Is this really Toothpaste?

A funny story just popped up in my head as I was brushing my teeth...

My mom's cousin, that was traveling with us, uses an herbal toothpaste and left some residue in the sink. I, thought it was something else and freaked out!

I came out of the bathroom screaming only to find out it was just toothpaste. What kind of toothpaste looks like this? I now know, Asian herbal toothpaste:)

Home Sweet Home

The past 3 weeks have been great, but I am really happy to be home =) There's nothing like sleeping in your own bed. Of course, it was great to see Gerald also. This has been the longest we've been away from each other since his rotation days in Nigeria. I was able to email him throughout the trip and text on Whatsapp, but really didn't get to talk to him on the phone until about 2 weeks into the trip, since he was offshore. Anyhow, I think since we're so use to doing long distance, since the beginning of our 10 year relationship together,  it wasn't a big deal at all.  I'm just a lucky girl to have such a supportive husband =)

The journey home was way too long! The weather was bad in Aberdeen so my flight was cancelled and I had to stay the night in Paris. It wouldn't have been so bad, except for the fact that Air France did not communicate very well with us regarding the delays. There was no announcement regarding the delays or the cancellation, I just found out by other passengers who were waiting around like I was. After we finally got rebooked and issued a hotel, there was an unattended baggage in the baggage claim area so we weren't allowed to leave the airport until an hour later. After a full 24 hours of traveling, I was ready for some food and a bed. By the time I got to the hotel, it was 12:00 am and the restaurant was closed so no food available. Luckily I had a few bites in the lounge prior to my original flight or else I would have been SOL. I was one of the lucky ones to get rebooked on the 10:00 am flight out the next day so that wasn't too bad. Overall, I don't mind delays or what not, but just wish the airline would do a better job communicating what is happening and going on so we're not left wondering and scrambling around. I'm just happy I got home safe and sound.

First thing I did when I got home was ordered Papa Johns! It was so yummy!

Anyhow, thanks again Cambodia for a wonderful journey and for all those who have followed in my story. I'm so thankful to be able to share this experience with the strongest woman I know, my Mom!

A Day in Phnom Penh

Today was an unforgettable day. We visited the horrifying sites of the killing fields, S-21 Prison, and then onto more pleasant sites of the National Museum, Wat Phnom, the Royal Palace and Silver Pagoda. I'll have to blog about these in more detail later as there's so many stories to share.

My whole reason for visiting Cambodia was to see the country my parents left behind 30 years ago. I wanted to learn about the past and at the same time help the future of the country any way I can. I might not be able to do much but every bit helps. If everyone here will just do their little bits, I think Cambodia will have a brighter future. Hearing family stories about the struggle and hardships makes me appreciate life like no other. All you can ever ask for in life is life itself and for that I am truly grateful.

To be able to share this story with everyone is a blessing in itself. I have lots of stories to tell so will most likely be blogging here and there about them upon my return to Scotland, so please stay tune....

Until then...more pics:)

Cambodian Beach Life

The next four days will be spent exploring the town of Kompong Som, aka Sihanoukville, to the foreigners. Two weeks into our travels and I'm really craving some American food. Khmer food is great but eating it for breakfast, lunch, and dinner is getting old. Good thing we are staying in the touristy part, there's western food everywhere. Since being here, I've had pizza, sandwiches, pasta, French fries and even Mexican food.

There are a lot of foreign business owners here. And with it, a lot of backpacking tourists. You either see old men with young Cambodian woman (some legit, some not), or hippies just living the beach life. Ive seen a few families and couples here and there but not many. Also, you'll see Cambodian families around but they usually just come for the day to eat the yummy seafood and head back to their town or stay somewhere away from the tourist. We are definitely the only Cambodian group at our hotel, which is owned by a Scottish guy from Old Meldrum!

Anyhow, now on to the town itself. We are staying in the main beach area called Occhentual, where you can find beachfront bars and restaurants, kids selling trinkets, ladies offering massages and the likes. The water here is pretty but I have to say there's a lot of liter around. Since they don't get the necessary funding to keep up with the place, it's not in the best conditions. Most places look run down. I guess you get what you pay for.

