Hello!

i am currently in and internet cafe just off the beach in sihanoukville in the south of cambodia and all is very well!! we have had in parts a very relaxing week and in parts a stressful week-mainly due to our own stupidity!! but anywhere i left u in saigon awaiting our adventures into the mekong delta! we headed off on easter monday on big bus full of old people and young families down to the mekong delta. it was one of the most touristy things we have done so far and we felt more than conspicuous, despite the fact that we stick out like sore thumbs anywhere and it would be a fool that didnt recognise us as tourists everywhere we go! but we went with it and drove the 2 hours south and got onto our big boats starting to traverse the wider sections of the mekong delta. at its widest points the mekong seemed about 100m wide with floating houses lining the banks on either side. we stoped at several points on the islands in the centre of the mekong visiting honey farms and coconut sweet making places and listening to the not so sultry sonds of traditional vietnamese music, which to my ear sounds like bollywood music but a bit flat and very naisal, needless to say we enjoyed those performances :) the islands are covered in greenery, tall palm trees, short pineapple trees, kinda averge mango trees and huge rushes that line the edges on the river and form an almost covering over all the little canals. we spent some of the time on small little row boats exploring some of the small canals and the scerey felt very forest gump in vietnam (my watching of films on the vietnam war is somewhat limited!!:)) and you half expected soldiers to appear carrying their guns above their head wading through the murky waters! this isnt to say that it wasnt beautifull scenery- it was! with the cool overing of the reeds, the slow movement of the boat and the little houses that appeared every so often made it a very enjoyable trip!

we headed back up to saigon and another night there before we left for the boarder and Cambodia. we have both loved vietnam! it was far more a holiday feel than i though it would, we basically chilled out the whole way down occasionally doing some touristy thing but generally just admiaring the beauty and drinking cheap beer! emily and i were the only westerners on the bus to phnom penh which made us feel like slightly more authentic travellers after the experiences of the day before, tho the cambodian karaoke tape they were showing initially funny, after 5 hours- not so much!haha, tho cambodian singing is a far sight better than vietnamese!! and we soon discovered that paying western prices does sometime pay, when several people were rearranged in their seating so that we could sit together, with the explantion of "they pay more"- its that simple! :) but we hit phnom penh and we were hot! no not just hot we were i have to say the hottest i think i have every been and sweating more than an unattractive amount. the decision to save cash and get a fan rather than a/c was a clear mistake!!

the next day we headed out of phnom penh, however, and down to the beach and to sihanoukville! we couldnt wait!!! and in our eagerness we realised half way along the 4 hour ride that we had left our passports at the last hotel!! after borrowing a phone, as nither of ours are working here, and eventualy getting the right number for the hotel we had stayed at we managed to get though and they have them for us in their safe ready for collection tomorrow-hopefully!!!!!!!! but anyway momentry panic almost over, lessened to a nagging fear at the back of our minds when we hit the the beach- white sands, clear water, room on the beach- perfect. only slightly marred by the quite impressive amounts of rubbish stored directly on the shore line, but if u get out a little further ur ok! our first afternoon we spent chilling out, buying bracelets, getting our hair threaded and chatting to loads of really sweet kinds! and that is how we have spent the rest of the week pretty much, building up the tann tho definitely avoiding the midday sun as it is insanely hot here! we had the slight drama again of emily bag being nicked on our second day-camera inside, luckily with a new memory card in!! but other than that we have relaxed and recharged and are now ready to get going again up to phnom penn tomorrow.

more news soon, tell me what been happenign with u!! much love x x x x