We checked out of our guesthouse - Croissant d’Or (AKA: Laotian Fawlty Towers) this morning - early, if not bright. Despite having the cruise company rep visit us last night for a chat and to request a breakfast box ready for 6.30 am... we weren’t holding our breath. Lovely people, excellent food in the cafe, very well meaning - but the front desk is where the dirty laundry goes... heaven knows how it gets there as we’ve not seen hide nor hair of a houseke...

Swings and roundabouts are in constant motion in the world of international travel. We arrived at Siem Reap airport at about 2.30 pm - no took took this time - the manager of the hotel drove us in the large and comfy company 4WD. The airport was in the process of being swamped by multiple coachloads of Chinese tourists who then went on to play dodgems with the luggage trollies. We waited about 20 minutes for check-in to open then were up first and had exit row...