The rain came down and the floods went whoosh! Part 1: Cambodia

Having to keep our feet drive whilst having lunch

 The last time I posted we were expected floods, this was just before our school half term. At this time the city of Bangkok had not been hit. Paul and Grace had been traveling for a week and I flew to Siem Reap in Cambodia. Flying over Cambodia was devastating. As everyone knows my geography is not great and I thought I was flying over the sea. I then started seeing green spots poking out of the water and realised they were trees. This went on for miles and miles. Paul met me at the airport and we got a tuk tuk back to the hotel we were staying. This in itself was an experience. It was raining and the roads getting closer to the hotel were all under water. This did not deter the driver and we drove through the water along the very bumpy roads. I will just point out that the floor to the tuk tuk was made of wooden planks with a lot of gaps so the water would come through the bottom at the same time we were clinging on to my suitcase, hoping it wouldn't a) get soaked b) fall out! When we arrived to the hotel we had out lunch in the restaurant. The restaurant was under water too!

The water wasn't too bad but the further we walked down the road the deeper it got. The current from the river also made it difficult to walk against. The worst was when a truck drove down the road and even on tip toes it reached the top of my thighs.
I suspect I'll be talking about floods and water a lot for the next month or so, so I shall make that my last flood comment in this post!

With Grace taking a quiet stroll into town!

Paul coming down from Angkar Wat

Cambodia was wonderful and there is so much I could write about it. The people are friendly and welcoming. The Temples were fascinating. Despite the blistering afternoon heat we managed to spend three dedicated days Wat-ting.
























I was walking (wading) along Pub Street in Siem Reap when I hear my name being called. Who should be in the pub but the lovely Sam Vine! A big bonus to our holiday and we were able to meet up the next day for dinner. Can't wait to see them in Bangkok later this month!

Anyone aware of recent Cambodian history will know it is not a pleasant one. One cannot escape the atrocities inflicted by the Khmer Rouge in the late 1970s. The Cambodians are very open about what happened, determined that it never be allowed to happen again. In Siem Reap we visited the Cambodia Landmine Museum

After Siem Reap we got a mini bus to Phnom Penh (the capital). We were only there for a day but we fitted in  S21 - The Genocide Museum and The Killing Fields Obviously not the most cheerful places to visit but very moving, informative and in a strange way, positive.
Paul and Grace were going to continue their travels to Vietnam whilst I headed back to Bangkok only to find...

To be continued....