23rd May 2015 We had a very late breakfast and, surprisingly, found ourselves the only ones there in the restaurant. Mary, one of the waitresses, took pity on us and struck up a conversation in halting English. While it was kind of her to try, the chatter became slightly irritating after a while. Thankfully, she… Continue Reading

21st May 2015 We had a lie-in! For the first time since we’ve been away, the alarm on my mobile went off without me waking up beforehand to turn it off. Another first: Sue beat me to the bathroom! We had breakfast at 7:54 am and spotted Ron and Jenny having theirs. Last night, they… Continue Reading

20th May 2015 We had breakfast at 6:45 am and met our guide as we stepped out of the lift at 7:50 am. For the first time on this trip, we had company on our excursion, a Portuguese couple currently living in London. One is a doctor, and the other is an engineer. It was… Continue Reading

19th May 2015 We were late to breakfast at 7:15 am, but there was no “Asian nonsense” on the menu for us this morning, just good old British fare, with a nod to the French in the form of their toast. The rest of the morning was spent making last-minute adjustments to our baggage, enjoying… Continue Reading

19th May 2015 We met our driver for the day at 8 am after enjoying another full breakfast and a good night’s sleep. We planned to visit Tonle Sap, Cambodia’s largest lake. While the dry season is ideal for exploring temples, it’s perhaps less suited to visiting water features. We had been told that the… Continue Reading

17th May 2015 Breakfast was curry today, and it went down a treat. In full daylight, we finally understood why our room seemed so spacious and the balcony was so plush; we had been upgraded again, this time to one of the best suites on the top floor. I’ve noticed that Asians often have an… Continue Reading

16th May 2015 After a decadent late start at 7:15 am, quite the departure from the usual early mornings, we found ourselves among the first at breakfast. The workers of Vietnam, already out in the fields, would no doubt be astounded by such leisurely Western habits! Once breakfast was done, our main task for the… Continue Reading

15th May 2015 Another early start had us breakfasted and in a taxi to ‘Mỹ Sơn’ (pronounced ‘mee-son’) by 8 am. After just over an hour of travelling, we reached the mountains and parked at this World Heritage Site. It was another scorching day, with temperatures soaring to 37 degrees! Leaving our driver in the… Continue Reading

14th May 2015 Again, our house alarm system decided to make itself known at 2:26 am, ringing persistently. Shortly afterwards, Charlotte sent a text to let us know that the system was also contacting her. After a flurry of emailed instructions and another message from Charlotte confirming that Suraj had managed to resolve the issue,… Continue Reading

13th May 2015 At precisely 1:16 am this morning, I received a text from Charlotte. The house alarm had been triggered by Jamie, who was unable to turn it off. A flurry of messages followed as I sent instructions, and by around 1:30 am, I managed to switch it off remotely. Relieved, I sank back… Continue Reading