TravelStream™ news feed for member theadavies on TravelPod's free travel blogs service http://www.travelpod.com/syndication/rss/theadavies en-us Copyright ©2009 TravelPod.com Wed, 17 Sep 2008 10:52:37 -0400 http://www.travelpod.com http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/theadavies/1/1204038240/tpod.html http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/theadavies/1/1204038240/tpod.html#comments Travel Blogs http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/theadavies/1/1204038240/tpod.html Wed, 17 Sep 2008 10:52:37 -0400 Adventures Cambodia to Peru

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Krabi, Thailand

Tuesday
during the night i had a really high fever. we thought i was too ill to get the boat over to ko lanta today and i really needed more rest after yesterday. Henrik had to try to make the most of being stuck in krabi really not the best place. nothing more to say about it really wasn't even hot. in the afternoon i felt a tiny bit better and tried to find a pharmacy to buy some medicine. i had to try mine to the lady what was wrong, she gave me some eye drops, i coughed and she finally gave me something that said mucus on it. i think i did something. we walked down to the water front and watched some cute little Thai boats on the water. we had an early nap then headed out for some dinner. Henrik recommended the place he had breakfast, it was lovely near the water with live music. Henrik booked our bus and boat over to ko lanta then next morning. slept really well as needed to be better for the morning.

Wednesday
woke up early and packed up all our stuff, happily checked out of our hostel and waited for our taxi pick up to the peir. the taxi finally came, we stopped at another hostel only around the corner the people looked really pleased with it and the lady inside looked really friendly. hopefully we can try stay there on the way back. krabi Pier was really posh almost like an airport. we had not booked any guest house in krabi, at the Pier we found a local paper for tourists, rang a few placed but they were all full. then we saw an add for a deli that had a few rooms above it. we rang and the lady said it was fine. it turned out much cheaper than i was expecting only a 150b. the boat to ko lanta took forever about 2 hours. the weather in lanta was lovely really hot and sunny, better than the main land. we haggled with the driver and found a random to give us a lift in the back of his pick up truck. no one seemed to know where this place was we had the adders but it turned out it was on the only main road through the island. after about 20mins in the back i randomly spotted the deli sign, luckily it was the right place. the room was clean and the women was friendly. we got changed into our beach things and walked along and down to the beach. the sun was scorching, i had to take my tshirt off and fashion it into some kind of sun shade as i didnt want to get heat stroke. we found a lovely cafe right on the beach with lots of floor cushions and sun shades. ordered 2 tuna baguettes and some fries, about 6 bottles of water. on the beach there were a few deck chairs, after we finished our lunch we moved down. left our things and went for a swim in the really cool water. it was really shallow but with loads of lovely cute fish everywhere. there were a few families playing in the water speaking Swedish. Henrik went and chatted to them and found out some stuff about the island. went back to our guest house for another afternoon nap, too much sun. the room was so stuffy we had to sleep with the door open. that evening we were hungry and bored so walked the other way up the beach. there were long dark areas when there were no restaurants or bars was a little scary, i was glad i wasn't on my own and there were no dogs around. we stopped on the way at a tourist office to get a drink and have a look at any of the tours they offered. the lady had a tiny baby monkey in a basket on her desk. random. we didn't end up booking anything as feeling ill and didn't want to waste our money. found a nice place for dinner but i couldn't eat mine so Henrik had two dinners. walked back along the beach and looked at the stars. they were amazing.

Thursday
Henrik woke up early and went for a run along the beach. the weather was weird and windy, stopped in a cafe to get some breakfast it was gross American plastic yellow cheese and sugar! horrid. we relaxed and planned the next few days with help from our fake lonely planet from Cambodia. it started to rain to walked to the tourist office to get the boat in the morning to phi phi island. we also booked our bus from krabi to trang. then booked our train ticket to bangkok, after the first train in 3rd class wooden seats for 18hours. we decided on 2nd class air con sleeper. don't think i ever want to get third class again. then it really started to rain, really bad. we took shelter in another small cafe and wrote some postcards home. continued to write in my journal. we walked back to our guest house our clothes were soaked through. on the main road got a tuk tuk into town. he said 80b then when we got there tried to get 100b. we wouldnt pay it ended up having an argument and just giving him 80 and walking away. there were some really good shops to pass the time in selling fake everything. even a Louis vitton thai boxing robe. walked back to our guest house and showered and packed ready to leave in the morning. walked along the main road and found a nice looking place with loads of friendly cats. ordered Thai green curry, turned out to be very hot, the waitress was a very good looking lady boy. on the walk home stopped at the trusty 7-11 and bought some supplied for the next day.
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Ko Phangan, Thailand