We decided to head out to a quieter beach, Otres, the following day and it was a bit better. More peaceful and relaxed and of course a bit more expensive, but just by a dollar or so more for things, which for here, is a lot.

After 2 days of hanging out at the beach we decided to check out the waterfalls for a change of scenery. The next day, we went to Kbal Chayy in the morning and had an unplanned swim:) People here don't wear bathing suits so even though we didn't bring our gear, we still got to enjoy the falls. I had a dress on...haha. The rest of the afternoon was spent lazying around Ream beach and having a yummy seafood lunch of grilled squid, crabs, and prawns. Ream beach was pretty and secluded. However, water is rough around this time of the year so I didn't want to go in for a swim. Not mich else going in here so if you're looking for some liveliness, this is not the place to go.

Today we visited the local markets, and just having a quiet afternoon at rhe hotel due to the rain. Markets here have an abundance of fruits, which I love. Everything else is "same same," meaning like anything else, nothing special. That's what they like to say here when you ask them what the difference is or price of something is. They even have shirts that say "same same, but different." It's quite funny.

Well, 4 more days and back to the Deen. Its been quite the experience here and I know I'll miss it, but kind of ready to wrap things up and head home. My cousin is coming up from Phnom Penh with his family this afternoon so we will spend some time out in the beach again and head back to Phnom Penh tomorrow.

Enjoy the pics!

Road Trip to Sihanoukville

Visiting with family in Thailand was fun and I wish we could have stayed longer but it was time for us to return to Cambodia. Also, I was ready for a hotel and proper toilet. Our next stop was the beach town of Sihanoukville. On the map, it looked pretty close to where we were, however, there wasn't a road that could take us there safely so we had to drive back through Phnom Penh and down. The drive was 10 long hours! It didn't help that my stomach was not up to par after leaving Thailand! Let's just say squatting toilets is not my thing.

Anyhow, we arrived in Sihanoukville early evening to Coolabah hotel. We will be staying here for 4 nights. This leg of the trip is really about chilling and taking it easy so hopefully we can do that.

Chaolao Beach Day

Yes, finally some beach time! I originally wanted to go to one of the island beaches around eastern Thailand but from where we were, it would have been a whole day of travel just to get there and a whole other day back. We opted for one of the local beaches instead. Twelve of us packed into 2 cars and drove out to Chantanburi, Chaolao Beach. Since I didn't have Internet and neither did anyone else, we had to look for a hotel when we got there, which was a bit frustrating. What would we do without Internet! Anyhow, we managed to find a pretty nice property that suited our group perfectly. We spent the afternoon swimming then went out and got some nice, fresh seafood dishes to bring back to the hotel for dinner, which included 3 bottles of liquor. Somehow, we managed to finish all 3 bottles between the 6 of us that were drinking. The night was fun and I ended up sick...go figure. Anyhow, it was a celebration of meeting cousins for the first time so it's all good. Even though we had a hard time understanding each other at times, since they speak Thai, we got some good laughs in. We really enjoyed ourselves and hope to see them again one day soon.

Battambang to Thailand

We traveled 3 hours from Siem Reap to Battambang by car and arrived at a little oasis in the rice paddies of Battambang. It was a nice change from the busy streets of Siem Reap. The hotel was owned by Jan and Phary, a Dutch and Cambodian couple. We were using Battambang as a base to visit some family members who live out in the country. Out where they live is surrounded by beautiful mountains that was once occupied by the Khmer Rouge. They are still demining land mines in some area. It's scary to think that they can come across one working out in the fields any day! The area has come a long way though.

After visiting the family, we headed out to Thailand to visit my moms sister and her 4 kids. Again, it was another 2 hour s or so drive to the border. Im getting kind of sick of car rides and I still have 1 week to go. Roads aren't the best in some areas so we are bobbing up and down and all the honking that goes on gives me a headache; scenery is great though.

I can write a lot about meeting the cousins and aunt for the first time but I'll save that for another time. We have some resemblances of each other so you can definitely tell we are family. We went out to the markets to get some food and just had a nice evening at the house. Tomorrow we will be heading to the beach for a day of fun:)