Sihanoukville, Barracuda and the pufferfish

26/02
We checked out of Mushroom Point after one last delicious breakfast of muesli, fresh fruit and Vietnamese coffee.A tuk tuk driver had spotted us half an hour before with our back packs and had arranged an unspoken agreement; we had our transportation to the port.

I was sad to leave Otres beach, but we now had our next four nights arranged on Lonely Beach.
We arrived at the small port. I had been told via email correspondence that a guy named Dani would meet us and the boat would be easily recognisable named Lonely Beach. We walked the length of the port. No boat. I asked the staff at the bar, they had no notion of a Lonely Beach. It was now 12:45, the boat left at 13:00. When we realised where the correct port was we knew we didn't have time to get there. I looked around for our tuk-tuk driver but he was nowhere to be seen.We stood at the bottom of Serendipity beach in the sweltering heat with our backpacks deciding what to do. Behind us was a huge modern looking hotel. I had joked about checking in for a few nights of luxury. We walked through the big glass doors and into an air-conditioned reception. I could see a huge pool to the right with sun loungers. We paid $32 for a night. We were escorted to our room. It was heaven: Air-conditioning, hot water, bath, decent water pressure, our own clean towels, and a toilet you could discard toilet paper down with a proper flush!

Blair had read of a well rated Japanese restaurant just up the road. We walked up  to Happa and were seated under a huge fan. The second I saw that they offered sashimi I was sold. So I drank away at coke and ordered the sashimi (which I was told was barracuda, I'd never tried it before so was excited for another food first). My sashimi arrived and it was delicious. I ordered a second place and Blair was digging into his tepenyaki prepared dish of gayoza dumplings.
I was tired after my night out at the full moon party so we headed back down to the hotel. In about forty minutes I wasn't feeling right. In another hour I felt awful. All I remember of that night and the following day was running back and forth to the bathroom.
Blair had paid for another night at the hotel, so I could get the food poisoning out of my system before we returned to our budget hosteling. He had booked a guesthouse up the road for us for two nights with the intention then of leaving Sihanouk Ville and heading to Phnom Penh and the north to the temples.
I don't recall the two nights we spent at the Sunday Guesthouse. The food poisoning was obviously worse than we thought, and I wasn't going to recover as quickly as Blair had in kep.It didn't help that the room was on the third floor, six flights of stairs up, and was bakingly warm. Or as Blair has come to name ridiculously warm rooms - a sweat box.
While I was M.I.A, Blair walked around Sihanouk Ville, finding all the best places to eat. He went to Holy Cow and tried Khmer foods, Gelatto Italiano and he tried to find The Starfish Project Bakery but thankfully I was back to my normal self on the second and successful attempt.
He also reported back on a hair salon that used a huge poster of Peirce Brosnan as their promo pull. This is clearly where Blair was going to get his hair cut.

