Best weekend yet

This weekend has been the best yet. On Friday a friend showed me round some great little bars. On Saturday we went out on the motos to the riverside just outside Phnom Penh. There are loads of what are basically decks with lots of hammocks. We sat in the shade and had our fill of freshly cooked food - fish presumably from the river - and drank beer with as much ice as will fit in a glass. On the way back we went through villages where the children would run out to meet us, shouting "hello"!

Today we went about and hour out of town on the motos to Oudong mountain, on the top of which was a number of temple-type buildings. Truely incredible views for possibly 50 miles plus (it's a flat country!). I was laughed at by a large group of school girls, presumably because I am tall, or white (I was one of only two white people in our party) or because I have a beard/chest hair. Or all three perhaps. I think they're freaked out by me doing three steps in one stride! I can barely fit my white flappers on their little steps. Anyway, the place really was incredible.

Later we drove to a local village to another place similar to the hammock place and had fresh fish and a roast chicken. And beer with lots of ice :-) It costs us $6 each. Then we took back roads as far back as we could (avoiding the insanity of the main road). More amazing sights - villages, rice paddys, etc etc. It's the real deal, even a few miles out of the city, We happened, totally randomly to pass the house of a DDD employee, who saw us and flagged us down. We sat in his yard and he cut some coconuts down fro the tree and we drank coconut milk direct from the coconut itself.

We almost hit a cow on the way back. And a lizard.

There are weddings everywhere in Cambodia. Today we saw about 15. I was woken up by one this morning at 6am. It was verrryy load. My colleague told me his wedding had 700 guests. As I write he is at one with 1200 guests. Even at SE Asian prices that's expensive!

My friends have been snapping pics all weekend. My camera is currently kaput. I will steal their pics and post them here ASAP.

Kind of missing yoou all, but to be honest, it's pretty good here so it's easy to forget you all. Oh come on don't be so sensitive.