Five days traveling and I am looking forward to getting back to Pailin for a rest. However I have to say I have really enjoyed the last few days. Kratie has been especially good. It is a delightful town that is attractive, has dolphins, a lovely waterfront and great wine!! What more could a girl want? We are here to attend the NEP meeting about the ESWG (glass of wine, when I get back, for the first person who works out what the letters stand for!!) Yesterday ...

It is raining, Cambodian rain is very wet so I am staying inside until it stops or it is 10 o'clock when I am meeting Gillian for Brunch. To fill the time I will tell you about different ways of travelling in Cambodia. Luxury coaches - boring I would not bother unless you are ill. Local buses - on time, crowded, sometimes a bit dirty, usually noisy, you could be travelling with just about anything. The couple I have been on have been great - have heard other ta...

Good and bad news - At the end of this week, over the weekend and at the start of next week I am going to see two more areas of Cambodia, which means I am not going to the wedding. So all that effort at the market was to no avail, mind you it was fun and I have a lovely skirt that fits me really well. So to compensate, and celebrate, I decided I would give Sidney a bit of a run and went out to the Bamboo restaurant for coffee. When I was there I decided I may as ...

HAPPY 90th BIRTHDAY MUM Just as I pressed the button to update my blog yesterday Onno (team manager for education in VSO) walked by!! He was in Battambang with several of the top people from VSO including the new Netherlands lead. This meeting lead to an invitation to one of the poshest hotels in town for dinner. Fab!!! Best thing was that I am at last feeling I am getting to know the other local VSO volunteers. As I said at the end of my last blog I need a ski...

Yesterday evening the deputy director of education asked if I would like to join him and his three sons (triplets, delightful boys of 8 years old) for dinner. It was great you couldn't ask for lovelier company. We went to a local Khmer restaurant and yet again I ate dishes that were delicious and this time I could identify them. Ginger and chicken, beef in a Cambodian sauce, veg (easily identified because they were raw) fish soup and of course rice. I was back in...