Hi everyone!

I am now in Cambodia and absolutely love it. Arrived in the capital Phnom Penh yesterday after a long bus journey from Saigon. First impressions of Cambodia is that there are so many street kids begging for food but that they are all so friendly and if you smile at them they beam at you and want to play games! Had a look round the Russian Market (which was not Russian!) when we arrived then had cocktails whilst watching the sunset which was really nice. Our tour leader bought a bag of crickets (which were cooked not that it makes a difference they are still crickets!) and I ate one which tasted of crispy seaweed. Spent the next half hour picking out bits of leg from my teeth! We then visited a street kids charity called Friends who help to get the chidren off the street and give them training for loads of different professions and offer them foster care, support etc. We watched a video which was sad but positive as you can see the good that the charity is doing. It was hard as they said not to give the children any money directly as doing so will keep them on the street selling things, but it is still hard to walk past. We then went for dinner at a Friends restaurant so all of the chefs are children in training and they were absolutely lovely. One of our group had a plate of tarantulas - I decided one bug a day is enough for me so didn't try a hairy leg as appealing as it looked, and chose a chicken curry instead!

Today we are off to the Killing Fields which is going to be horrific but really interesting. I can't believe how little I knew about Cambodian history before I came over here and have been learning so much. We are having dinner tonight at a local Camdodian's house which I am really looking forward to as the Cambodian food I have tried (except for the bugs) has been delicious! xx