Being There

Channa and I stayed one more night in Preah Vihear so we could visit his fiancées family home. It only took a couple of hours from the centre but I was sitting on the seat belt receptacle (is that what it’s called???) so 2 minutes would have been plenty. I kept quiet about it as the only other option was perched on bags of rice in the back of the pick-up truck and it was raining cats and dogs so I thought best not complain…I’m just so British sometimes!

I had offered to stay in a local guest house so not to make the family feel uncomfortable (where apparently lots of Chinese gold diggers would be staying……!) but when I met the mother she would not hear any of it. We had the usual banter about me being beautiful, me saying thanks you are also very beautiful and her saying no I am not you are very beautiful and then we moved on to her house not being very beautiful and I said it is very beautiful and ….I think you get the gist? I think we agreed on everything being beautiful but my language isn’t that good so who knows....

All the beautiful people.....!

It really was great just being there, it reminded me of growing up in a very small house with a very large family where privacy was something that I would know and embrace when I was much older (basically when I moved away from home) and the fact that I spent years queuing for the toilet is something that I owe my pelvic floor to ...always a silver lining!

I was sent around various members of the familys' homes and had food thrust at me and ate when I wasn't hungry (I don't like to refuse food, it's far too precious and it's not something I do where ever I am!) and was then sent to sleep at 9. I did sleep and the I woke up at 5am with everyone else, it was great, a real cambodian homestay-a cherished memory.

Inside and outside the beautiful house






Ready for bed and for going out to eat ( well I wanted to do it proper Cambodian style so the bananas go on immediately !)