One of the things I was interested in doing on this trip was volunteering some time at an orphanage or childrens' project. I discovered when I got here that this is not quite as straightforward as it might seem....at least not when you have only a few days or a week to spare. Finding children's projects isn't difficult - there are so many non-government organisations (NGOs) working in Cambodia, many of them with disadvantaged children. I was told that in Battambang alone there are hundreds of orphanages, some run by NGOs, some run by private individuals. There appears to be a [View Full Entry]

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As some of you know, I deliberately chose to have a different kind of travel experience this time. I could have seen nearly all of the tourist highlights of Cambodia in three weeks, but I chose to spend time in only two places and soak in the atmosphere a little more. It's been interesting at times here in Battambang....kind of a 'now what do I do?' feeling. Sometimes I think I've totally run out of things to do (most travellers spend one or two nights, whereas I'm here for six). However, by taking my time and seeking out different things to [View Full Entry]

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I can't write about everything in this blog, so I'm picking just a few experiences to write about in more detail....I hope it's more interesting that way. After a few hours touring the countryside on the back of motorbikes with an Italian guy I met at the morning cooking class (fun, complete with purchasing our ingredients including still flapping fish at the local market), we arrived at a railway crossing. An old guy who proudly told me he was 68 (and looked 102!) offered us and our two 'moto' drivers a beer while the locals assembled our train. Yes, they literally [View Full Entry]

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I had minor butterflies in my stomach this morning after being collected from my hotel by a mini-van to take me to the bus station on the outskirts of town. I kept telling myself 'Alison, relax, you've done this so many times before, it's no big deal.' But it takes a little time to get back into the swing of independent travel ... up until today, I've done things the very easy way having stuff organised through my hotel. I'm not really a backpacker anymore ... I think I fall into the category they now call 'flashpackers'!?! Still an independent traveller, [View Full Entry]

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After my first view of the Angkor temples with hundreds of other people at the most popular place to view the sunset, I had a completely different sunrise experience soaking up the atmosphere entirely by myself. I'd highly recommend it as a very different temple experience from the norm. My hotel receptionist looked at me very oddly when I told her I wanted to go to the Rulous Group of temples for sunrise ... I knew immediately my plan to follow 'the road less travelled' was likely to come true. Because I have more time here than the average tourist (who [View Full Entry]

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My first full day in Cambodia yesterday ...and the only thing wrong with the day was that I'm worried the rest of my trip won't live up to it ...it was so, so good! Fabulous in fact! I'd booked a day tour via the internet before I arrived (through Villa Siem Reap) to the Kompong Phluuk floating village - we ended up going to another village Kompong Kleang further away, and the tour was brilliant. Just three of us (myself and an English couple), plus guide and driver. Tourism is apparently about 30% down here in Cambodia at the moment ... [View Full Entry]

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This is a public travel blog test [View Full Entry]

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Here I go trying a different travel blog site...to see if it works any better. [View Full Entry]

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