This is our final day in Cambodia, and I am currently sat in our guesthouse lobby, with no way of being able to explore Cambodia's Capital of Phnom Penh because the streets have completely flooded! People are wading through the knee-deep, murky waters, some children playing in their swimming costumes, and the tuk-tuk drivers attempting to push their motobikes towards slightly shallower water. The last few days in Cambodia though have been just as good as the first few! I certainly feel like I've seen all sides to the country, the good, the bad, the rich and the poor, and, even though I have loved it, I am ready to cross the border to Vietnam.

The homestay was probably one of the highlights of the whole experience. We got to see how the real people live day in, day out first hand. Our homestay was based in Chambok Ecotourism site, and on arrival we went on a pretty long and steep treck into the jungles for a dip in the waterfall. After an hour of climbing we were all dying for a swim, and it was beautiful. Despite being bitten alive I don't think any of us wanted to leave, and also we all knew this was probably the closest we would get to fresh water until the following evening, and when its this hot and humid, that wan't a nice prospect. We were staying between 2 houses, of which only one had electricity, and it was limited to being enough to power a couple of lights, for 4 hours! We spent a long evening entertaining ourselves with beer and card games, talking to the host families, andbeing treated to good food. Our beds were thin mattresses surrounded by mosquito nets, on the floor of a one-room wooden shack...and I probably had one of the best nights sleep so far! It was hard to imgaine that this was normality for the people here. We only were there overnight, but limited electricity, no running water, and one room to share amongst a whole family just didn't seem possible. I think we all thoroughlyu enjoyed the experience, but were thankful to arrive in Sihanouksville the following day, to white beaches, cocktails, and a shower!

The three days there went by in a bit of a blur...possibly because of too many pina coladas! The days we spent at the beach, and the nights in the bars. The first night there was possibly the best, and somehow we all ended up juping into the hotel pool, clothed, with onlookers wondering wat on earth we were doing...I can't remember whose idea it had been actually but it definately seemed like a good one at the time! We visited the National Park one of the days, and on our final day there we rented out motorbikes! It would have never been allowed in england, considering i had never ridden one in my life, but we all hopped onto them and were let lose! Thankfullyu it wasn't me that crashed, as it was bound to appen, but we managed to find some secluded beaches that the tourists hadn't discovered, and managed to enjoy more cocktails there!

From there we have ended up here. And yesterday was a success, we got to see a lot of the city in a short space of time on our cylcotour. I felt sorry for the guys peddling us around, and I swear mine should have reached retirment half a century ago! I love this city as a Capital; it beats Bangkok: it's got all the noise and excitement, but without the chaos. This morning we visited the Killing Fields. It had been something I had wanted to do but hadn't been looking forward to. Throughout the weeks in Cambodia, and after speaking to the locals, it was very obvious that pretty much everyone had known, or been related to, someone that had been killed by the Khmer Rouge. Learning and seeing what it was all about, made me understand why it is so significant to the Cambodians. The capital city had been nicknamed Ghost Town, only abot 20 years previously, as it almost had a non-existent population, and being here now, you realise the transformation it must have made over those years. I'm gutted that this afternoon has been a wash-out because I woud love to have spent another days exploring, but as of 6am tomorrow morning we will be on our 6hr journey across the border to Ho Chi Min City, and saying goodbye to half of the group and our group leader...But that does mean new people and a new leader to meet when we arrive!