Final Days in Siem Reap

Another lovely day in Cambodia. Miguel and lyndsay left today which is sad, but last night "Joe from England" joined the tribe. Woke up freakishly early again today, headed to town to my favorite morning spot for an iced coffee and some Skype. Talked to y mom and dad for a while and got a little tear in my eye. After breakfast I met up with the Australian girls at their hotel up he street. Amber and Kristen were feeling under the weather so they stayed home, while Mel, Mooch and I rented a TukTuk and cruised around town. The highlight of our daytrip was actually the restaurant we stopped at for lunch, which is only just down the street from where we are staying. The butterfly garden restaurant is exactly that- a gorgeous meditation garden filled with butterflies. We all agreed that we could have sat there all afternoon. The menu was a bit pricier, but the restauran supports good causes including Cambodian living arts an communities affected by hIV/AIDS. My delightful burger and French fries cost me $5. Came back to our empty dorm a took a nap. Woke up refreshed and soon I'm headed out to meet te girls for their 'last dinner'...they leave first thing tomorrow morning.

Just bought my boat ticket for Battambang, leaving from Siem Reap. I leave first thing Saturday morning. I was going to cut Battambang out, but I'd enjoy a quiet town for a few days, and I hear that they have the best Buddhist temples there, with lots of monks eager to learn English. Also, there is a winery there that I'd like to check out- it just seems so random. I'm looking forward to the boat trip there too. It's about 8 hours but everyone says it's the most beautiful boat ride in Cambodia. Gonna stay in Battambang only for about two days before heading to phnom penh. I'm going to see the killing fields and the royal palace, but the busy stinky city doesn't hold much appeal to me so this too will only be about a 2 day visit. Then I'm headed to the beach...Sihanoukville. My buddy Scott Van Pelt has a good friend hat lives here, Austin Fry, so it'll be nice to have a contact upon my arrival. I think I may hang here about 5 days or so- relax on the beach and eat seafood. Mmmm! In order to reach Kratie I'll have to go back to phnom penh to catch a boat. Two days in Kratie seeing freshwater dolphins and hanging with the local Mekong people before setting off into the jungle to Ratanakiri to swim in volcanic crater, hike up waterfalls and enjoy the 'wild east'. Then: LAOS. Yeeew!!

Tomorrow is my final day in Siem Reap. I'm going to rent a bike and cruise around, get a massage, and hit up a meditation class @ Raja Yoga which is just up the street.