Last weekend we went off to the place of renowned beauty that is Angkor Wat in Siem Reap... After a rather treacherous 9 hour journey on the worlds worst road, on a bus full of locals and having to endure the thrills of local TV at full blast (something nobody should ever have to experience), we arrived with incredibly numb, and sweaty, bums, dust covered bags and an urgent need for a shower and cold drink. The one positive? We had been joined by the girls who we are volunteering with: April, a 28 year old from Newbury who manages to keep us all incredibly entertained (in particular with the horrific blisters she receives every time a mosquito bites her), Beth, from Kent who is also doing a year out before uni like us and Mel, an Ozzie who couldn't bear to leave and extended her stay at the orphanage to a month. Between us we make a right bunch, but we have made some fantastic friends who we all have a laugh with and thoroughly enjoy eachothers company! 
Following an incredible night at Phar Circus, set up by an NGO to help support children in learning English amongst other subjects as well as training them in gymnastics and acrobatics, and music and drama. Turning them into incredible performers after 8-10 years of intense training, allowing them to go into the performance industry afterwards. 
Saturday started at a sprightly 4am, a honk of some party blowers- it was April's birthday, a surprise which she loved so early in the morning.. Or not! 
And we set off for Angkor Wat to see the sunset! After a quick hot chocolate and pain au chocolat- very welcome, along with a rendition of the song Beautiful Girl from a drunken Cambodian at full volume, we sat down to experience an incredible sight as the sun slowly (very slowly) rose between the 5 towers that make up the temple. 
The day was completed following visits to several other temples that make up the vast complex and a nap to prepare us for Aprils birthday night out- an experience in itself which turned into a street party, thanks to the crazy Chinese tourists!!
Sunday began at a much more leisurely hour and a trip to the Floating Village and Market, which is quite literally made of buildings floating on the Mekong river! Although not quite what we expected, it was lovely to have a breeze in the stifling heat, that is becoming more intense everyday, and see something that in our eyes is particularly out of the order. Another crazy drive back to Phnom Penh with our lives quite literally in our hands- the driver seemed to think that going 120kmph over the worlds bumpiest dirt road, was quote okay... we felt otherwise!
Despite absolutely loving being here and finding it an incredibly rewarding experience, we feel that we are ready to move on... The children are fantastic, both in keeping us entertained with their crazy antics, but also with their profound ability and want to learn English. Rachel and I have been fortunate enough to settle in here and make ourselves a temporary home, making friends with the older 'kids', some are in fact older than us, and being a teacher in more ways than one to the younger children. As we go into our last week of volunteering, we look forward to being on the road again and not having to work to a schedule nor cooked for and treated like royalty. We can't wait to move onto the next part of our so far, wonderful journey, but we also know that this place is somewhere that we have had a lasting impact on and will undoubtedly miss. We have been welcomed into the lives and home of 68 children and looked after by mama and papa more than we could have ever expected.
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