Li Lay Hotel Phnom Penh

... to our hostel. Half the girls were keen to repeat our aerobics performance in the central square from the night before so I took them there thinking Mrs Choate would be prioud of us. When we got there they hadn't started so we took a walk around the square. There were groups of men playing soccer, couples playing badminton, children flying kites and food vendors selling skewered meat. The group decided it had a great community feel about it and was their favourite place so far ...

... they were. But the worst bit was the photos. The Khmer Rouge photographed all the prisoners, from babies to old people. And it is absolutely heartbreaking looking at how sacred the people looked. Visitors had scrawled things on some of the walls about how they felt about what happened. Completely enraged me and tori that people would deface the place. We didn't even feel it right to take photos. No need for photos, don't think I'll be forgetting it in a rush.

We then got a tuktuk ...

... Erica and I so back to bed we went. After we kissed and made up we headed out by tuk-tuk to see what can only be described as breath taking! Giant ruins of temples adorn this area sticking out of the jungle and the jungle has reclaimed some with trees growing out of walls and on top of roofs. It was a wet but incredible day.

Next stop was Phnom Penh. As the Lonely Planet describes it it is a place of juxtapositions! We have spent the days exploring ...

... of the hill-mountain...BOOOOOOOM. It was awesome! We had no idea that it would be so loud. It rattled my ear drums. As we watched the smoke from the explosion getting blown away, we could do nothing but laugh at the ridiculousness of what had just happened. I got a short interview with Terry as he walked back up and then cut the video.

Who’s next? Luke was up. He wanted to shoot the M-60, or Rambo gun, as they called it. They laid down a mat and set the gun up on a ...

... the prisoners are in display, taken when they were first brought in. I felt uneasy when looked at their blank, hollow stares. Yet more rooms are devoted to document the killings: pictures of mass graves; reports of forensic studies of the remains; history of the Khmer Rouge government; names of the victims; lists of the more than 300 killing fields in the country, etc.

Yes. There were more than 300 camps where the Khmer Rouge government executed ...

... jam in Phnom Penh is: no one can go very fast. Everything just crawls along amidst the constant honking of horns, which made it seem safer than if everyone was speeding everywhere. So…we rented a motorbike. Our first stop was to a hand-made knife factory, “Citadel” (we had visited their showroom on Monday, and as McNeill and I have both assembled a few knives ourselves, we were interested in seeing a professional operation). It was cool: the owner (who was ...

... wereldreis zonder duidelijk verloop of bestemming! De daaropvolgende 5 dagen reden we per moto langs de prachtigste rijstvelden, bergen en rivieren waarna we snachts overnachtten in piepkleine etnische dorpjes waar bewoners al te graag een kamer afstonden voor een beetje geld. De sterrenhemels waren de mooiste die ik ooit zag en de gastvrijheid van de bevolking was ondanks de onmogelijkheid tot communicatie grenzenloos. Het rijden in de bergen was fantastisch maar soms ...

Ore 6.30 am, si parte, stiamo lasciando il mitico Vietnam. Arrivati a Moc Bai (cittadina sul confine), sbrighiamo velocemente le formalita' per l'ingresso in Cambogia. Percorriamo qualche decina di chilometro e ci fermiamo per oltrepassare con un traghetto il Mekong che scorre vicino al confine di queste due nazioni. Nelláttesa, scendiamo dal bus per sgranchirci le gambe... veniamo assaliti da venditori ambulanti che propongono come snack cavallette, cicale, scarafaggi ...

... our afternoon was spent in the luxury of our room - very cool, studious and loft-like. We have two beds with crisp, white linens; the silk pillows and bed runner add a splash of color. Two walls are covered in windows, leaving the lights and delicate lanterns useless during the day time. We've got two large radial chairs that will be perfect for sipping our complimentary tea and coffee. Our ...

... to mention getting into every one else's way. However, although not as grand as the Grand Palace in Bangkok, it was attractive enough: marble, cream, white and gold - the main buildings - monks clad in the orange robes and flip-flops striding in unison; the Throne Room. The place, however, got so crowded at the finish that I was glad to quit the place. Outside, I gave a lame bookseller a couple of Cambodian bucks. It was nice to sit down and have a couple of ...