After 4 days in the overwhelming HCMC we thought it was time to have a mini holiday in between our travels and decided to go to Phu Quoc Island, the most southern and biggest island of Vietnam. As we are on a tight budget we decided to take a bus to Ha Tien and then take a ferry to the island instead of flying directly from HCMC.

According to a very reliable Vietnamese travel agent the bus journey would just take 6 hours... Now, the connection with the small village of Ha Tien is not very touristic and is mainly used to bring locals from one small village to the next. After 10 (!!!) hours of watching Vietnamese Idols and without any lunch breaks and only one stop to have a quick pee we arrived in Ha Tien... One important piece of advice for future travellers on this route: bring your own music and make sure you dont drink a lot on the way..

Obviously, because of the delay, we missed the ferry and had to stay overnight in the smallest town ever but with, surprisingly, a lot of hotels. Finding a room was not the problem, the tropical thunder storm that followed was.. It actually rained to hard that the water found a way through the hotel roof and came splashing down the stairs (will try to upload the video a.s.a.p.)

After another 4 hour delay next morning, waiting for the ferry (you actually get used to delays and wasting time over here) we finally arrived on Phu Quoc Island (pronounced as Phu Wok, not Phu Cock..). We actually arrived on the wrong side of the island and motorbike cartels tried to make us pay 200.000VND each to bring us to our final destination. Being Dutch backpackers, we thought that we could save ourselves some money, took out our walking boots and started walking.. not the smartest idea so far with half a liter of water, temperature over 35 degrees and 40 kilometers ahead of you.. ended up in the middle of nowhere and had to call a taxi to bring us to the other side for 700.000... oh yes, did you know a direct flight from HCMC to the island costs as little as 40 euros...

Phu Quoc island is, besides expensive, paradise on earth. To reach the idyllic places you will have to rent a motorbike and try to stay alive on the many dirtroads, result: 3 crashes in one day but still alive, we made it to all the stunning beaches in the end!

Bye bye Vietnam and welcome Cambodia as we crossed the Xa Xia - Prek Chak border. First thing you notice when crossing the border is the difference in border officials working on both sides. As on the Vietnamese side they do not smile, talk or even notice you are there, you are welcomed into Cambodia with a big smile and you learn your first Khmer words from the officials wearing nothing but a singlet and shorts.

First stop in Cambodia was riverside village Kampot. Amazing experience when sleeping for just 2,5 USD (the US Dollar seems almost like the official currency as you will also get it from the ATMs) in a balcony room. Balcony room meaning you actually sleep on a balcony, outside with only a matress and mosquito net.

After a short stop in Party Capital Sihanoukville (including more bed bugs) we decided to go off the beaten track and go camping on the nearly deserted Koh Ta Kiev island. An island with amazing beaches, free beach camping, zero tourists and zero facilities (no toilet paper, no showers, no WiFi and electricity for just 4 hours a day). Absolutely an amazing back to basics experience as you clean your behind with some buckets of rain water

After 4 days of beach camping including a visit from a group of 15 Cambodians celebrating their Kingsday on the island (free beers all night, amazing people) we now made it to the capital: Pnomh Penh. So far an amazing city, more on that next time!