Kane Farabaugh's Kanestergram

Welcome back to the Kanestergram! After returning from an extremely enlightening tripto Cambodia, I am pleasantly reminded of the luxuries Bangkok has to offer, and rather than loathe living the life of an expatriate, I find myself grateful that Cambodia is a great place to visit, but not to live. After a spell of a sickness that kept my spirits under for a day or two, I am trying to shed the remnants of the stomach bug and get back the pile of work that has grown on my desk. CAMBODIA (THE JOB) As I begin, I ask myself, how many of you even know where Cambodia is? Furthermore, if you were to be educated enough to know the geographical location, do you know the country's history? There is only so much that you can read about, but to understand the genocidal rule of Pol Pot and his Khmer Rouge doesn't fully grasp one until you hold in your hand the human skull of a Khmer who met his fate from the swing of the axe to the head while working in "The KillingFields". But...

In the thin air of an early Saturday morning, I gaze across the landscape of this foreign country and can barely make out the Pacific Ocean in the background. It is an awesome sight to see the sun rise above the ocean and mountain ridges. To witness this majestic beauty, it was necessary to trek to one of the roofs of the world, and the 12,000 foot ascent is one that is not for the lighthearted. Mt. Fuji, or Fujisan to the natives, looms over the Japanese Kanto Plain. The volcano, one of the largest, has been dormant for centuries, but rests near one of the most populated areas on earth. Tokyo is less than 45 miles from the mountain, and on a clear day can be seen from any downtown rooftop. The journey up Mount Fuji actually begins at Yokota Air Base. I am taking part in a sponsored tour to the top of the mountain, and we receive our briefing at the community center. Our Japanese tour guide lectures us in a very broken accent about the dangers of the climb, the temperature, lack ...