Goodbye Asia Hello Australia

As the title suggests we have said our goodbyes to South East Asia. Our last few days in Cambodia were spent in Siem Reap where we have seen the most fabulous and indeed magical Angkor Wat. The heat was incredible here and almost too much at times but luckily we had a great swimming pool where we were staying so after a long day at the temples (we visited about 12 of them over two days) we could flop into the pool to cool down. The only downside was that there was certainly something in the water there, and not just in the pool but in the taps and showers too which made our hands wrinkle up in mere seconds and we had no other choice but to give ourselves the nickname Grannie Hands!

We also has our first run in with the police but nay worry, it was our tuk tuk driver who was in trouble and not us! We were on our way for a second day of templing when we heard a very loud whistle and a groan from our driver so was forced to pull over at the side of the road. It appears that driving without any rear view mirrors is not advised in Cambodia. After almost an hour of waiting while our driver pleaded and then accepted his fate which involved much paperwork we were on the road again. Obviously we don't speak Khmer so we're not quite sure what was going on but we were definitely under the impression that this policeman meant business.... that is until his mobile phone went off and "Gangnam Style" could be heard almost half way up the street. At this point we just about managed to stifle our giggles for fear that mocking the police was also an offence!

Needless to say the great temples at Angkor are stunning and we would highly recommend anyone thinking of going to Cambodia do not miss them as they are other worldly (see photos at the end of this blog).
We also made another friend, a scottish lady called  Danni who got on really well with and together we enjoyed our last few Khmer meals and a much needed foot massage which was simply heavenly and with a beer thrown in for free was an absolute steal!

So after saying our goodbyes to Cambodia (sniff) we headed back to Bangkok for a couple of days before we flew to Australia which is where we are now.... hip to the hip to the hooray and hello Sydney!!!! Unfortunately we were a little jet lagged upon our arrival so our first day was spent trying to keep our eyes open until an acceptable time to fall asleep again. We managed it until about 8.30 and then flopped into bed (which had some of the same pillow cases as we have in Derby so it really did feel like a bed from home and only serves to prove the fact that Ikea really is everywhere!) And it's also slightly cold here at times, yes cold! Even though the day time temperatures are hovering around 20 degrees or so with the wind chill factor it does feel cooler. Although Rhiannon has had a great piece of news today in that HMRC does in fact owe her a rebate of nearly £900 so there will certainly be some warmer clothes purchased soon.

So on our first day in Australia, well our first day with brain power involved that is, we have opened our Australian bank account and researched mobile phone SIM cards but have realised when we were talking to the sales rep and he asked "Is it mainly for calls or texts or Internet that you need a phone? " we both realised almost simultaneously that we don't actually know anyone here yet and seeing as we're kinda together all the time anyway we don't really need to make phone calls. So maybe we'll leave it a bit before we get SIM cards.

The next purchase will most likely be our camper van and home for the next 12 months. Tomorrow we plan to get up at a reasonable time and venture into the centre of Sydney as so far we have only explored the suburb of Glebe where we are staying. Needless to say we shall update the blog soon and fingers crossed will have a van to tell you all about.
Missing you all and wishing you sunshine as we are horrified to hear of snow still forecast in the UK. Sending love as ever and Australian smiles : )   : )   : )   x x x x