02/03
We moved back into the lovely Serendipity Beach Hotel and paid for five nights. This luxury was justified by firstly being under our weekly budget for three weeks running by an average of $110, and secondly Blair realised that I hadn't exactly had a relaxing time there before.
We had a pool view this time and huge patio doors. Blair was lured out of the air-con room and away from the TV offering the History channel, National Geographic and a constant film Channel thanks to the pool.That Saturday afternoon we walked to Led Zephyr - a bar we would frequent because of their brilliant internet connection. I hadn't eaten for four days and was famished. Blair ordered a pork bap and a large bottle of water and I went for Crazy Larry's 400g tear off the bone BBQ pork ribs, with fries, polenta balls, salad, cheesy garlic bread and two cokes. The waiter chuckled and wanted to ensure that I was fully aware of what I was ordering was in fact a very large meal. I nodded my head and ensured him that I was starving.I am pleased to report that I finished all the ribs myself, picked on a few chips and ate half of the garlic cheesy bread and of course the cokes....Blair bear finished the rest!
Blair had spotted an electronic shop that sold music and films seriously cheaply. It wasn't long before we bought a load of films and had a night in with pizza, chocolate and a film. The pizzas were bought from the Happy Herb Pizza place (which Sihanouk ville had its fair share of) minus the happy herbs obviously! Next to it was a bar who's promotional pull was 'happy hour every hour'! I wondered if happy hour would ever catch on Cambodia; every bar had happy hour sessions of at least three hours!
We went on a hunt for The Starfish Project Bakery. It was tucked away down an alleyway in the city. All we saw at first were overgrown plots weeds spread over plots of land fenced in by rusty gates. We began doubting ourselves and feared it had closed down. We finally came to an opening where trees and shrubs sheltered a gravelled walkway. We passed a stone fountain where fish swam. We walked passed little workshops and the starfish project shop itself and at the very end was the patio area to the bakery. A short but incredibly happy Khmer man greeted us. He welcomed us in with a huge smile, good English and an infectious giggle that would be heard every few minutes, anybody within hearing distance would be compelled to giggle quietly to themselves. The menu was lovely. After we had ordered our breakfasts of eggs, bacon, freshly baked rye bread, coffee and freshly squeezed fruit juices, he thanked us for coming to the cafe - all profit was donated to the NGO charity based cafe and shop. It was so peaceful and quiet. It had a real French feel to it. Despite being listed in the LP guide, it wasn't brimming with westerners at all, due to the fact it was a little tricky to find.We donated some riel into the charity boxes, thanked the kind man - who's name we never  learnt - and bought our postcards and souvenirs from the shop.

06/03 This was to be our 'day off', whereby we could do what ever we wanted and not have to compromise in any way. I woke up early and went up the road for breakfast at Monkey Republic , leaving Blair fast asleep in bed. I made my way over to Otres beach and reached the very end of it. I had been told by the blonde man from Mushroom Point that if you kept on walking beyond the beach, walked/swam through a river and walked through some woodland you would end up at a completely deserted beach; no beggars, no-one offering to sell such glasses, or massages or threading treatments, or bracelets or island tours. I did as he said. At the end of Otres beach I was cut off by some rocks so I headed inland and past a small gathering of fishing huts. Families were sitting around in hammocks watching the little kids run around barefoot. Another family were seeing to some newly born chicks and chasing the cockerels around the yard. I came to the river which was very low at that time. Up stream of colorful wooden fishing boats were tied to small wooden sheds. This was a non-tourist area. It was rural village- living Cambodia. As soon as I was seen the children stopped and waved, shouting "Hello!", or practicing any English they knew. Three children accompanied me while I waded through the shallow river holding my bag above my head. They stayed with me until I reached the woodland. They all scampered off bare footed passed a small pond while I treaded carefully through the greenary and over the rocks. Then I came to an opening to the beach. It was stunning. It was completely deserted. An entire stretch of beach to myself. Instead of bars, hostels or sun loungers lining the back were beautiful green trees. Their canopy offered shade from the sun. There wasn't a cloud in sight and he sky was crystal clear. I went swimming and then walked on until I found the perfect spot to lie in the shade. I read, listened to music and watched the occasional fishing boat float by. A father was teaching his son the art of fishing.
I had water and ate fresh fruit. I had no phone, tablet, watch, so had no idea of the time. It was so relaxing.As the sun began to dip I walked back slowly and just as I reached the river I met the same children who had accompanied me earlier. This time their elder brother was herding cows through the river. I stood and watched the skinny white cows lazily paddle, spurred on by the bamboo stick swung by the teenage boy. They continued walking aimlessly  along the beach. I followed suit and crossed with the children who splashed around and laughed. I was greeted with very much the same sight of the families as earlier but with bigger waves and smiles. I stopped by the first bar and had a drink before making it back into town.
I stopped by a local Khmer restaurant. There were no other Westerners there, and I was invited to try their special dish. Brought to the table was a bowl of raw vegetables, a seafood stew, and a small plate of flavourings to add to the stew; chilli, nuts and other spices. Then a large plate of finely sliced beef. I was told to dip the beef into the stew, which I was to season how I saw fit, and enjoy. It was delicious. I hadn't had anything like it since I'd been in Cambodia. I was so glad I took the chance of walking into what looked like an old shack furnished with mismatching tables and chairs. I even sampled their Angkor beer, which was light and really cold.
I wandered on back to the hotel, stopping by to look at some of the stalls and markets, resisting the temptation to buy!I knocked on the door, and a smiley Blair opened the door and told me he'd only got in himself. I was excited to hear about his day and what he'd been up to. He woke at 11:00ish and watched some TV. He went out to get his hair cut (although didn't look anything like Peirce Brosnan) and some lunch, then for an afternoon nap. He had then found himself the Taj Mahal, run by an Indian man and offered the thali dish that Blair had enjoyed so much in Mumbai.
The only thing I regret about that day was that I didn't have a camera!

