After a whole day travelling, we finally made it to Sihanoukville, Cambodia's main beach resort. On recommendation we made our way straight to Otres Beach, a 30 minute tuk tuk journey east of Sihanoukville, and away from the trashy, seedy strip. Otres beach was beautiful, and despite the numerous huts, bars, and restaurants in all shapes and sizes, the area was very quiet and relaxing. We stayed at a place called 'Moonflower Bungalows' it was a little far away from the main beach front, so we had to hire a moped for a whopping 5 dollars a day.

After a nice refreshing nights sleep, we decided to venture out to tackle the hustle and bustle of Sihanoukville City, for our first Cambodian moped experience. There was a nice quiet road on the way there to get used to the moped, and riding on the wrong (right) side of the road. Although, it's unclear as to what side you should be on, as the locals use both to go in either direction, oncoming traffic is a common occurrence! Whilst out in the city we sorted our Vietnamese visas, which have to be done in advance, and compared to other neighbouring countries, are quite expensive at $70 a person for 30 days.
After leaving our passports with the consulate, we went zipping through the city to explore. It wasn't long before we bumped into the infamous Cambodian traffic police! It's not 'technically' legal for foreigners to ride or drive in Cambodia without a Cambodian drivers license, but after acting a little naive, and showing a small change ($3), they're happy to let you go on your merry way.
After paying our bribe we decided it was time for some much needed r'n'r back at Otres beach. We rode along the sandy and bumpy beach front 'road' to find a place for lunch. We chose 'Everythang' because Amelia's brother, Harry, had stayed here, and highly recommended it for its laid back vibe, and good food. So we sat on the beach in some nice comfy chairs, drank white sangria, beers, and ate some seafood with a side of hummus and carrot sticks.
Whilst sunbathing on the beach Amelia was approached by a local lady, offering massages, pedicures, manicures, and lots more. Amelia chose the least relaxing treatment, and got her legs threaded. Which apparently took three Khmer ladies!

The following day we headed back to the city to pick up our passports, this time opting for the longer scenic route, hoping to avoid bumping into the police again. After picking up our passports and learning a few Vietnamese words, we headed towards the coast. We saw many beaches, Victory, Hawaii, Independence, Sokha, and Serendipity - which is the main tourist beach.
In this area there are plenty of dive shops, so after a bit of research, and advice, we bought ourselves an early Christmas present, a snorkel and mask each.
We headed back to Otres, not before picking up a puncture, getting it repaired for $3 on the side of the road, and bumping into the local rozzers again! We had some lunch - langoustines, and tried out our Christmas pressies! It took a little encouragement, but I got Amelia snorkelling for the first time in years, I was very proud of her! This deserved a drink, so we found a 'floating bar' for happy hour, and watched the sunset. Many bars and restaurants along the beach front offer $5 barbeques, they all include similar seafood, meats, with sides of garlic bread, corn on the cob, jacket potato, and salad - perfect! We went to 'Sunshine Cafe' which was highly recommended by people we had spoken to, and trusty trip advisor. The food was incredible, we shared between us, prawns, squid, red snapper, and barracuda. It was delicious!

All aboard! Off to Koh Ta Kiev, a tropical island...