Saturday
on a plane from siem reap to bangkok beware of the $20 departure tax! very annoying. we decided to fly with Bangkok airways it was a lovely flight. in bangkok by 12, headed straight to the main train station to find the next train to Surat thani wasn't until 3, beware of all the ticket touts only buy your ticket from the counter. decided to wait have some food and buy some supplies as it was14 hours. the train was really bad we went for the cheapest option was very very basic. just looked out the window until it got dark then got attacked by mosquito's and read my book. we were about 2 hours later than our ticket said but we arrived in one piece. there we got a taxi to Surat thani, it was freezing in the back of the truck and took about 40 mins. surprisingly there were loads of people around the night market was open, with women selling all sorts of food and flowers. finally found a hotel with some room but we were surprised to find it has HOT WATER SHOWER!we had been coping for the last three weeks with a freezing cold dribble. i was very relieved to be in a normal plane apart from all night i felt like i was still on the train.

Sunday
got up at about 10 and had a really long shower. we booked our boat to the island through reception at the hotel. we started trying to ring some guest houses on the island with a phone card wed bought but no one we tried answered or had any room. then we made the mistake of trying to find somewhere open for breakfast. we walked and walked and finally found a 7 eleven then we couldn't find our way back to our hotel. we walked around and had to ask some people as we needed to pack as the bus picked us up at 11! a nice stranger lead us back to the side entrance that we had walked past about 5 times! back at the hotel i was getting some water from the bar and i saw 2 massive rats gross. our tuk tuk picked us up and took us to a tour office where we sat for 30mins looking through brochures of samui 5 star resorts and spas. they also charged me for using the toilet before getting on the bus how very enterprising. on the bus we met 4 girls all from London the same age as us. we got chatting and they said the place they were staying seemed very chilled out when they has called they said we should come and see if there's some room for us. it was listed in lonely planet and was on the opposite side to hat rin beach(where the full moon parties are) lonely planet described it as rustic beach shacks on the hill side, we thought it couldn't be that bad. the boat over was a large ferry and didn't make me feel that boat sick, took forever though and got a bit sun burnt. when we got to the pier we all decided to share a taxi into hat rin. the driver dropped us off and pointed for signs to Lelia beach. the road was soo steep and it was backing hot carrying all our rucksacks completely nackered us. when we got there we realized we could have cut down and walked along the beach! the shacks really were shacks and they were totally gross, i don't even want to think back about it. the others didn't seem to mind too much and it was the cheapest place we could find near the beach and a close walk to hat rin. i think we made the mistake of going for the cheapest option as we wanted to spend our money on having a good time. we got changed and met in the bar for a few large Chang beers, then off into hat rin beach. the Thai buckets of mixed spirits were only 6pounds very easy to drink. the actual beach was great. there were loads of people all really friendly, the music was different in every bar so everyone was happy. after a few more buckets the people in one of the bars started playing with a skipping rope that was on fire. it was very entertaining to watch very drunk people jumping in messing it up and burning people. i wasn't that drunk to have a go but i did have a really great night. we someone managed to leave our key with some other people so had to sleep in a hammock on the beach. probably better than staying in the hut.

Monday 18th Feb
a very chilled out day for all of us, catching up with some sleep on the beach. we also had a good swim and looked at some of the more classy resorts on our beach they looked lovely. also realised all the people in th posh resorts were beautiful. we stopped there for lunch and to use their toilet. i needed some proper sleep so had a afternoon nap in our hut. that night we all went out for a meal and some chilled drinks on the beach, we met some really great people it was a lot of fun. all needed some extra sleep so an early night for all.

Tuesday
at about 11 we all went into town to get some breakfast and decided to do a boat trip called dicks. it turned out to be a complete rip off and the man running the boat was horrid. we complained when we got back to the main land and only managed to get 70b back per person don't know if it was really worth the bother. anyway back in hat rin we bumped in to 3 boys the girls had met in bangkok. we decided to show them our lovely beach had a few beers and got changed. had a really cheap pad Thai from a street stand where you could see exactly what they were doing, it was amazing. we bought some glow paint and finger painted all over was good fun. there was a big pool party on around the other side of hat rin beach, we met some other people who were also walking so it was a good laugh with the help from a few buckets. when we got to the party the music was good we all started dancing and started splattering the glow paint all over each other, gave a great effect. the drinks weren't that cheap but we shared buckets. at about 1am we wanted a swim so had some fun in the pool meeting loads of people. i managed to loose all my friends but i made new ones. finally found my friends at 4am and got a tax bus home, back up the winding hills. the driver was going so fast i was suprised i didn't fall out the back.

