Cat in Cambodia - Phnom Penh

I spent one night in the rather overpriced Renakse Hotel and another in Rory's Irish bar & guest house which are both right next to the Royal Palace and the Museum, which I went to see this morning. I walked a great deal over the past 2 days and had a few shocks, especially after the wonderful food in Bangkok, when I saw the flies all over the food and in the bags of sauce. I'm not licking my lips with my characteristic enthusiasm anymore but I'm sure my Slimming World leader will be delighted. I'm drinking lots of water and sugary drinks so I am sure I will survive. I went to Lazy Fish guest house last night (recommended in Guardian recently) and met a local rice and herb farmer/taxi-driver who may get me a local sim card so perhaps I will have more joy contacting people then. People are friendly but there is more pushing for business (esp of the transport variety) than there was in India. My new friend NAk came to pick me up on his little motor bike and he is supposed to be taking me to the Killing Fields, the Russian Market and the Toul Sleung Museum tomorrow. I think I will get a ferry up to Siem Riep, maybe try to get to Battenambang, and then blow this place (I had initially thought a month in each country would be good). That might change if my prayers are answered and a version of Thecla or one of my 'homeys' walks into my life and I can start calming down. I have walked shed loads since arriving as it is the only way I feel safe from the insects and the taxi touts - stand still without a mozi net and you're a goner - LOL. The smile is frozen on my face and I would quite happily carry a sign or a forehead tattoo saying ' no thank you', although everyone is very smiley even when I decline their service, something I didn't always feel in India. The poverty is amazing and there are lots of people with limbs missing and bandages still on. I hadn't thought about how recently this place started getting back to normal after the war and of course there are still lots of mines around. I went to the Central Market yesterday and walked for about three hours trying to find the Lazy Fish guesthouse (to give myself a purpose), eventually (rather proudly) resorting to my Paddy diving navigation skills and getting my compass out! The Boeung Kak lake is great and the cheap backpacker guesthouses completely obscure the view until you sit in one of their porches. The Lazy Fish has a little rowing boat which I have been promised a go on this afternoon, the place has a reputation for having a great view of bats feeding on the lake at dusk and the rooms costs $4 - there are 2 currencies here but almost everything can be paid for in Dollars. An Irish couple (on honeymoon) sat next to me for a while last night and we swapped a few stories. They are having a great time generally but they had a really bad time on the transport - the scams are becoming something of a regularity, with bus drivers 'selling' their coach loads to guesthouses when they arrive at the wrong destinations too late for the unsuspecting tourists to do anything. And the roads were awful too - Me thinks I am too long in ze tooth for all that real backpacker crack. I saw the expression somewhere that I find more to my taste - I am planning to be a 'flash packer'; both in terms of spending a tiny bit more and having civilised transport wherever I can smell a rat (even in the distance) and the time I spend places - in and out quick as a flash. I feel the need to point out that this mood is a big improvement on yesterday, when I was sorely tempted to call this a visa run and head back to Thailand for the King's birthday. I still might... Still Smiling Cat XXX