We've finally made it to Indonesia. Michael can now breathe easily. There is ocean, there are waves, he can surf. The world is a happy place.

It was a long day - we got the surfboards into a taxi at 4am. Flew to Kuala Lumpur where we sat in the airport for a mind numbing 6 hours. The boredom was broken briefly when we were forced to eat McDonalds for lunch. A burger! French Fries! Ketchup! Not a noodle or grain of rice in sight...

We landed in Bali in the evening, and headed straight for Bingin Beach. Where we are now. And where we plan on staying for a long time!

Originally uploaded by ladyhedda.

The Killing Fields of Cheung Ek - Take 2....

After the aborted attempt by bicycle we opted for the decidedly less sweaty option of travel by tuk-tuk.

As many as 15,000 people are believed to have been killed at Cheung Ek - many of them bludgeoned to death to 'save' the bullets. All of the original buildings have been pulled down, and some of the mass graves have been excavated, with some left as they were found. There are remnants of clothing & bones partially buried in the earth.

The memorial itself contains the skulls of over 8000 people, separated by age and gender. It's a chilling reminder of a time when Cambodia was a 'Living Hell on Earth'.

Originally uploaded by m_hagen.

It sure sounded like a good idea at the time.... Andrew and Theresa had told us what a great time they'd had bicycling out to the Killing Fields memorial located on the outskirts of Phnom Penh. It's only about 15km's of flat road where we thought we'd see a different side to the city. We also wanted to take our time getting out there to reflect on the history of what we were going to see.
The accident happened about 10-12 km's into the ride - almost there - we were going real slow, taking our time, trying to go with the flow of traffic. Hedda was right on the side of the road attempting to go around a parked truck when a guy on a moto zoomed by, passing on her inside, completely cutting her off. She tried to brake but the heavy load of wood he was transporting on the back of his bike caught her handlebars and next thing you know she was on the ground wrapped up in her bike.
She jumped up right away and took measure of her wounds. Luckily no broken bones, she hadn't hit her head, and she was standing there shouting "Goddamn Mother@#cker get back here so I can kick your ass!!!" The Cambodian people were great. Almost every single person coming down the road from behind stopped immediately to see if she was OK. The people on the side of the road came out of their shops offering tissues, strange salves and comfort.
Of course the bastard who'd sideswiped Hedda was long gone. We found out later that typically in Cambodia the Police are not called to the scene to sort accidents out. The guy that cut Hedda off should have stopped and probably paid her about $30-$40. We just thought he should have stopped to apologize....
After racing down the wrong side of the road to get back to Hedda and make sure she was OK, I organized a Tuk Tuk back to our hotel where she was able to clean her wounds with soap and a toothbrush, Betadine and then Neosporin and bandages. A couple of hours later we made it to the the Killing Fields......... By Tuk Tuk.

Originally uploaded by ladyhedda.

We caught the bus back up to Phnom Penh this morning, dumped our stuff in the guesthouse, and headed straight out to the National Museum & King's Palace.

We were visiting the Silver Pagoda, looking at the buddha statues when Michael bumped a monk. He apologized, and kept walking. Then it happened again. Hmmm, he thought, maybe I'm not stumbling into monks. Maybe they're bumping into me!

Sure enough, Tek was just trying to get Michael's attention. They spent over an hour chatting - mostly about Cambodia. We also met Tek's friends. All I can say is that monks are good at winding you up. Because they can get away with it!

While in China Beach, Vietnam, Hedda got talking to Theresa, who had spent some time at Otres Beach in Sihanoukville.
Theresa told Hedda about some of the things the vendors on the beach offer. Massages, pedicures, beautiful tropical fruit salads, freshly grilled prawns. The list goes on and on..... Of course the offering that caught Hedda's attention most was what they call threading. This is where two women take a length of thread and between their teeth and hands and roll the thread along your skin and pluck out hairs. Waxing is no longer necessary!!! Sounds great.
So once we arrived in Otres, Hedda started to investigate. She talked to a few ladies and thought it would be great if I could have them take a look at my neck which seems to be growing more hair than should be humanly possible.
I thought tears were going to start falling!!! Don't ever do this! It hurts like hell. Of course I was in full view of the public so I had to hold it together. I think Angelo and Graham came by to see what was going on and I told them, "Yeah man no worries, can't hardly feel a thing." All this while I'm trying not to cry like a three year old.

Originally uploaded by ladyhedda.

Sorry we've been so quiet.... We're at the beach. Otres Beach to be precise. It's beautiful, and quite. We're staying Chez Paou - with 5 other people that we've met on the way.
There's Toby - who we traveled with in Laos, Graham & Božena who we met in Vietnam, and Angelo.
We're all putting a lot of effort into our daily practice of the art of doing nothing. And it feels so good!

Tomorrow back to Phnom Penh, and then onto Siem Reap for the Temples of Angkor. I am very excited!

I have new clothes!!! This may not sound that exciting, but let me just say that I have been wearing the same 4 things for the last 3 months. And I am sick of them. And they are falling apart. And I have sewn up holes. And they have been washed and dried in the sun so many times that they are a different shape and colour. I don't recognize them any more.

So, today we went to Psah Toul Tom Poung - otherwise known as the Russian Market. Where I outfitted myself with:
1 new skirt (originally destined for Target)
2 new cami tops (for somewhere in Spain)
2 new t-shirts (for Old Navy)
1 new pair of shorts (Target again)
A bikini

All for the total sum of $15. Not bad.

Now I'm off to chuck out the old stuff.

We've arrived in Cambodia. Phnom Penh to be precise. Where we're going to stay for a couple of nights before heading South to the beaches. I love it here already!

Saigon at rush hour!

What Michael forgot to mention in his last post:
He tried to convince me (at 1.30 in the morning) that he was a pirate. Apparantly consuming vast amounts of rum is all it takes.

May have had a few too many drinks last night.... Headache AHHhhhhhhhhhhhhhh!!!

Maybe it had to happen due to the fact I haven't surfed in over 3 months. Maybe it was because Hedda and I were feeling pretty relaxed here at China Beach. Not really sure why it happened. I do know I can lay some of the blame on the Irish fellows who handed the large bottle of rum to me with a wicked smile. Bonfire on the beach late into the night with a pretty laid back crew of people. I guess it has to happen sometime....

Originally uploaded by ladyhedda.

He's been rehydrated - at last!

After nearly 4 months out of the ocean Michael finally got his toes wet! That's right, we're at the beach in Vietnam, where they rent surfboards, thank the lord.