Siam Reap to Pnom Penh 4 July - Maverick scribed by John

The family are travelling from Siam Reap to Phnom Penh today in Cambodia. Their plan was a boat trip but as the rains are a month late there isn't enough water in the river. So they've booked a van for the trip but when it turns up it is just a car an not enough seats so they won't agree to get in. The driver is very angry but the family head to the bus station and get on a very old looking bus for a 6 hour ride to the capital city
.
Looking out the window I see lots of very traditional stilt houses with thatched roofs and woven walls as we pass through the countryside. The road is so rough I can hardly hold onto my perch as we go through 2 hours of roadworks. It's so bouncy that one of Johns fillings falls out! He's not happy.

Everyone arrives shaken up at the bus station and get into tuk tuks to the hotel at which point the heaviest rain anyone has seen starts to pour from the sky. The tuk tuks have roll down fabric sides that zip together to keep my feathers nice and dry. Arriving at the hotel, it is very smart. The 'room' has 6 different spaces in it - 2 bedrooms, lounge, kitchen and 2 bathrooms. The best bit is that there is a washing machine!  John finds an emergency dentist and gets his beak fixed for $US75 which isn't bad for X-rays and at 5pm on a Saturday then everyone heads out to a traditional dance evening.

We arrive a slightly late as we go to the wrong address first but are soon entranced by an amazing set of dances which tell stories of local life. My favourite was the Peacock dance - but I'm biased! There was a stick dance where a rhythm of  loud 'clacks' was made by 2 performers banging long poles together just after the dancers had cleverly hopped in and out between the poles. No one got their feet trapped, even when it got faster and faster!

After the performance everyone is hungry and the family find an place that has 'English Pub Food' the menu looks ok but the Toad in the Hole is disappointing as the toad, I'm told, was too solid. It didn't even look like a toad I the first place if you ask me. John had burger, sausage, egg, chips and beans which bought a smile to his face. A short walk along the street and we are back at the hotel and ready for bed