I am very pleased to say that we have finally arrived in Phnom Penh, the place that has been in my dreams for so long, yet out of reach because of a multitude of lame excuses. But no more! What can I say? I love the place. We arrived around lunchtime from Siem Reap via bus, and I was woken my a jolt, only to find that we were pulling up at our final stop. Outside were hordes of rickshaw and moto drivers, all adamant to get out business, the $US1 that it costs to get anywhere around the city. I was the last to get off the bus, and took slightly longer than everyone else. As I finally made it to the front, the young drivers were already smiling up at me, asking 'tuc-tuc, lady?'. ... read more

We are here! Firstly, thanks Di for the only response to my sad and wonderful travel blog! Come on guys (especially the chilli eaters out there), send us back some love! We touched down at Siem Reap (pronounced See-em Ree-ep) early this morning, and have struggled through the first day (to stay awake, that is) with all sorts of adventures. We were all a little shocked to find that the International airport of Siem Reap was about the size of Armidale Regional Airport - Helyna felt like she had landed in country NSW, only with lots of humidity and African-movie like landscape. After a bumpy land, we disembarked the aircraft and were ushered around the tarmac and entry through what seemed the most indirect route possible. Once inside, we went through "customs" - two booths with ... read more

Well, the day has finally arrived on which we take off across the seas, and, hopefully, land in the depths of Cambodia to start our thre week trek through (some of) South East Asia. It all started one night at Ricci's in Healesville. My little sister, Eva, my best friend, Helyna and myself were out for dinner, and Eva decided to start quizzing us on what we are going o do with our lives this year. Leens was about to take a job at the Healesville Sanctuary (don't know how she would have gone planning functions around kangaroos), and I "wanted" to buy a pad in the city and open a book shop/cafe St Kilda style. Picki told us what she thought - get real guys - and we ended up having the biggest heart-felt session ... read more