07/03
During one of our nights stay at Serendipity Beach Hotel, we walked along the beach in search for Sokha beach. According to the LP guide we were a short 400m away from a beautiful secluded stretch of private beach, which for a small fee you could settle on a sun lounger for the day.
It was the perfect getaway from the beggars and sellers of Serendipity beach.
A 100m into the walk, we realised this walk wasn't going to be easy, and far longer than 400m. We began clambering rocks and jumping across pools of sea. After ten minutes we came across a father and his son fishing on the outer most rocks of the shore. The young boy, who looked no older than nine, jumped across the rocks towards us after I had waved to him. He then proceeded to guide us to the beach. It took further climbing and ducking under huge rocks and negotiating our away through some steep jungle pathways until we finally reached the beach. Before we came to the stretch of beach described in the guide we came across a small cove that was seemingly used exclusively by the Malibu Bungalows; dotted on the slope above, each overlooking the ocean and jungle. It was beautiful.
We spent the evening on the beach. We sat our selves at a bar set on the beach And ordered some cocktails. Whilst Blair was happily sitting sipping on his second pina colada, I dug out the bat and ball from my bag and ran to the young boy where I preceded to lose every game against him; in true Catrin style! He knew very little English, and I only a few Khmer phrases, yet we managed to play and understand each others jokes through facial expressions for around forty-five minutes.It was after nine and dark when we left the beach and decided to walk along the road back to Serendipity Road (which we found to be much quicker ).
On an impulse, I walked up the dirt road that lead to the Malibu Bungalows and asked about availability. Five minutes later, I walked out of the reception and informed Blair and the young boy that I had paid for a three night stay at the bungalows: accommodation for the following three nights were sorted!

07/03-09/03
We checked into the Malibu Bungalows and taken to the Papaya Bungalow, which was a stone throw away from the beach.We had a big double bed with a mozi net and to Blair's relief, two big fans. We had our own bathroom as well as a third single bed which I  claimed straight away by sprawling all my clothes across it. The room also included a tv with the HBO Chanel showing films 24/7 and a fridge full of drink.We spent our time lounging around on the private beach, which had big double beds and cushions, sheltered by tall trees.

The second night we were moved to the Pepper Bungalow, placed higher up the hill. We discovered that the dirt track that lead off to the left in fact was the 400m walk into town that we had intended to take on Thursday! The first night we walked along it we spotted our first firefly!

