Wow haven't written for a really long time!

I will try to keep it short and sweet where possible and fill in the details when I see you all in less than 3 weeks now :)

Last time I wrote, I was back in Prakhonchai which was really nice. It was a really hot couple of weeks, and you can imagine what teaching 8 year olds is like in that weather! But they were sweet, and I did a lot of singing 'head shoulders knees and toes' and playing 'Simon says'! :)

From there, I headed to Bangkok with the others who were working on the summer camp with me. I got an overnight bus to Chiangmai, where I stayed for a few days for Songkran (the water festival for Thai new year) - possibly the most fun I've ever had! Everyone has a smile on their face for 4 days straight, and you spend that whole time throwing water and soaking wet. The biggest water fight you've ever seen, with the whole city involved. In those few days, met some really cool people and we partied in the water, listened to live Thai music, met a famous Thai person, drank beer and cocktails, and I had my first roast dinner in 6 months!

After Songkran, I flew back to Chiangmai and then got a bus to Siem Reap in Cambodia. Slight argument regarding being ripped off at the border (standard procedure in this part of the world), but eventually made it! Met my fiend Betty, from Switzerland, who I had met in Pai, and I then spent the next couple weeks with.

We went to Angkor Wat for sunrise (but it was too cloudy) and saw lots of pretty and ancient temples there. Had a really cool tuktuk driver, Barang, who drove us round for the couple days - he took us for dinner and drinks with some Swedish guys, Khmer style.

From there we went to Battambang, which is a really Cambodian town with not much tourism. The bus arrived into the town and you see everyone start running, to convince us we should get their tuktuk/stay at their hotel etc! Ended up at the Royal Hotel, where everyone was really friendly and so good at English considering the poor education system in Cambodia. We spent one day there driving round in a tuktuk, to a temple on a hill with good views, on a bamboo train to a small village, and to the killing cave, where the Khmer Rouge killed lots of women and children. Interesting to hear that local people know about the Khmer Rouge regime through other tourists. We waited for sunset that evening to see millions of bats flying out of the cave for the night, impressive! While waiting, we met a guy and a couple of young girls who went there every day; not to see the bats but to spend time with the tourists, practising their English. (I'm a sucker for anyone who says they're doing something to improve their English, or need money for English school!). The next day, we hung around in the town for an extra day so we could go to the circus in town, which was really good. And we spent a long time just chatting to the guys who work in the hotel, learning about their lives. I really enjoyed this place; the people were so happy!

The next stop was Phnom Penh, where we stayed just 2 nights. Went to the royal place, the killing fields and S21 - really shocking to hear about what the Khmer Rouge did there, and so recently, but really interesting. In contrast to that, it was also Betty's birthday, so we watched films, had cake and cocktails!

My final stop with Betty was Sihanoukville, known for being the party place in Cambodia. We went to the quiet beach though - Otres beach - where we spent 3 days lying on the beach, eating at the guesthouse, listening to live music at open mic night, and a few beers. So good!

My final stop in Cambodia was an island just off Sihanoukville, called Koh Rong, which was really nice - though too many sand flies and mosquitoes! Went on a boat trip one day for some snorkelling, and a bit of fishing (though that proved pretty unsuccessful!). The next day, I went with Johan (a Swedish guy) to the other side of the island. An hour and a half walk, we were told! They weren't wrong, but we didn't realise it would involve extreme trekking and climbing down rocks, getting lost in the jungle! Was worth all the sweaty for the lovely sunrise on the other side though, and we could get a boat back!

Vietnam was my next stop; from here, I joined a tour group so didn't have to make any decisions!

First, Ho Chi Minh city (Saigon), where I was super excited to have a hotel with a porter, my own double room with air conditioning and huge bathroom (since the previous night I spent on a bus, and the one before in a basic room with no electricity, where the bathroom had holes everywhere and big spiders above the shower!). That evening, met my group - 6 other English, 4 Norwegians, 2 Danish and a German... Oh and 2 Polish girls who we hardly ever saw!

In Ho Chi Minh city, we all went to Cu Chi tunnels, which were used in the Vietnam war, then had lunch of noodle soup (pho) at a place where Bill Clinton apparently ate in 2000, then went to a market, up the sky tower for a hot chocolate so we could see views out across the city after a storm, and the palace (built in the 60s so not very pretty!).

That evening, the first of our overnight trains. Arrived into Nha Trang at around 5.30am but could check in to our rooms straight away for a sleep before breakfast. Did a quick walk around the town, then spent the day on the beach. Dinner, followed by beers, cocktails and buckets... And that's about as far as my memory takes me until 11.55 next day when I had 5 minutes to pack and leave! Not good..!

We spent the afternoon at a mudbath though, which wasn't too stressful! Hot tub and swimming pools... :) Had Indian for dinner that night then another over night train.

Next place as Hoi An, where we had a pool at our hotel, so that's how we started our stay. After lunch, went to some tailors and I got measured up for a tailor made dress (Hoi An is famous for that kind of thing - could have got so much stuff but don't have space to bring it home or the money!). Wandered the town in the afternoon then went for beer with some of the guys and Pong (our tour guide) - 5000 dong for a glass (15p!), before a short boat trip down the river.

Next day, cycled round the town in the morning, had a dress fitting, then cycled to the beach in the afternoon. The following day, we got a bus to Hué, via the Hai Van pass, where there were really pretty views out across the coast. When we got there, we had a quick pizza for lunch, then spent the afternoon riding around the countryside on the back of a moped, which was fun!

Spent the next morning at another palace in the baking hot sun, before KFC lunch and an early train to Hanoi. Small party in the carriage on the train, and then arrived at around 5am, when we then had a 4 hour bus to Halong Bay. Spent the afternoon on our own boat sailing around the bay, having lunch and soaking up the sun!

That evening we saved a few more babies in our own little karaoke room, which was really fun, before heading back to Hanoi the next day, which is where I am now. Since being here, have walked around the lake, been to the Ho Chi Minh museum (a bit odd), tried 3 times to go to the mausoleum (even more odd), had photos with lots of Asian tourists at the one-pillar pagoda (you get the idea), went to the temple of literature, eaten amazing (Fanny) ice cream, been on a pub crawl which ended in a boiling hot club on the 7th floor of a random building... And I was supposed to go to Sa Pa in the north before flying back to Bangkok tomorrow, but didn't fancy any more over night trains, so stayed here and hung out with the Scandinavians, who just left this afternoon.

Back to Bangkok tomorrow, meet Marte the next day, 2 weeks and then home time! Yay!

Love to everyone, look forward to seeing you all xxxxx