After Christmas in Battambang we went to Sihanoukville to celebrate the New Year on the beach. We stayed at Otres beach, the more quiet beach of Sihanoukville. There were still many beach-sellers here: necklaces, bracelets, sunglasses, kroma's, BBQ squid, lobster, fruit and massages, but usually they leave you alone if you say no firmly. Do not show the slightest hint of hesitation, however, or they will cling to you like flies to dead meat. The best selling-line we heard was a woman asking: 'You fruit me today, Sir?' We met with Sally and Damian from Dunedin, New Zealand with their kids Gray, Reid and Iris. Lasse and Sil were happy to have new friends to play with and we learned a little bit more about New Zealand.

We wanted to stay a bit more at the coast so we took a taxi to Kampot, which, upon arrival there did not feel right, so we drove on to Kep. Kep was not our cup of tea and, running out of cash with no bank in town, we decided to travel straight on to Phnom Penh and stay there for a couple of days.

The first time we were in Phnom Penh (when travelling from Laos to Siem Reap), the city did not appeal to us very much. But the second time around it appeared quit a nice city! We stayed 1 ½ day , happy with some city live around us. While Lasse and Sil were watching a DVD in the guesthouse, we went to the Tuol Sleng museum. This is a former primary school that the Khmer Rouge converted into a torture prison known as S.21 (Security Office 21). The museum was made in a very respectful manner, but it did not conceal the atrocities committed by the KR regime. In this prison alone, some 20.000 people died, either from torture or starvation. On any day as much as 125 people were tortured to death. Pictures taken by the Vietnamese soldiers show heavily mutilated dead people in a pool of their own blood, still chained to the steel bed frames. Truly horrific. The museum also showed interviews with ex KR soldiers and even former S.21 guards; from their stories it becomes clear that the KR regime almost only left victims.

Next stop: Sen Monorom, in the sparsely populated North-Eastern area. An entirely different landscape: hills, rainforest, rubber and pepper plantations. No rice fields any more, due to the hills and mountains. Along the (excellent) road, the devastating effects of deforestation became clear: outstretched hills robbed of trees, with only some trees left in the deeper valleys. Less than 20 years ago (1992) the Mondulkiri province still counted 4.000 wild tigers; today there are none left anymore. The road ends at Sen Monorom; further North is only possible by off-the-road motorbike. We were picked up by Bill from 'Middle of Somewhere' for a cup of tea and some information and tips. We would see more of Bill and his little monkey, as he arranged trips to the nearby Elephant Valley Project and Phnong villages for us. The Elephant Valley Project is a sanctuary for retired domesticated (work) elephants. Here we learned that the elephant riding offered by many local operators is actually very harmful to the elephants, which end up with damaged backs and running sours on their skin. This project aims to provide a good old day for all 57 domestic elephants in the area (at this moment there are only 6 elephants in the project). Tourist pay here to visit for one or more days to watch the elephants during their normal day routine and taking a bath in the river, from close distance. There were also a lot of volunteers active to enhance the project and build additional bungalows. While the volunteers were carrying rocks, as were Lasse and Sil (building a dam in the river), we were watching the elephants eating and rummaging around.

Our next trip was a visit to Dak Dam village, the home of the Phnong people, the local hill tribe. This proved to be a very nice visit, during which we were escorted by two young guides from the boarding school in Sen Monorom. The people in the village were very open and friendly, we bought a number of hand-woven traditional scarves, witnessed how they were made and visited a local blacksmith. Peter was really disappointed to find he sold all his knives to tourist the day before. But we agreed he would try to make some knives the next day, provided the wind would allow it. And the next day, one of our guides indeed brought back a knife. When Peter took it out the first time it was still warm from the fire!

Then, our last stop in Cambodia: Banlung, in the far North, 70 kms from the Vietnamese border. We spent 12 hours in a bus getting there, the last 3 hours over an un-paved road, making the trip very dusty. The first 30 meter on either side of the road: everything covered with red sand/dust. Luckily we were picked up by 4 moto´s sent by our hotel. One of the moto-drivers also ran his own tour operator business. Without invitation he joined us for dinner trying to sell us a 2-day tour for US$ 350 (we told him to take a hike). Banlung is a small town where everything is covered in red sand/dust. It gets everywhere. We went swimming in a nearby crater lake, very much enjoyed by us all. Fresh, crystal clear water, and also the many local people either taking a religious bath in the lake (oldies) or showing off their summersaults (youngsters) was an enjoyable sight. We booked a day-trip at Dutch Couple, a tour operator run by a Dutch couple. By boat we visited two villages and a animist cemetery. New tribes, new traditions, new beliefs, all very interesting.

Yes, Cambodia, how to summarize our experiences? We thoroughly enjoyed its country-side, mountains, rainforests, widespread rice fields, the amazing temples of Angkor, the floating villages on Tonle Sap Lake and the swamps surrounding it, the beaches of Sihanoukville and, not in the last place, the very friendly people who possess what must be the warmest smile on earth (although, quit often this is all they possess.....). What puzzled us is the history of the Khmer Rouge regime, and the role they still play in today's Cambodia. Only in 2007 (30 years after the Vietnamese soldiers liberated Cambodia) the KR leaders have been arrested and are being put to trial at this moment.

Typical is the loud music everywhere; when there is something to celebrate, they do not hesitate to turn up the volume and they usually start as early as 5 am. In this way everybody can enjoy, no matter whether you are asleep or not. And when you take a (long distance) bus, you can indulge in an endless play of either karaoke or comedy video. Alas, Cambodian music is even sweeter than the milk they put in the coffee here and seems to run on like an endless waterfall. And comedy most certainly is not invented in Cambodia. We wonder what we will be treated to in Vietnam......