Wednesday
everyone needed some time this morning to chill out and relax. at mid day we headed down to hat rin beach to meet the boys, they were in a football competition run on the beach for all the tourists. the surf was pretty rough on the other side of the island. our friend got stung by some kind of jelly fish but it went down in about 2 hours. i just chilled out people watching and eating ice cream. that night we went down to the main beach again and there were people with snakes and lizards trying to get you to give them money for a picture was really scary.

Thursday
today we found out the full moon party had been moved due to Buddha day(a Thai day of no alcohol) and due to the Thai elections so it got moved from the 22nd to the 24th. we decided this would actually work better for us as we wanted to go to ko tao to go diving. this meant we could leave our main rucksacks in our hut and only take our small rucksacks. we would still have to pay for our hut but thats ok. the diving there is meant to be great value compared to the rest of Thailand. spent the rest of the afternoon in the hut recovering all i could taste was the weird red bull mixed with Samson rum. my friend had taken a walk up to the light house and found a great bar called the chill house. we all met there for sunset drink. there was a really good view over the beach lit by the massive full moon. we all had a fun night and then realised we still hadn't eaten anything.we went into the main strip to watch friends and i got some simple overpriced fried rice whilst watching the simpsons in one of the many bars. booked our early morning boat over to ko tao so needed an early night.

Friday
9am pic up from coco hut, a posh resort a few places along the beach. it was really windy and not a good day for going on a boat. managed to fall asleep on the boat. we decided to book with a company called easy divers right off the main pier. they sorted us with discounted accommodation if we booked our tour with them. they started the dive at 1 so we checked out our room. the girls back in ko phangan would have been very jealous it had a lovely shower. as the shower on kopayang was tied to a coconut tree. we had a small lunch and met the dive instructor. we decided to go for just a fun dive as we didn't have time or funds to do the paddy certificate. it was a short boat ride out, we ran through all the equipment. our dive was only 40mins even with a wet suit i was pretty chilly as you only kick your legs and don't get your blood moving. we saw loads of very pretty fish and other sea creatures. we were really lucky to see so much. after the dive we sat on the beach and looked up some good places to eat and drink tonight. also managed to catch some sun and take some nice photos of the sun setting over the sea. got washed and changed and headed off through the island to a small inlet called Ao Chalok Ban Ko. most of the island was pretty dead it was a longer walk than we had thought but when we got there it was worth it. as we got nearer the sea there were more people and bars. we walked out to the sea and saw the long pier into the water at the end was some pretty lights and music. as we walked along i turned round to look at the massive moon and very nearly fell off the pier. had a nice meal but it took forever i still wasn't feeling great but there was a pretty cat that sat on my lap and made me think of home. the moon was massive and reflected in the bay made a great photo.walked back to our place and forgot to set an alarm for the nest morning as we were only staying one night.

Saturday 23rd
woke up late and needed to check out at 10. it worked out well as we only had our small bags we didn't need to worry about leaving our bags anywhere. we walked up the west coast of the island to find even nicer beaches. we had a simple fruit salad for breakfast then chilled and listened to music and swam in the warm sea. on the way back to the pier we ordered some lunch but we didn't leave enough time and nearly had to run back to the pier and nearly missed the boat. this time it wasn't that rough but packed full of people coming over for the full moon. when we got back to ko phangan we got a moto bike but it was a mistake as the hills were too big for the three of us on one bike. my boy friend henrik had to get off the bike and walk up one hill as the bike couldn't make it, going up was bad but coming down was worse. when we got to hat rin we sat on the beach and needed some time to get over the journey. went on the Internet and started feeling really ill feverish and sweaty. that night broke out in really bad flu right before the full moon party typical.

Sunday
day of the full moon hat rin was packed. the beaches were full of large neon stages and themeing. there were massive speakers all over the beach. chilled most of the afternoon on Lelia beach and tried to get as much sleep as i could. sat in the bar downstairs drinking energy drinks and pro-plus to try and get some energy and forget i was ill. the other girls did a great job of distracting me of thinking about it. we all had fun with more glow paint i wore my only white top still covered in paint from the pool party.that evening i booked the bus from ko panyang to krabi, was kinda suprised i didnt lose it. hat rin was packed it was a fantastic night we danced so much and it started to rain at about 3. id lost my voice by 4 and tried eating ice lollies to try help i went back at about 5. the noise from our resort wasn't as bad as id expected slept surprisingly well.

