So in Debbie’s previous blog we said we had a few more days in Cambodia and then we’d be off to Vietnam. That was 6 days ago and we’re still here! We fell into a kind of relaxed lull on Otres beach and ended up staying for around a week. We really enjoyed the chilled atmosphere and brilliant selection of bars from which to watch the sun go down. After a lot of inland travel and cities it was good to relax by the sea so we will think of this period as a sort of holiday within a holiday!
We then travelled to the island of Koh Rong which is about 2 hours south of Cambodia in the gulf of Thailand. This is clearly an island early in the early stages of development with private bathrooms being a rarity and electricity only on for 6 hours a day. The crowd here is younger and full of backpackers searching for the ‘new Thailand’. This tends to be a common theme amongst pretentious travellers who strive to stay in most basic and most undisturbed places and look down on those who ask about the possibility of air con. No doubt, the island is beautiful but there is a lot of rubbish and I think if we’re honest Debbie and I would probably prefer our own bathroom. Perhaps we’re just not as young as we used to be! I guess the situation wasn’t helped by the dead rat on the beach and stepping in cat shit.
It wasn’t all bad though! We went for a walk through the jungle where we met Fred the friendly lizard;
Found a deserted beach;
But it was all to much for me so I had a kip;
That night we endured the blocked toilets, cocooned the mosquito net around our bed, and went to sleep with the sound of the sea crashing meters away. Today is the boat back to the mainland followed by a night in busy Sihanoukville before crossing the border into Vietnam and getting the boat to the island of Phú Quốc.
Finally a couple of shout outs… Happy Birthday to my brother Neale who turns 40 today. Sorry we weren’t with you to celebrate but have an amazing time in Goa and we’ll see you in April. Also Happy Mothers Day to both our amazing mums. We miss you loads and hope you have a great day.
Until next time,
Jack
xx
