Buddhafish...

On a happier note... lets talk about monk chat.

Cambodia's major spirituality is Buddhism. One of the things that I really wanted to achieve by traveling in Asia was to learn more about Buddhism. Truthfully, I have always admired Buddhism without really knowing much about it. At this VERY excellent cafe/restaurant called "Peace Cafe" an opportunity arose.

A few days ago, Karen and I first fell upon Peace Cafe. It is a vegetarian restaurant that also runs yoga classes, singing group, monk chats, and has a meditation hut. All of these things were very appealing to us, so we looked at the schedule and decided to come to as many things as possible. Yesterday night we went to yoga which was a really great class. The teacher was clearly highly skilled at yoga, and described things in a very easy to follow way.
This evening, we went to monk chat - an intro to Buddhism. We showed up a bit early and grabbed a cup of tea while waiting for the monks. They soon arrived in their orange robes and shaven heads, with smiles on their faces. At the monk chat, two monks (a third joined later) were there, as well as Karen, myself, and a guy named Nick from Seattle.
The chat was just as I had dreamed, a monk telling us about the root meanings behind Buddhism, and showing us a bit about Buddhist meditation. The monk who came later was SUPER educated, and could speak exceptionally good English. With him we were able to ask any questions we had about Buddhism and he would give us his answers. It was good to hear about the robes, the temples, what people do at temples, and that Buddhism is more about just being a good person than anything. I guess what I will take away is the word Purpose. Do things with a conscious purpose and realize what you are doing and why you are doing it - simple.

Karen and I decided that this third monk was the Buddhist equivalent of Catfish. Hence, Buddhafish.

Anyways, I am at peace knowing a bit more about the culture here, as well as what the real purpose of all of these pagodas is. Now when we visit more temples tomorrow, I will know that my own reasons behind being there are what matter, not really any specifics traditions or ceremonies.