Monday
woke up early in the morning to the sound of rain coming in through the roof. our hut wasnt that waterproof. the water was only falling on the specific place we had put our rucksacs, had to get up and move them. the girls and their boy friends came past to say goodbye and return some of the things they had borrowed. it was now about 7 so got up and packed up our things. the rain only got worse and walking down the muddy hillside with a massive pack on was very dificult. i went to pay at reception, somehow they only tried to charge me for one night. i think the rain gear distracted them. however when henrik came down they knew him and made us pay for the full 9 nights. that sucked. thats when i noticed henrik had fallen and was covered in mud. we had arranged to be picked up form coco hut resort as it was easier to get to by car. i felt stupid standing there soaking wet and with a boyfriend covered in mud.The drive to the peir was very scary as the driver was drving so fast at one point i thought he was going to kill a child that ran onto the road. the boat was really bad we both were trying so hard not be sick,the water was really rough dur to all the rain. at surait thani port we were pushed onto a random bus heading for surait thani town. when we arrived my fever was getting much worse and we really just wanted to get far away from surait thani as it was completely rubbish. henrik booked us on the next bus to krabi, while i managed to buy 2 small bottles of water and some chocolate buscuits. im really glad i bought them as the bus didnt stop anywhere for the whole journey all 8 hours! as soon as we climbed on the bus we noticed it was full and we had to stand in the middle of the bus. i was feeling so ill i made friends with a nice thai couple and manged to perch on their seat. luckily about 4 hours in a few people got off and henrik myself and a random american shared 2 seats of our own. arriving in krabi we were dropped at a bus station then got a collective taxi into krabi town. we looked through lonely planet but all the places we tried were full or really terrible. it also strated to rain thai style meaning thunderstorm. walking around a strange town about 8pm with the flu in pouring rain was really not the way to get better. we finally found a place that had a bed so we just took it as we were so tired, the place was weird but i was so glad to lie down. after dosing up with more paracetamol we really needed some proper food as all we had eaten was half a packet of chocolate buscuits. we found a lovely restaurant and had a nice dinner, after i went straight to bed. henrik played on the internet and somehow i was so fast asleep he had to get the owner to come and open the door.
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Siem Reap, Cambodia

Tuesday
Early start for our 6 hour bus journey up north. The bus was packed people just kept getting on the driver managed to find some plastic seats for people to sit on in the middle of the aisle. The air con was broken and there was no way to open the windows!! It was too bumpy to sleep or read so the only thing to do was listen to mp3 player. We had a toilet stop about 2 hours in. As we walked back towards the bus we noticed a tray full of deep fried spiders. a woman walked towards us and produced a live black hairy spider! i ran straight back on the bus, just to find the women in front was eating them! AAAHHHH.
arrived in siem reap about 12, had some trouble finding accommodation took forever. Ended up staying at a guest house our driver had recommended. Had a very short shower and headed out to have a look around. we were staying very central to where all the action is, there are loads of local markets selling food to tourist stuff. had some lovely ice cream from the blue pumpkin cafe, made me feel much better. we then headed slightly out of the centerer to a butterfly cafe. it was described in the book as a garden filled with butterflies, sounded very chilled out. when we found it there was very loud construction work happening. we only saw about 5 butterfly's and left shortly after finishing our drinks. walked back through bar and pub street was very lively. decided to eat at the dead fish tower. as we walked in there was traditional aspara dancing. the restaurant and bar is built on many different platform levels with cushions and low tables. It was a traditional evening but we were very tired so headed back early.

Wednesday
today decided to do a Cambodian cooking lesson at the paper tiger in bar street. it was very good value $20 including all the food, recipes, tour of the local market where we got to try anything we wanted. our teacher also bought us some traditional Cambodian desserts they were very strange. i decided to make spring rolls and a Cambodian curry soup type thing. there were 3 other people in the lesson, it was great as we got to learn about what they had chosen to cook, we also got to try it! the cooking lesson finished at 5 we had a Cambodian massage, it was very strange sort of relaxing but a bit weird. that night we didn't need to eat anything as we were so full from our cooking.

