Some people would like to live abroad because they think it is easy to find work there.

Actually, it is not so easy. Meng Muoysorng, 23, talked to LIFT about her life working in the United States.

“Before moving to the US, I used to think it would be easy to find work there, even as a fruit picker. But that idea changed when I arrived there.”

Muoysorng is the second child in a family of business practitioners in Phnom Penh. Encouraged by family in Cambodia and her siblings in the US, Muoysorng decided to leave home to live in the world’s largest economy after finishing university in Cambodia.

When she arrived, she worked at a food shop in Pittsburgh as a chef, waitress and cashier because the restaurant had a small staff. She generally works from 6pm to 4am, Tuesdays to Sundays.

“I really did not want to do work at nighttime but there was no option,” she said.

Though she works hard, she is really happy when guests come to dinner and appreciate her hard work. She also said that her neighbours are friendly and helpful, and not at all racist.

However, she said that students sometimes get drunk on weekends and sometimes fight in the street.

Muoysorng said that life abroad is not as easy as in our homeland, where we can do whatever we want.

“I want to open a shop selling Japanese sushi on my own, and I hope I will be able to achieve this aim,” she added.