Day 17 - Still hanging out in Kep

Today we are still in Kep as we don't want to lose our chilled feeling too quickly.  We decided not to be as lazy as yesterday so we went for a bike ride down to book our bus to Phnom Penh tomorrow.  

We found some monkeys along the way.

Then went back to the crab market which was much lower key than what we saw on Saturday.

Pickled prawns and other delicacies were on display but we didn't partake.

Lunch was the local delicacy... Kampot pepper crab. It was delicious mouth watering goodness. We also had a serve of crab, prawn and squid spring rolls but they really weren't worth bragging about.

Back to the guest house for a refreshing dip in the pool and a little R & R time and then a short bicycle ride to see if we could find some 'wild life' for Tracey to observe.  It would seem that there isn't much left in Cambodia. 

Tracey also took the opportunity for a quick mud bath (Well maybe just her feet) while I was enjoying 'acupuncture therapy' by some overly friendly giant ants.

Back to the guesthouse for another swim, cocktails and dinner .., yes another serve of Kampot pepper crab.  Each time it has tasted great but the recipe varies from place to place so it wasn't like eating exactly the same thing twice in one day.

Tracey had stuffed squid which she raved about.

Off to PP tomorrow morning to wind up our Cambodian adventure. Hopefully won't lose too much of our chilled vibe!

Tried to pay our billed by Visa tonight but couldn't as only one person (the owner) can do that, and she was away until 10am.  As there are no ATM's in Kep if we didn't have enough cash to pay the bill we would have had to get a cash advance from a hotel down the road. Luckily we had the cash.

Day 16 - Rabbit Island

Today was a very difficult day for Tracey and I as we struggled through the challenges of lounging in hammocks, swimming in the pristine waters around Rabbit Island (in the Gulf of Thailand) and eating fresh seafood.

It is called Rabbit Island not because there are rabbits on the island, but because the locals think it looks like a rabbit. Tracey and I thought it looked like a whole lot of things ... But we couldn't see the 'rabbit' in it!

We were picked up by tuk tuk at around 8:30 this morning (Cambodian time so more like 8:45) and taken down to the jetty where the boats depart to the islands. 

After a short wait we were all loaded onto the boat and then watched the boat operator spend about 15 mins trying unsuccessfully to get the boat turned around and away from the neighbouring boat and anchor line. Very entertaining!

The ride over was quite smooth and he drove the boat up the sand and we climbed off the front of the boat onto a stool.  We then had to wander along the beach in search of the ideal spot to spend the day hanging in hammocks etc.

At one stage we had thought to walk around the island but after a quick swim and lounge in the hammock we found that we couldn't bring ourselves to do anything else.  It was so relaxing ... Except at the odd times that a generator was turned on.

You can stay overnight on the island for about $5 per night in basic huts. (A few different options).  There is only 3 hours of electricity per night as it is only generator electricity.

We left the island at 4pm and headed back to Kep.  At about 3 a boat load of people turned up and started putting up a Zombie Island sign, so we were glad to be leaving! 

We got our tuk tuk driver to take us to The Sailing Club instead of our guesthouse so we could have dinner and a sunset drink.  

Back the to the guest house for a dip in the pool and then off to the bungalow to recover from the 'ordeal' of our day.  Feeling totally blissful and relaxed. Will sleep very well tonight.

Day 15 - Apparently chilling out in Kep

So after our massive bus trip yesterday we were meant to be chilling out so borrowed some bikes from the guest house and road down to the markets.  Kep is an interesting town as all the guesthouses are spread out and there is no town centre to speak of.  It also has no supermarket or ATM. It is a very small and relaxing place.

We found the market easily enough and snacked on freshly cooked BBQ squid. We wanders around absorbing the delightful smells and watching the crabs being bought in.  

We continued our ride around Kep and saw some picturesque sights along the coast line.  

We headed back along the road towards the crab market and saw monkeys on the road. At one point 2 monkeys jumped on a motorbike to steal something dangling from the handlebars... They were successful!  At one point though one of the had hold of both of the handle bars and looked like he was about to steal the bike.

We had an awesome lunch of crab for $6 each.  One with sweet and sour veggies and the other with green pepper corns.  Both were awesome.

After lunch we went walking in the national park which is the smallest in Cambodia at only 28 square kilometres.

We saw:

2 monkeys,

2 birds

2 squirrels

2 butterflies (no it isn't Noah's Ark)

3 snails

1 unidentified flying insect

1 unidentified small furry tree dwelling mammal

Lots of ants and mosquitoes

... So there is wild life still left in Cambodia!

We then returned to Kep Lodge to pick up our bicycles and stopped there to have a drink and watch the sunset.. Beautiful!

We then rode back to the Botanica Guest house for a swim and dinner!

A very relaxing day... Not!!  But we saw lots of beautiful scenery along the way!