Thursday
Did some shopping for presents for our family, had lunch at the paper tiger i choose a traditional Cambodian curry. Then we did a bit more looking around and decided to go back to our guest house for a siesta it was far too hot. at about 4 our tuk tuk driver picked us up he took us to the temples. at first it seemed like a big theme park there were just too many people. everyone goes to the same temple as it has the best view of the sunset. as our first impression it was just too busy. if you buy your ticket $20us the night before you are allowed in that nigh to see the sunset. as it was valentines night we went out for Mexican in bar street it was great value for money and had a great view for people spotting. after we went to Angkor Wat? a bar where people have written messages all over the walls. after this we had a look around the night market, it was slightly set back from the main road, but really worth it. all the stalls were selling different things not like the normal markets where there all selling exactly the same stuff. a lot of it was more arty and designer, there were even a few photographers selling postcards. this was much more aimed to tourists but was a lovely evening.

Friday
our tuk tuk guy picked us up at 4:30 to take us to the temples to see the sunrise over Angkor. when we got there there weren't as many people as the night before. we sat for about 40mins waiting for anything to happen. we got some half decent pics and gave up, we thought wed have a look around Angkor before the crowds got there. this plan worked really well as the sun was up just not completely, enough to take some great pics of us climbing all over it. then when we came out the sun had started to rise and we got some really amazing photos looked great. then our driver took us to bayon, the one with all the faces. the scale was amazing in all the pics i look like a tiny ant. it was great there were only 2 other people going round so we got some great shots from far away. then we headed along and did a few more. to be honest the heat started to get too much by about 10 and we just headed for the nearest shade. the best was saved till last. the temples used to film tomb raider. they were truly amazing, i just couldn't stop photographing everything. there were still too many people but we managed to find our way round. we were finished and back home for 12:30 it was amazing! had another siesta after our early morning. that evening we finished off our shopping and had a look around some of the more local bars.
]]> http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/theadavies/1/1205217960/tpod.html http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/theadavies/1/1205217960/tpod.html#comments Travel Blogs http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/theadavies/1/1205217960/tpod.html Mon, 03 Mar 2008 03:30:11 -0500 Adventures Cambodia to Peru

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Phnom Penh, Cambodia

Monday
We got the early bus back to Phnom Penh about 4 hours. It wasn't a bad journey apart from twin 2 year old girls screaming the whole way!! Why their parents decided to take them to Cambodia i don't know. We left one of our rucksacks with our friends who are working in the city, they live on the outskirts and no tuk tuk drivers know where it is. It was a bit of a mission getting back to their house we ended up having a argument with the driver who thought we wanted to go to the Russian market. After a bit of tension and some shouting we arrived at their apartment, although the city is so hot it was nice to be back somewhere familiar. We got another tuk tuk back to the lake side and decided to stay at Happy's ( the same place we stayed last time), they even had the same prison cell room available. We dumped our stuff and got a moto to the Genocide Museum. It was a very strange place but i was really pleased that i went as at first i thought i didn't want to go. Walking round was very erie thinking that this place was full to people being tortured less than 30 years ago sent shivers down my spine. In some of the rooms they had photographs of all the prisoners, men women and children. It was a real eye opener into not only the people who were captured but the people doing the torturing.

That evening we said our goodbyes to our friends who still have another 2 months in the city and had a early night ready for our bus trip in the morning.
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Sihanoukville, Cambodia

After a 2 hour bus we arrived in Sihanouk Ville about 6ish . Tun had booked us a guest house called Monkey Republic as he said it was Chinese new year and we might have trouble finding a room. It was actually one of the ones we had picked out that sounded nice. We arrived in a black out and couldn't reli see much of our room with a torch. Lonely Planet said black outs were frequent. We got a moto down to the far end of serendipity beach, we walked along getting some cheap happy hour drinks. There were loads of small fireworks going of, people held the one end of the stick pointed it at the sky and the fireworks came out the other, didn't look very safe. We had a great BBQ seafood on the beach and walked up back to our guest house.

Wednesday we got some breakfast on the beach and looked into doing some snorkeling out to some nearby islands. We got a moto up to Victory beach where there's meant to be a backpackers area and loads of bars and cafes. The reality was it was all up a steep hill in the sun, there wasn't much happening. We decided to walk back to the beach as it wasn't as busy as our beach. We relaxed the rest of the day on sun loungers. The sea was clean and calm with a white sandy beach. we did a lot of swimming and played with my underwater camera. When the sun started to go down we walked back up the hill in search of the Snake House Restaurant. It said in our book it was Cambodia's biggest collection of reptiles and exotic birds, but we didn't really know what to expect. We got there and it was great LOADS of snakes well planned with a large crock pit. In the center of the restaurant there's a massive aquarium. It was a great afternoon and good break from the sun and heat. That evening walked around and had a look at some more of the bars, our guest house by far played the best music.

