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We have been on mini buses before in South-East Asia that were clearly a test of our survival skills. No idea why we thought this trip was going to be any better. We spent more time on the left side of the road (which is the wrong side of the road) than the right side of the road. I am also convinced that the horn was definitely jammed on the whole time. There is no way that someone could have the thumb strength to hold it on for 5 hours straight.

We did arrive in Siem Reap eventually, and not too worse for wear.

We booked our accommodation online prior to arrival. Lovely pool, nice breakfast and spacious room. Or so the photos and internet description suggested. As soon as we plonked our bags down in our room our air-conditioning was disabled. Apparently I had not paid for a room with air-con. We cooled off in the sitting-room only pool feeling a little deflated. After a string of events, including us waking to the sound of a jiggling doorknob & someone trying to get into our room at 2am two mornings in a row we decided to move hotels two days later.

8 nights in Siem Reap allowed us to have a bit of down time. We did some book trading - it appears the Lonely Planet books are the hardest ones of all to trade, we had coffee & cake at Cafe's and took leisurely bicycle rides.

Pub Street and West Alley had an amazing selection of restaurants and gave us the opportunity to try some great traditional Khmer food. I had a very tasty chicken & cashew nut, which doesn't sound so adventurous, but I am sure the chef was a firm believer in using every part of the chicken.

After 4 days of not too much we decided to book our Tuk Tuk who would be our guide around the Angkor Temples for 2 days. Elaboration and photos to follow next post.

I had noticed on Facebook when we were still in Thailand that one of my friends I used to work with back in Sydney was also travelling with his fiancé (let's call them Dennis & Nicole) and had just arrived to Thailand from Central America. After chatting for a bit we worked out that we would most likely be in the same area at the same time at least once on our trip. Yes, we did end up in the same place, and for the 5 weeks that follow this post.

Thankful to a lack of privacy on facebook and 'Checking In", I noticed Dennis checked in to Pub Street in Siem Reap. This was the point that our trip took a turn for the.........

Mark knew Dennis from when we worked together and we decided to catch up over dinner and a couple of quiet drinks so we could swap stories and also meet Nicole. Nobody has quiet drinks when you are buying beers for 35c and buckets of Vodka Redbull for $5. The night eventuated and we all wound up at the local Pub Street Bar 'Angkor What?' for dancing, buckets & free T-shirts.

We would all meet up again 2 days later in Battambang.

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