U-Zi? Not for U-Zi (Cambodia Part II)

My first day in Cambodia, I saw the Phnom Penh side of Cambodia. Phnom Penh is the capital, and much more developed. The second day, I ventured out beyond the city to see the countryside, and to get a feel for a different side of Cambodian life. This was a very enlightening day. I hired Mr. T (see photo) to drive me around for the day, while Geoffrey worked in Phnom Penh.

Once outside the city, roads are no longer paved, and cattle roam freely down the street, eating along side locals shopping in the market place (see photo).

Our first stop was a shooting range. Here you pay a small amount of American money, and you can shoot an AK47 or U-Zi or whatnot. When it came time for me to pick my weapon of choice, I chose the U-Zi (the Russians rank among the most badass in my mind…) but the guy basically said “no, not for you” and gave me more of a beginner gun to try out.
Now, I have never shot a gun before, nor do I care to shoot a gun again, but I wanted to get a better understanding of what it feels like to shoot one. I wondered if this experience would be something like people who try drugs once for the experience and then slowly find themselves addicted. Would I feel a rush of adrenaline or a sense of power that might become dangerously gratifying? Taking the first shot was shocking—when you feel the pop for the first time—like that sensation of opening a brand new can of tennis balls, but times affinity. It throws you back a little. But I must say, I got absolutely no pleasure out of shooting this gun. None whatsoever. In fact, after the first few shots, I thought to myself, “ok, I’m done with this,” but I had paid for 30 bullets and had 27 left to go! And it just got tedious. Plus, I couldn’t tell if I was hitting the targets or not. Well there we have it, something different under my belt.