Thursday morning got up early to do a tour of Ream National Park. The only people who are allowed to live there are the few fishermen that lived there before it was declared a national park. We got on a small fishing boat out to the beach and met a couple from Scotland and Paris they were good fun and good to talk to on the boat. We didn't realize that the boar took 2 hours and the scenery didn't change apart from seeing one bird! We arrived at a small jetty and walked about 45mins though the island to the other side where there was a great deserted beach. The waves were good and we had good fun trying to body board. We then walked back to the jetty for lunch, we had marinated barracuda fish with salad and bread. After lunch we got the boat back to the bus. There was more happening this time as the sea was going out and the fishermen were checking their nets ( i say fishermen but there were loads of women doing it too). This also meant it attracted some more birds. That evening watched the sunset over the sea and had a few cheap cocktails. we ate on the beach again as the food is fresher and you can see what your eating as all the BBQ is laid out on ice and you can choose.

Another day spent enjoying the sea. The water is so warm and the waves are fun but not too strong. There are loads of places on the beach with sun loungers and sun umbrellas as the sun is very strong in the middle of the day. As we were there in the middle of Chinese new year the beach was very busy, but we managed to find a few empty sun loungers. The whole time your on the beach there are beach hawkers trying to sell you anything from fresh fruit to painting your nails. This is quite sweet at first but after a while there really annoying and wont leave you alone.

Saturday we decided to do a snorkeling trip out to some nearby islands. The water was very rough and about half the boat suffered from sea sickness me being one of them. We finally got to the dive spot the water was deep and pretty cold, but there was loads to see. I'm glad i was wearing flippers as there were loads of sea urchins and sea slugs! gross. We had a basic lunch on the boat of rice and egg most of it we fed to the fish off the Pier ( at least they enjoyed it). After lunch we went to another snorkeling spot that was less rocky so there wasn't as much to see but was still good. The rest of the afternoon we sunbathed on top of the boat everyone got sun burnt. That evening we decided to go back to the snake house to have some dinner. As we arrived there was some traditional Aspara dancing happening in the bar we managed to catch about 2 mins then they finished:-(. Our dinner was lovely but took ages and we were starving after a long day of swimming.

Our last day by the beach. Got up early and had a good cheap breakfast at our guest house monkey republic. Headed down to the beach, it was packed and there were no sun loungers free. We decided to have a drink and a swim in a bar, then it randomly started to rain, just a little bit. After about 30mins it passed and we managed to find a good spot. The rest of the afternoon was spent reading and tanning.
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Sihanoukville, Cambodia

After a 2 hour bus we arrived in Sihanouk Ville about 6ish . Tun had booked us a guest house called Monkey Republic as he said it was Chinese new year and we might have trouble finding a room. It was actually one of the ones we had picked out that sounded nice. We arrived in a black out and couldn't reli see much of our room with a torch. Lonely Planet said black outs were frequent. We got a moto down to the far end of serendipity beach, we walked along getting some cheap happy hour drinks. There were loads of small fireworks going of, people held the one end of the stick pointed it at the sky and the fireworks came out the other, didn't look very safe. We had a great BBQ seafood on the beach and walked up back to our guest house.

Wednesday we got some breakfast on the beach and looked into doing some snorkeling out to some nearby islands. We got a moto up to Victory beach where there's meant to be a backpackers area and loads of bars and cafes. The reality was it was all up a steep hill in the sun, there wasn't much happening. We decided to walk back to the beach as it wasn't as busy as our beach. We relaxed the rest of the day on sun loungers. The sea was clean and calm with a white sandy beach. we did a lot of swimming and played with my underwater camera. When the sun started to go down we walked back up the hill in search of the Snake House Restaurant. It said in our book it was Cambodia's biggest collection of reptiles and exotic birds, but we didn't really know what to expect. We got there and it was great LOADS of snakes well planned with a large crock pit. In the center of the restaurant there's a massive aquarium. It was a great afternoon and good break from the sun and heat. That evening walked around and had a look at some more of the bars, our guest house by far played the best music.

