Shower or Sarong?

I was talking to a Khmer girl about whether or not I would go with Soeun to visit a remote village. I'd like to see more of Cambodia but I think I'll find it hard, and as he is going with a team to do a job I'm worried I'll get in the way. I'm not sure if there are toilets and bathrooms there. I'm pretty sure that my back will be sore as the roads aren't paved, and I can't imagine how it will be after sleeping on a bamboo floor for four nights.

She used to live in a village when she was young, the jungle was her toilet and the river was her bathroom. I think also people wash by pouring water over them while wearing a sarong, so you can do it in your front yard rather than in a private room. She has since lived in a town so she is not used to doing that anymore. When she goes back to the village she finds it really hard.

She told me some Cambodians see expats here and wonder why they live in the way they do, with washing machines, hot water showers etc. She said some Cambodians think this isn't good. But from her experience (going back to the village) she said she knows that once you are used to something it is hard to live without it.

That reminded me of what Soeun said when he was living in Australia. Coming to Australia and seeing how easy life was like made him realise why it is hard for Australians to go and live in Cambodia.