It was a great honour to have My Mate Kate come and visit me this month. The last time I saw Kate was also the last time I saw Gok Wan in Brighton! Oh long ago it seems! I met her at the airport in Siem Reap and after being somewhat distracted by a mischievous taxi driver throwing a cockroach at unsuspecting members of the public; we enjoyed our reunion with red wine and LOTS of talking back at our hotel. We spent a wonderful few days by the pool, chatting, swimming, chatting some more, catching up on the events in both our lives over the last 16 months, eating great food, sipping wine and yep, chatting even more. It was fantastic to have her around and we enjoyed many of the delights Siam Reap had to offer including dips in the pool, nice meals out, a very happy pizza and an interesting experience with flesh eating fish! 
The highlight for me, other than catching up with Kate and what’s happened in Eastenders over the last 18 months, was the boat trip to Battambang. We were told the journey was between 5 and 8 hours, so hoping for nearer the 5 hour mark we bought our tickets with great excitement at experiencing a day on the Tonle Sap. I had heard that the trip was worth doing from other volunteers and tourists’ recommendations and thought what better way for Kate to experience rural Cambodia than a lazy water cruise, a route straight past the floating villages and a meander past fishermen and traditional Khmer houses. In total the journey took closer to 10 hours! But apart from the last hour and a half (when mild dehydration and severe bum ache had kicked in!) it was well worth it! And we saw all of the above and much more! The inhabitants of the floating villages are just ingenious at living simply but resourcefully and we were awestruck by the intricate fishing devices we saw in action. As we wondered how many Khmers can actually swim and whether there are many accidental drowning, we were equally amazed at the number of swollen dog corpses which floated past us!
The highlight for me, other than catching up with Kate and what’s happened in Eastenders over the last 18 months, was the boat trip to Battambang. We were told the journey was between 5 and 8 hours, so hoping for nearer the 5 hour mark we bought our tickets with great excitement at experiencing a day on the Tonle Sap. I had heard that the trip was worth doing from other volunteers and tourists’ recommendations and thought what better way for Kate to experience rural Cambodia than a lazy water cruise, a route straight past the floating villages and a meander past fishermen and traditional Khmer houses. In total the journey took closer to 10 hours! But apart from the last hour and a half (when mild dehydration and severe bum ache had kicked in!) it was well worth it! And we saw all of the above and much more! The inhabitants of the floating villages are just ingenious at living simply but resourcefully and we were awestruck by the intricate fishing devices we saw in action. As we wondered how many Khmers can actually swim and whether there are many accidental drowning, we were equally amazed at the number of swollen dog corpses which floated past us!
We shared the boat with a lot other tourist with the same idea as us. Some sat on the roof for the whole 10 hours, burning to a crisp while others, namely us, manoeuvred away from the engine fumes to secure great viewing seats to watch the world go by. The boat would’ve got no where near passing any kind of health and safety standard but Kate was game and I’ve got used to living a bit on the edge!
So, next stop was Battambang where we sampled the delights of another swimming pool and did a moto tour around the countryside with my good friends Tony and Poe. It was a fantastic day out starting off with a trip on the bamboo train, bumping into some other VSO volunteers on a day trip but finishing with a speedy ride home in order to put Kate to bed nursing a dodgy tummy and consequently missing the incredible flights of the bats at dusk from their cave home in the mountain! Next morning, and one disappointing breakfast later, we were on our way again, travelling north to Phnom Srok where Kate enjoyed the privacy of a roof top terrace (ha – sounds grander than it is!) to sunbathe on to her heart’s content while others went to work! And thankfully (well, sort of), we hadn’t missed out on Cambodian bats!
While I had been holidaying with Kate and left my home empty, 2 small bats had decided to move into my bathroom. They were the right side of the mosquito netting on the windows which meant that they didn’t look like they’d be much bother. However, somehow one of the bats got himself on the wrong side of the netting and dragged himself across the tiled floor towards our comfy DVD viewing area. It was a huge shock to be so close to this creature, as my cries and screams made obvious at the time! And as I sought shelter in another room, scaring Kate out of her wits in the process, the bat just up and disappeared. We hunted for it, timidly, but couldn’t find it anywhere until it magically turned up again on the bathroom mat. Kate was feeling braver than me so she took charge in trapping the bat under a complicated system of baskets (you can’t be too careful!) and setting it free again outside! Phew! Freedom for the bat and a quiet night for me!
When it was time to bid Kate farewell it actually felt just as surreal as when we had first met at the airport. It made me very reflective on what life will be like back in the UK when I return in November. Kate talked of her job and the current financial climate back at home and reminded me of how demanding, busy and often stressful life was like in London. It is exciting to think of coming home and now that we’re into a new year it feels like the count down has well and truly started, but sometimes I wonder whether the culture shock of returning will be greater than when I first arrived in Cambodia.
It was weird to say goodbye after getting used to having a good friend around. It’s amazing how I have got used to talking slower to friends and colleagues for whom English is a second language but how quickly I was able to slip back into easy conversation styles with Kate. It was also really refreshing to have her around as she knows me so well and I don’t have to explain myself all the time – a breath of fresh air! I will never forget her face as I packed her into the front seat of a pick-up truck on the main road to Siem Reap. I had explained in Khmer, to whom I thought was the driver, where Kate needed to be dropped off and that my friend didn’t speak any Khmer. I was assured that they knew where they were going and felt confident Kate would be in safe hands. Kate on the other hand didn’t look so confident and the las thing I saw was her mouthing the words “I’m scared” as the pick-up took off with a jolt!
Our goodbye turned out to only be a warm up though as we were able to meet in Siem Reap again before Kate’s return home. It was fantastic to touch base another time before her departure and we even managed to repeat the flesh eating fish experience together! My feet have never felt happier!
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