We’ve met other travelers who’ve told us they spent a month in just one town. We always thought "what a waste!" But now that we’ve come to Sihanoukville, we understand. We like this town. Pearse has already inquired about a couple of properties for sale but since that would eat up our entire travel budget, I’m trying to talk him out of it. Unfortunately, he’s met a fellow Irishman who just recently set up his own bar here and has him convinced that setting up a business is as easy as showing up at the border and asking for a business visa. (Less than $40 and approved on the spot).

We’re roughing it here in Sihanoukville in our palatial hotel room with cable TV (HBO, Stars and CNN), a/c, hot shower and private patio all for $7 a night, but we can probably handle it for a few more nights. For $8.75 a night in Ko Chang we got a rickety bamboo hut, a mattress on the ground and a roofless bathroom which was a lot of fun in the rain, let me tell you. So anyway, life is much better here in Cambodia. We’re minutes away from a nice sandy beach with free deck chairs and towels providing you buy at least one ice-cold beer ($1). Needless to say no arm-twisting has been necessary.

One of our biggest worries about Cambodia was the food. We had heard it wasn’t great but so far our fears have been unfounded. On our first night in Cambodia (in Koh Kong, a border town) we sampled the local specialties and were pleasantly surprised. Our first night in Sihanoukville we found 2 Indian restaurants and decided to try one because we thought it might be our last chance for our favorite cuisine until we return to Bangkok. Fortunately we have since learned that you can get great Indian food throughout Southeast Asia. On our second night here we stumbled across an amazing French restaurant called "Le Bar’ang"(Pearse thought it was a pub) and had perhaps the best meal we've ever had (curried shrimp and lime basil barracuda). But it was a bit pricey at $9 including drinks. And then there’s the Irish bar, where the beer is good, cold, and characters abound.

Motos (motorcycle taxis) are the chief mode of transportation here and the drivers can be a bit persistent. A 1-mile walk into town will result in at least 15 drivers asking you if you want a ride, often the same driver will ask you several times because it seems only the poor walk here. The other night we watched a gang of drivers start their engines and race into the night all because 2 guys walked out of a hotel and looked around indecisively. So far we’ve only taken one ride on a moto and it was out of necessity because we were about to miss our boat for the snorkel tour. The snorkeling in Cambodia isn’t great but the water is warm and the beaches are clean and relatively empty. Over all Cambodia is far exceeding our expectations.