No worries about my friend finding her way. She was actually a China analyst and regularly traveled to China for weeks at a time several times a year. She was also born in Shanghai.
That's actually a great idea. Maybe I can even arrange an under 24 hr stop in Singapore and have it not count as a stop
. I would love to see Singapore and actually have friends there. It seems OW doesn't fly to Phnom Penh from NY either (didn't check before so that Phnom Penh discussion was a moot point) and tickets from Singapore are around about $150-$200 and a ton of airlines fly there, including AA, Cathay, Japan. Definitely a good option. I'll have to work on it.
I know, sounds obvious, but I am new to this miles optimization business.