The start of the week was public holidays and Clari was visiting, so we went down to the beach.
We lazed around at some beachside bungalows for a few days, just reading and swimming and sleeping. Randomly met a woman who had been to a conference in Milton Keynes ages and ages ago that Spearsy, Holly and I were notetakers in chief for… it is a small world.
Oh yes, excitements were had on the final night when we heard (rather too close for our liking) a shoot out at the neighbouring 5* beach resort… seems the guards sometimes get drunk and shoot each other or the sea. [note to self: midnight dips might be dangerous]. A reminder that this country has not been ‘peaceful’ for long, and perhaps an example of the wealth the supermega rich have – it needs to be protected with guns.
After the shooting there was a huge rain and thunder and lightening storm. Wondered if we would be washed out to sea, but the next morning we were still on the beach.
The in-bus entertainment on the way home from the beach was slightly different from the normal mix of Cambodian karaoke, exceedingly violent Chinese movies, or Cambodian horror movies… instead we had a film made at a Khmer zoo… a boxing orang-utan show. I’m sure the RSPCA would lock people up for such a thing in the UK. Orang-utans were dressed up in boxing outfits and made to hit each other with boxing gloves. Meanwhile other orang-utans dressed up as cheer leaders danced around, lifting up their skirts. It was bad taste and rather cruel to say the least.
On Friday I had a telephone interview for a joby job. It was fairly nasty, mostly because the delay on the phone was so huge, and the people speaking to me were using a speaker phone, which made them seem even more distant. It made me realise how much we depend on non-verbal communication to guide us… I had no idea if I was saying too much, or too little, if they were liking what I was saying or if they thought I was an idiot! Ho hum.
Yesterday Clari and I went on a Khmer cookery course.
It was really cool. We learnt how to make spring rolls, red and green curry, fish amok (fish curry steamed in a banana leaf) and this weird banana tapioca dish. We ate everything we made so felt quite fat and had no need for diner… instead we went to the Raffles Hotel Le Royal. It’s the hotel in the movie the ‘killing fields’ (although the movie was filmed in Thailand). It was stupidly posh, and the bar was fairly pretentious… but 2 for 1 cocktails is always a good thing… we had these random champagne cocktails named after Jackie Kennedy’s visit back in the 1960’s… followed by an amaretto sour mmmmm my favourite. The most exciting thing was rubbing my feet on the carpet. A carpet I tell you, and a plush one at that. My feet are so used to tiles they were in heaven in the soft cushiness of it all.
Mel and Sophie we checked out the toilets and quite frankly they weren’t up to Lainston House standards… the towels were only paper not linen for starters.
The rains have started. There seems to be no pattern, any time of day they fall from the sky. It’s definitely cooler. Last night was almost what you would call cold… 29degrees C… needed a sheet when I went to sleep!
I think this is enough for now x x x x
2 comments:
Telf, was begining to get worried, but might have guessed you were on another holiday :-)
im sure the interview went great
you seem to be looked quite tanned sara...
steve was very happy to see pictures of the cousin lurking in another kitchen!!
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