Hello everybody!

I've a week in Cambodia to recap on so sit tight...

Phnom Penh is a lively city, it definitely has more of an edge to it than the other cities I've been to. The riverfront is beautiful and it is an easy city to navigate on foot. I also had a chance to meet with a friend I met in Laos who lives here, so had a 'local' of sorts take me out for dinner Khmer style where you cook your meat on a volcano (cooker shaped like a volcano) and wash it all down with $2 (!) pitchers of Angkor beer.

Sadly, the place is also pretty heartbreaking given that the bulk of the tourist sites are linked to the genocidal rule in the late seventies. The Killing Fields and the S-21 Museum are devastating and incredibly humbling. There is literally an entire generation of people, around the age of my parents, missing fromt the streets. Despite everything they've been through, the people here are so welcoming with big smiles.

The strangest thing I saw was an elephant wandering down a main road by the riverfront through the traffic at rush hour. I literally did a double-take (I later found out he lives up near a temple.) I also beat my record set in Vietnam for 'most people seen on a motorbike.' 6 members of the same family (three generations) all tucked on one bike. I'm on the lookout for seven...

I then headed south to the coast and spent some very lazy days by the beach in Sihanoukville. I travelled along the coast to a small town of crumbling French architecture called Kampot which was very chilled (although Kampot proved that the bed bugs do bite unfortunately!) Finally I stopped offin Kep and stayed in a terrific bungalow high up on a cliff side overlooking the bay which gave me the greatest sunset of my trip so far. I also took a boat over to Rabbit Island, the closest experience I'll probably have ofmyown desert island. The population there is restricted to around five or six families. There were only six or seven other tourists on the island so I had my own deserted stretch of sand (aside from the odd cow and chicken who came to say hello.) The water was stunning, but the boat trip back to Kep was a bit too choppy for my liking!

A quick overnight back in Phnom Penh and in a few hours I'm catching a bus north west to Battambang and after that Siem Reap for the mighty Angkor Wat. Woo!

Look after yourselves, can't believe we beat Australia. Its given me some good ammunition to use against all the australians I meet travelling...

Lerve

Jonny