09/03-12/03
Our eight days of luxury had come to an end and we were now back in budget mode. We checked into The Big Easy and paid $11 a night for a bungalow.We returned to The Starfish Bakery for a long lunch and were greeted with an even bigger smile and gratitude than before. We spent three hours there. After finishing our brunch I began writing postcards to friends and family and we continued ordering fresh fruit juices, stunning banana and chocolate ice cream milkshakes and deserts (apple pie and chocolate brownies).
On our way back to the hostel we dropped by a PADI diving shop and booked a snorkelling trip to the island of Koh Rong Samloem. We stopped by a travel agency that had been recommended to us in order to organise a second months visa in Cambodia. Our visas were due to expire on the 15th, and knew we needed longer than a week to travel to Siem Reap and Battambang and to do justice to the temples.
We met at the diving shop at 07:30 the following morning. I picked  some coffee and pain au chocolat for the bus trip to the port.We climbed onto a bus full of young tourists. Blair was unfortunate enough to sit next to an already drunk Frenchman who was guzzling down Bombay Sapphire Gin and Tonics. Despite declining several offers, Blair was repeatedly offered until the drunk man accidentally sloshed a load over Blair and then finally let him be. I walked on to the back where I could see there were seats available, however I arrived to find a seriously hungover and unconscious fat girl splayed over all five seats, mouth open wide, mascara and eyeliner smudged over her face and dribbling....great!I prayed that we weren't going to the same destination. I didn't really understand how the konked out mess in the back could physically walk in a straight line let alone snorkel!
We arrived at the port which was surprisingly big - this was clearly where we were meant to catch the boat out to the Lonely Beach resort.We were called aside by the Khmer boy who had met us at the diving shop. He introduced us to an English diving instructed who would travel with us to the island. He walked us to the boat and helped us on. He commented on how lucky we were to have the trip and island to ourselves. We could see the rest of the bus load were clambering onto a much bigger boat that was sailing to Koh Rong island.

Another two Khmer men joined the boat. Fresh pineapple was laid out for us as well as coffee, tea and water. We were told the trip would take two and a half hours.It was already warm, although overcast, so we were hoping the sun would burn through by the time we arrived.We spotted a large yacht on the horizon. The instructor informed us that it was once owned by Russian tycoon Abramavich, but had been given as a gift to a business partner. The boat had been in Cambodia since the 2nd of February, and the area was brimming with speculation behind the owners reasons for being in the country for so long. The instructor quickly got the boats specs up on his laptop. On the deck was a 40 foot yacht and a 25 foot speed boat. It had all the high tech equipment possible, this part went straight over my head whilst Blair soaked it all up.
Two hours later we pulled up to a long harbour. The island was covered in jungle apart from a small strip of beach where five wooden huts were being built. The water was stunning: perfectly clear and a light turquoise in colour. We climbed off the boat and along the tall harbour and met another two members of the diving team; an English couple who had worked for the company for the last eight months.We were shown to the restaurant where our lunch would later be served.  The spot looked over a secluded fishing village, approximately three kilometres away. The huts and boats were multi-coloured and were home to the most rural of Khmer's.

Two tiny puppies came running to us and played at our feet. We decided to wait a little before going snorkelling to see if the skies would brighten a little.We walked along the beach and spotted some fish in the sea and crabs walking the sand. There were hammocks tied up to the trees nearest to the beach. I lay in one and started swinging, whilst Blair tackled the hammock next to me. He hadn't been in one before, and had been too nervous to try the ones in Mushroom Point for fear of breaking them. He stood in a squatting position for a while, trying to work out the best way to negotiate his first move. He finally sat and wriggled until he had succeeded. He lay quietly rocking with a big grin on his face at his victory. I took  a photo of him in all his glory, when we heard a snap. Blair's expression has never changed so dramatically! He looked over at me just in time for the second and final snap of the hammock, and slammed his feet down to the ground to save himself ! Needless to say I was doubled up in a laughing fit!

