Sihanouk starfish

At starfish bakery, shop & massage place in lovely colonial building in Sihanoukville - an oasis of cool tranquility to escape the heat of the beach. We had a massage and a mint and lime shake. Wonderful!

A few days before Cornelia hired a small catermaran yesterday and we had a fun afternoon sailing. She was the most experienced having watched a friend sail a boat one aftermoon in Germany! We all had a go at the helm, even an 8 year old English boy was skipper for a while. A few times we jumped in and held onto a rope and once we got some wind in the sail we got pulled along behind the boat. Very refreshing!

Interesting bike ride in search of fishing village - saw the shanty corrugated shacks with smiling kids waving and an inquisitive granny came up and patted me on the shoulder.

This was after running into a police roadblock. They'd already got $2 off Cornelia so this time with an cocky air of confidence I produced a UK licence with motorbike permit to which the police officer retorted 'Yes but you need international licence in Cambodia'. He kindly let us off the fine saying we could give him something for helping us!!!

Meanwhile a parallel conversation was taking place between the other officer and Cornelia who being Swiss informed the policeman that a Swiss driving licence is all she needs throughout 'die ganz welt!' with that we both pulled away.

My penultimate day ended with a return to the city beach for Cambodians enjoying their Saturday by the sea. Even saw a monk smoking, drinking ice coffee with family and friends, then shed his robes to go in for a dip! Had some great barracuda with ginger and morning glory at Sea Dragon then back to our beach for sunset swim.

For the first time we had a Saturday night out at the bar run by our lesbian friends (while our basketball friends were having a winter Cruisers - team - night in...
... at 51 Roslyn Rd - our house!!')

The Secret Garden bar staff were mixing up some experimental 'Kalula' cocktails!! We ended up in their new pool under the stars having piggy back fights!

Sad to say goodbye to Simone for 4 months til she makes it up to Harbin, but happy to leave the sandflies behind.

Otres Beach

Still here...

... another day another sunrise taiji on beach, swim, eat, sunset, bed by 9.30pm! Hired a kayak and 3 of us paddled over to the island opposite and I swam round it then paddled and swam back. Nothing much happens here which is 'just perfect'.

Having said that we hired a motorbike yesterday to go into town so Sim could change her bus ticket to Ho Chi Min. Found a wonderful Italian gelateria - best lime ice cream!! Also brought back a nice 'som or' (pomelo) which took an hour to peel and 10 mins to eat!

Later Cornelia went off to the national park but got stopped en route by the police and fined $2 for not having her licence - which was in the bungalow. The police get paid so little here and in Thailand so they have to set up these road blocks for pocket money!

Today Simone turned rather 'rosy' after a day in the shade! (Simone sensorship: I had to delete the photo from the blog). I was hiding underneath my sarong as the sandflies are munching their way thro any bit of flesh I dare to bare.

Sunshine in Sihanoukville

The travel Buddha is definitely smiling upon us. Our first night was at Siddharta Guest House on the tourist hell street near the port. The USP (unique or sole selling point) was the mattresses! Otherwise pretty seedy place run by (s)expat Aussie and young Cambodian wife.

We got the first boat out to bamboo island where it poured down even through the bar. The bungalows were a nightmare and certainly didn't meet even the now relaxed Swiss hygiene standards so we fled back to the mainland. The entertainment was provided by Mai from Ho Chi Minh who was on a 3 island boat trip. She was half the height and weight of the Swissters!!! First she jumped off the boat and lost her glasses. I found my goggles & jumped in, dived down and there they were! Simone then gave her relationship guidance as she was 29 and afraid of being left on the shelf and was being toyed with by a Canadian tour guide.

Back on the mainland, Simone and I hired a motorbike and headed in search of a place to stay for 10 nights that was affordable and clean. And we found the wee Strawberry (La Fraise by the beach!) run by Dublin Don and a Cambodian family. This part of Ostres beach was the quiet, family, older couple end of the otherwise heinous tourist hole.

This morning after taiji on the narrow hightide beach Simone & I walked to the end of the beach only to find Dora, the lesbian from Melbourne who with 4 business partners was creating The Secret Garden resort with aircon bungalows, pool etc. We had tea & coffee and a game of ping pong with a couple of Cambidian kids.

I'm going to give Sim a Tui Na massage on the beach lounger at Banana Tree beach, then listen to Chinese language lesson. Cornelia has gone to post office in town then tonight they're going to christen the draught beer from the newly installed tap and maybe try out the pool at the secret garden!

Life is sweet on the slow wave.

Rain in Phnom Penh

Really raining now - as I was doing taiji earlier the torrent on corrugated tin roof reminded me of Ruam Rudi (school in Bangkok) - I used to go up to top floor and listen to the roar if the rain.

Was also chillingly eerie as I was on veranda of this beautiful Boddhi Tree guest house and instead if the sun rising in front of me I could see through the obscurity of dawn the classrooms/cells of Tuol Sleng, the school turned prison of torture and genocide just 35 years ago - during the time I lived in Bangkok and just after Mum and Grandma climbed through the barbed wire fence that a man 'kindly cut' so they could get to Ankhor Wat.

Simone and Cornelia were in Phnom Penh a week ago so this is just a stopover en route to Sinhoukville and islands. But Sim took me on a tuktuk city tour and we met Cornelia at very colonial FCCC (Foreign Correspondents Club of Cambodia) for cocktails.

Ankhor Wat 2012

Skip to pics if you want...

Lying in a hammock under the cool of the trees on East side of Ankhor Wat, enjoying (vive Indochine) baguette & le vache qui ri picnic lunch, escaping the midday sun.

We were here for sunrise yesterday on our 5am start tuktuk tour. Quite a different feel now after cycling out from town (Siem Reap).

Crossing Thai-Cambodian border at Poipet was like stepping back in time to the pre-PolPot/Killing Fields days.

Men pushing huge wooden carts piled high w produce across the border and along roads was a dramatic contrast from modern Thailand. En route to Siem Reap, the driver pulled over at a street stall and bought a bag if crispy batter fried blackbirds (head, beak, feet & all!). Then an extended stop at resto so he and a woman could crunch their way through the lot!!!

Latifa warned me that food in Cambodia was terrible. I remained open minded but by day two I reverted to Chiangmai Thai resto and will return tonight! Cornelia braved a spider (just a garlicy leg, the body proved a little too much for her still!).

After visiting Ankhor Wat at sunrise and Bayon to find Grandma's photo spot we wandered around the Tomb Raider temple encroached by tree roots and then sat waiting by the lake for the heat to subside to climb up Banteray Mound to watch sunset.

This morning I continued my meditation practice doing standing qigong on our balcony. I opened my eyes once I lost concentration to find a deep pinky-red ball rising up right in front of me! Just perfect!

Cornelia and Sim have been in Cambodia for over a week now. Sim did a 2day trip east to visit Pavethet, the child she's been sponsoring for 3+ years through Action Aid. Rural life seemed hot and apart from taping sap from the Forrest to use for boat glue there wasn't much to village life except avoid the sun.

Tomorrow we head for the islands. A stop-over in Phnom Pen so I get a sense if the capital and then another bus to Sinhoukville. I want a week to relax before Bangkok and the ongoing nightmare of trying to get my visa for China, family visits and topping up on Thai friends, culture and food. I may not return for quite a few years, until I need to resign the lease on dad's house to enable the housekeeper and son to remain. I hope the house doesn't collapse on them!