Thursday morning got up early to do a tour of Ream National Park. The only people who are allowed to live there are the few fishermen that lived there before it was declared a national park. We got on a small fishing boat out to the beach and met a couple from Scotland and Paris they were good fun and good to talk to on the boat. We didn't realize that the boar took 2 hours and the scenery didn't change apart from seeing one bird! We arrived at a small jetty and walked about 45mins though the island to the other side where there was a great deserted beach. The waves were good and we had good fun trying to body board. We then walked back to the jetty for lunch, we had marinated barracuda fish with salad and bread. After lunch we got the boat back to the bus. There was more happening this time as the sea was going out and the fishermen were checking their nets ( i say fishermen but there were loads of women doing it too). This also meant it attracted some more birds. That evening watched the sunset over the sea and had a few cheap cocktails. we ate on the beach again as the food is fresher and you can see what your eating as all the BBQ is laid out on ice and you can choose.
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Kampot, Cambodia

After our early morning flight arrived at Phnom Penh the visa was easy just a few forms and $1 if you don't have a passport photo. We got a taxi to our guest house that we'd been recommended by my friend that lives in Cambodia, on the way the driver was trying to explain that its pretty out the way and not very touristy. Its called The Boddhi Tree Del Gusto south of the centre. It was really beautiful loads of plants and tall walls, a little oasis. As it was pretty early we decided to get a tuck tuck around some of the central parts of thew city. First stop was The National Museum its full of really interesting carvings and statues. In the centre is a beautiful court card with ponds full of fish, we sat for a while and read our guide book in the sun. we then went to Wat Phnom. A small hill with a active Wat (pagoda) its the founding place for Phnom Penh. There are loads of small monkeys and a elephant too. There are lots of Cambodian people milling around selling food and snacks under the shade of loads of tall trees. We got some great pizza at the riverside and headed back to our guest house, jet lag kicking in. That evening we had a great green curry and had a early night.

The next day we went to the Central Market, was a real experience but really busy and not too many tourists. We met our friends from the UK for some food at the riverside, there's loads of restaurants selling both western and Cambodian food all cheap. We then walked to the Royal Palace and the Silver Pagoda only about 5 mins .Was pretty impressive but very busy in the baking heat we only managed to cover about half.

Sunday morning we moved from the south of the city to a more central location with a lot more going on, buy the central lake its a lot cheaper too. The guest house were staying in is very basic but a stunning view over the lake, half the guest house is over the water on stilts. Its pretty polluted with lots of plastic, but if you look past that there's plants and birds and a good breeze too. You can easily walk around to get food and meet people. That night we walked to another guest house and sat on the roof had a view beers, we had another curry type dinner the only vegetables they seem to have are carrots and green french beans, it was a good night the bars play mostly western music and are open till late.

We spent the next week in the city having a good look around and chilling out looking over the lake. Went to some traditional markets that were very interesting with lots of fake designer stuff. The Royal Palace built in 1866 by the French is right on the river front and very grand, many buildings inside the tall walls were added after. The Silver Pagoda (basically a temple) named this as its floor tiles are solid silver weighing 1kg each . We met up with Zoe and Jesse and had a look around, but it was pretty busy lots of tourists getting in my photos.

Met up with my friend Fran whos been working out here for 6 months. Went to see the arts centre that she set up. it was great all the kids sitting there sewing handbags even the boys. The centre is on the outskirts of the city in the slum area. The children who live her work on the rubbish dump collecting and sorting the rubbish for recycling. That afternoon we had fun making necklaces and bracelets, playing with slinky down the stairs.It was great to see this real side of the city as where were staying is mostly tourists
After we went to the FCC were during the war the journalists would sit and sen their stories home. it was an expensive place but you got the best view over the riverside. People watching is great here randomly the elephant from Wat Phnom walked past then had a shower under a sprinkler.

The next day we wanted to ge out of the city and decided to get a tuk tuk to Mekong Island. We didn't really know what to expect but our driver said we could swim there so sounded ok to us. the drive was long and very hot but great to get away from all the noise of the city. The landscape is much drier than i imagined with red soil like Africa. We finally got across the river and bought a silk scarf from a girl showing me how they weave silk. We got to the 'beach' which was the most random place ever. We were the only people there apart from a bunch of drunk Cambodian school kids. The river was very shallow and dirty you couldn't really see your feet, but it was fast flowing so it seemed ok.We got a floating hut on the water and had to buy some chicken and rice it was pretty gross but i tried some to be polite to our driver even though he finished most of it. On the drive back we got a puncher so we had to wait for it to be fixed meanwhile i was being eaten by ants! The sunset over the rice field on the way back made up for it.

