- the most hospitable and kind people I have met. They are also incredibly educated, interesting and full of knowledge. We are going tomororrow to his father's hometown in Anilao to visit the burial sites of his grandparents and then to relax on the beach for a couple of days. Then we will be scooped up and brought back to Manila to meet his parents for a mobile medical mission throughout the Philippines. I'm looking forward to using my brain again after a few months of lounging, sightseeing and eating (which is supposed to be good for brain power right?).

Anyway, we have been having an amazing time. It's been really eye opening to see how much other cultures and peoples have been made to suffer and endure unimaginable amounts of torture, illness, misery and poverty. We just came from Cambodia, where we went from the beautiful and peaceful Angkor Wat in Siem Reap to the Killing Fields and prison of Pol Pot's regime in Phnom Pehn. Angkor Wat is an amazing maze of temples built by various rulers since the sixth century which spans several kilometers. From sandstone towers to intricately carved faces and battle scenes, the architecture and artistry was breathtaking.

We spent several days in Siem Reap exploring the local craft workshops, donated blood at the local children's hospital and, of course, sampled the local culinary specailties. The hospital was especially interesting to me because I had contemplated volunteering there a few years ago. It was started by a Japanese American who created it to treat, at no cost, any children in Cambodia. The amazing thing is that they not only treat the patients, but educate the families in hygiene, nutrition, farming, and lifestyle change to make a real difference. It was very inspiring.

We then headed to see the killing fields and the devastation caused by Pol Pot. The interesting part of seeing the remnants of his regime is that it was only 30 years ago. These people, who are living fairly normal lives now were under the thumb of an insane torturer not long ago. We saw the individual cells where prisoners were tortured before being transported, blindfolded, to the killing fields, where they were executed and often buring alive. It was a somber day and made us both realize how fortunate we are to have been born into our current lives and to contemplate karma and how important it is to be a good person. Did they have bad karma in their previously lives or were they just born in the wrong place at the wrong time? Interesting debate. Anyway, if any of you are interested, we found a great account of the time by a survivor and it gives a good history -- "First They Killed My Father".

We proceeded back to Bangkok for our last stint of shopping, pad thai from the street and making new friends before coming to Manila. While in Bangkok, we had the pleasure of meeting Mook, a 43yo esoteric man who's dedicated to making his world a better place for everyone. He was very welcoming and kind and touched our hearts. It's amazing how many beautiful, kind, compassionate souls we've encountered along the way. Of course, we've met our fair share of "ugly americans (and other nationalities), but mostly good people.

It seems like we've been gone forever, but we only have a few more weeks before we're back to life as we knew it. After the mission here, I will come home on the third to get things in order in the house in Buena Vista before starting work again in Vail a few days a week. I'm exploring jobs in BV, but am not sure what the plan is yet. Eddie is going to spend another week here of quality time with his dad and then visit his sister and his new niece (whose birthday is his) and then come back and hopefully pull some shifts at Sato. We'll be living in BV most of the time, but would appreciate a couch here and there if anyone can spare one.

We hear the snow's of historical amounts. We can't wait to make some turns with the Colorado crew. We'll see you soon. Photos on the way, but they take too much time to download.
Take care and know that we love you all.
Peace, Laurie and Eddie