Sun 15.12.19 - Mon 16.12.19

Today we caught a flight to Sihanoukville, our first stop in Cambodia. Our flight was delayed so we didn’t arrive at our hotel until late afternoon. The drive from the airport through town to the Don Bosco Hotel and School was interesting.....a very wide red dirt road that was super bumpy. Having been badly bombed in 1970 the town was abandoned and peace only returned here in 1993. The school has 800 students some of the past students work in the hotel. Early supper and bed for us all. Loads of wildlife around - geese, pigeons, geckos, frogs, millipedes etc

The following day we waited for the coutesy minibus into town, but it was full so the centre manager drove into town. Charles hadn’t been here for 16 months and said he didn’t recognise the town at all. Recently the Chinese have bought up most of Sihanoukville including the islands. It’s like one massive Chinese building site, I’ve never seen so much construction in one place in all my life. The Chinese have bought up the town building hotels and casinos bulldozing many of the local shops, bars and restaurants. Everywhere the signs are in Mandarin. We lunched by Ochheuteal beach Judith had a scrummy Khmer curry and a swim in the Gulf of Thailand.