Friday we needed to get some money out and ended up wasting about 2hours in a bank que! finally got some out that was a relief. That moring we watched the film called 'the killing fields' at our guest house, i was expecting something more but it was worth watching to get some idea of what went on. That afternoon we took a moto to the killing fields, i didn't realize how far away it was about 12km. Choeung Ek, where prisoners were brought for execution. Where the genocidal Khmer Rouge disposed of its enemies, men, women and children. The Choeung Ek Memorial contains 8985 bodies. Although estimates suggest over 17,000 people may have been slaughtered there. It was a sickening experience but respectful not to ignore the past and whats happened to this beautiful country.

Saturday we were both feeling pretty ill and needed to chill out but its so hot and dusty in the city.We went to Phnom Penh Hotel to use their pool for $5 each. it was worth it even though we felt like dirty backpackers compared to everyone else. We then went back to the FCC to book our flight from Siem Reip to Bangkok.

Sunday we got up early to get a bus out of the city to Kampot about 4 hours, with very loud Khmer music! A small fishing town set on the bank of the river with a panoramic view of Bokor national park. We got a moto out of the town to the caves nearby. All the locals are so friendly even the old people stop what their doing s wave to you. We walked up the steps to the pagoda built at the top of the limestone cliffs. The caves were really dark I'm so pleased i brought my torch. The local kids showed us round telling us where to put our feet, they jumped around as if on springs. Inside another part of the caves were loads of bats they were really scary. we then went to some river rapids at the bottom of Bokor, they were great although not rapids as its dry season. Went for a bit of a swim but the rocks were all slippery and the water was shallow.That night had great traditional meal in a cafe on the riverside only $1 per dish.
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Kep, Cambodia

We organised to do a trip around Kep with a Cambodian english speaking guide. In the morning we went to more caves these were alot more impressive, there's a pagoda temple that apparently is pre Angkor. We then did more crawling through rocks and i was impressed with the grip of my jelly shoes. we walked through more caves with bats again it smelt gross. Tun our guide then took us to a black pepper plantation owned by ex Khmer soldiers. Pretty random place but there wasn't alot to do.After the pepper we drove by salt planes, where they flood the floor with salt water and wait for it to evaporate and salt is left. We then walked along a secret beach but was secret as it was pretty polluted and looked like a hurricane had blown through.
We had a seafood lunch in Kep, a very small fishing village close to Vietnam border. It was a great restaurant with a view over the sea at the nearby islands one being Vietnamese. There are loads of blown out French style houses left from the Khmer Rouge, Cambodian families have moved in but left the house and built a shack in the grounds. We then got a small fishing boat over to a small island called Rabbit Island. There were only a few other tourists about 10. We stayed in a thatched hut on stilts open to all the elements and all the bugs. The Island was perfect the beach great with loads of palm trees, our first taste of sea. The waters so warm even at night. That night was pretty scary i couldn't really get that much sleep knowing the only thing between me and a load of bugs was a mosi net. That morning woke up to find my bag completely covered in red ants, trying to eat some cookies i had. They were everywhere! We went for a walk around the island but it got too hot and we had to turn back. The rest of the morning was spent relaxing on the beach or swimming in the sea. We got the fishing boat back to the mainland where we got a tuk tuk to Kampot. It took forever and ever as they cant go that fast. Had some lunch then got a bus to Sihanouk Ville Cambodia's beach resort.
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Bangkok, Thailand

First leg Heathrow to Bangkok
After a 10 hour flight arrived in Bangkok airport, we were pretty nackered and in need of some sleep. Our flight was the next morning we thought we'd just find a hotel next to the airport. immigration didn't like this idea they wannted to know exactly where we were staying. They led us off over to a counter to arrange a hotel for us for the night. the taxi driver didn't have a clue where he was meant to be taking us we drove around for about a hour and finally found it. The room was clean but thats about all it had going for it. We left the room at 4 to get to the airport to get our Air Asia budget flight to Phnom Penh Cambodia this taxi journey took about 15 mins. We could have been told about the 45min que at immigration we were seriously thinking we were not guna make our flight. Once i got through ive never run so hard in my life i jumped the que at security and just made it in time, seems things in Thailand are'nt the same as the uk. when we got there they were all just chilling waiting for another bus to take us to the plane.
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