It was finally time to jump back onto the boat and go for our first snorkelling trip. We were given our masks and flippers. We sat and fitted them as the boat drove us to a tiny island directly in front of the harbour. We were offered wetsuits, but declined. We pulled up and anchored.Although it was still slightly overcast it was surprisingly clear under water. Blair had his Sony video can in hand and recorded for avoid while, capturing a lot of the coral and fish we spotted.There was a poster of all sea life in the cove, and we were challenged to spot as many a we could.
We were dropped in for an hour, and it flew by. It didn't take too long for us to become comfortable and confident enough to dive down and further away from the cove.We were soon called back in to the boat and taken in for lunch. The workers building the bungalows joined us for a feast of rice, Khmer chicken, chips and vegetables. We played again with the dogs and Blair avoided the hammocks as we waited for our food to settle. Before long we had itchy feet and ready to dive again, particularly as the sun was now out and the sea was crystal clear.
I had gone off on my own search, when Blair swam beside me and got my attention. I knew it was something good when I saw the speed at which he swam away from me. I swam after him and once he stopped and pointed I followed his finger and noticed a giant clam. We swam to the surface and wondered whether it held a big pearl inside. We decided it best to leave the clam, maybe somebody else got lucky! As I swam away I am pleased to announce that I made the best spot of the day! I noticed a scared pufferfish hiding beneath a rock. He would swim out tentatively and then quickly digress. This happened a few times, so we stayed as still as we possibly could. Now each time he poked his head out, his huge bulbous eyes only invoked in me an infinite sympathy.
Everything in the afternoon was so much more vivid, this resulted in more fish having surfaced, due to the sun making a very grateful appearance. I'm hoping Blair will attach the videos for you, not only to see what we spotted but also the beautiful sight of us in masks.
Our afternoon session flew by even quicker, and by that time we had mastered diving down and regulating the pressure in our ears so we could investigate even further.We didn't spot everything on the boats chart, although we definitely spotted most of the coral life. We spotted maybe a third of the other marine life. We had been told we wouldn't see any turtles, because they had been driven away by fishermen, we may have spotted some small species of shark, but I genuinely thanked everything that is holy that we didn't!We did however spot needle fish, parrot fish, angel fish, clams, crabs, loads of urchins, clown fish, 'Dory's' from 'Finding Nemo' and many others that I can't remember the names of!
We showered off the seawater and dressed, waved farewell and thanked the crew for our amazing day of fun. We walked 'the plank' onto the boat's deck for the final time and sailed away from Koh Rong Samloem, beginning our three hour journey back to mainland Cambodia.

12/03-15/03
We checked out of The Big Easy and walked the kilometre walk down the road to our home for the next three nights: Motel 7. Blair suffered with a bad stomach for most of our time, which meant I spent most of time walking, sleeping or swimming at the beach.The second afternoon we made it for our final visit to the Starfish Bakery. Following a very warm and giggly (on the owner's part) welcome, we sat and ordered our breakfast without even consulting the menus. Within ten minutes Blair had not only noticed the stripey legged, dengue fever carrying mosquitoes, but he had been bitten over ten times. The owner had noticed Blair's preoccupation with swatting ( or attempting to anyway!), and immediately marched out armed with the ultimate mosquito killer. Blair held what appeared to him a neon coloured plastic tennis  racket. He soon noticed the button on the side of the handle. It was comedy gold; Blair held the racket still and pressed the button, when a mosquito flew into it, letting out a loud crackling and a small whisp of smoke. The realisation of what he held in his hands had struck! A huge grin spread across his face, he looked like the Grinch at Christmas. He sank further into the cushions of the chair and waited for his next victim.Its fair to say, that for the rest of that meal I lost Blair to a battle against any flying insect in the area! Although it provided great entertainment, not only for the owner, who produced a hysterical giggle every now and again, but all other customers. I did take a video of him deeply engrossed, electric neon tennis racket in hand, but unfortunately for you readers, I highly doubt he'll upload it.

Our final meal was spent in Sandan, a restaurant and school who train street kids in hospitality and cooking. It was recommended on trip advisor and had gained great reviews on most websites. We visited their shop aswell, M'lop Tapang, an NGO based shop selling products designed and created by he children in arts and textiles workshops.
The restaurant offered traditional Khmer cuisine, and the atmosphere was relaxing- a beautiful and romantic last night.The afternoon of the fifteenth finally arrived. We collected our passports complete with extended Cambodian visas, and the reason for us staying in Sihanouk Ville for almost a month.
We arranged a bus journey from the city back to Phnom Penh. We were to be collected at 09:00 the following morning from Motel 7, taken to the bus station, and would begin the five hour journey back to the capital. Its fair to say that by this point, we were more than ready to get back to some culture, sightseeing and distancing ourselves from tourists and experience the real Cambodia.That evening we checked into The White Rabbit, as the Mad Monkey was fully booked. The journey had taken much longer than anticipated, and any plans to do some sight seeing around the city once we arrived just went out of the window.
Our stay revolved in ordering food, booking a bus to Siem Reap the following day, showering and going to bed.