OK then...where to start...

Firstly we are back on terra firma after a couple of days on a boat - lovely when the sea is calm, a bit more 'lively' when the wind starts to blow...

We arrived in Sihanoukville as you know a few days ago now and booked straight onto our PADI course at Scuba Nation.

Day 1 - After completing our exam the preceeding evening over a couple of beers and a fantastic curry, and passing (Jen got 84% - Dan 80% - told you she's the brains of the outfit...) we set off on our boat in clear waters with myself and Jen, Carole (mid fifties free spirit - English uni. lecturer) Vicky (our instructor), Sandra (SN's new instructor, coming to 'see the ropes''), and Leigh - the Divemaster. We were 'driven' by our captain and first mate (no Captain Pugwash jokes here please) who were Vietnamese but we were on an ex-pats boat. After about 2 hours we arrived at the island of Koh Rong Saloem which is a great place to dive due to depth of 5-15m and some excellent coral. The visability wasn't too bad at about 5-7m. We did our first couple of closed water dives (in that big piece of closed water commonly known as 'the sea') and were soon ready to embark on our first 2 open water dives (you need to do four and complete various exercises along the way...). The first one was no problem, our ears equalised OK and we completed the basics, mask flooding et al. The second dive was more of a problem with Jen not being able to go down more than a couple of metres. After realising she had a block that wasn't going to shift she reluctantly had to sit out the rest of the day. This would now mean she had 2 1/2 units (out of 5) of the closed water and 3 dives to do the following day...a tall order in anyones book. After a few tears and a bit of self doubt we all managed to convince her she could do it and we would all help her through it the following day. With Jen safely on the boat Dan finished his closed water and also his 2nd open water and weirdly enough really enjoyed the fin pivot (!) which is a kind of floaty thing on the bottom of the sea using your breathing. You basically pivot on your fins. We think Jen's blockage was caused by doing the float (where you have to lie on your back and float (duh) for 10 mins) so Dan decided to do the float early morning on day 2...

Day 2...We woke up at around 5am with the wind having picked up...we had slipped anchor and were all of about 10 metres from same nasty looking rocks and coral bottomed sea... but our captain (who's name seemed to be 'Oy' from what the instructors called him - how damn convenient) steered us away from danger and into a more secluded and sheltered bay. He didn't look like he knew much but I tell you this guy could seriously 'drive' (or is it pilot?) a boat (or is it ship?). Those winds were a taste (no pun intened Carole) of what was to come. At around 8am Jen did her first 2 dives (finished closed water and did open water no. 2) and saw our favourite underwater creature - the Christmas tree worm which looks like (guess) a Christmas tree but disappears when you come close only then to re-grow...OK so you have to be there... - among other things. She was bloody determined to pass and was going great guns, Vicky even went as far as to compliment her on the dive, but enough of that don't want her getting'*too* big-headed...The sea by this stage was getting rougher and rougher. Carole threw up (hence the earlier 'joke') everything she had in her and only Dan's iron stomach saved him from the same ignomony. We all completed the 3rd dive before the waves got to a point where the boat looked as though it was capsizing - I was envisaging the 'Tourists lost at sea' headlines I can assure you...! Anyhoo, the captain duly found us a more sheltered cove (again - what a genius this man is...) and we completed our 4th and final dive. Ironically (and much to her credit) Jen completed everything first whilst Carole had still to do her exam and Dan this blessed float. (I would have drifted to the beach and never got back in those winds). It was agreed that Dan would do his float back at the beach when the ship got back (about 5.30pm.) but when we got there after travelling through some seriously rough seas the bloomin' speedboat broke down so we had to go to port which was obviously not the ideal place to do a float. Vicky and Dan trapsed down to the beach and in the last of the days rays Dan finally did that bloody float. After arriving back at the dive school and with everything washed out (was Dan's float a cunning plan to get out of the washing...? we'll never know...) we got our certification and got back to the hotel at about 7pm before crashhing out and sleeping until 7am! Best nights sleep we've had too. Vicky and the others were magnificent and if anyone is thinking of coming to SEA and doing diving I would urge you to use them as they are start-up but genuinely care about their pupils.Yes they are a little more expensive that other places in Phuket for example but they are worth it...trust me. (hey they even forgot to charge me for the beer I had on the 1st night - Vicky I owe you a dollar!)

The good news is that I think, as with skiing and snowboarding, we have been bitten by the bug. We absolutely loved it and the final dive (which was the best of the lot) was just amazing, we swam through whole shoals of electric blue fish, saw giant clams etc etc...We now can't wait for our next one, hopefully in the Maldives, if money allows...

Having awoken we have decided to leave Sihanoukville (named after King Sihanouk - who was originally ousted in the lates 60's during the Vietnam war and lived in exile during the 70's/80's before returning to power.) I fear this place will be very different over the coming years and the deserted beaches, moto drivers and charming restaurants and cheap accomodation will give way to package tours, air-con taxis, and branded resorts. As if to prove this point, last night as we were re-arriving a bus load of french tourists on a package tour turned up - a sign of things to come?

This morning after a light breakfast we have decided to go to Phnom Penh and have booked a room on the riverfront for 12 USD. This includes hot shower and air-con but no TV which means we can't watch the Aus Open final, which will be on in the early evening here. They also sell tickets for the ferry to Seam Reap and they also have a guesthouse there so if we like it I guess we'll do the sensible thing and go with them all the way. They also spoke immaculate English, and seeing as we've learnt one word ('ahhhgorn' (phonetically) - which means thank-you in Khmer) and the name of the local beer ('Angkor' - how convenient) we need English speakers...

Only a couple of other things to note - we found our wallet which we thought we'd lost. Mike, a chap we met in Scandanavia, is bringing us a leatherman from the US when we meet with him in a couple of weeks, and finally (I feel all Trevor MacDonald) Dan has got a tan. Don't die of shock, a proper tan like you know - brown not red...this happens once in a lifetime and dear reader we even downloaded the pictures to show you...but the bloody connection this end is too slow to upload and hence still no pictures. We did spend over 40 mins trying though...

Hope you are all well, we'll write another one after PP and the Killing Fields et al...

D & J

As a footnote the hotel has lost a little of it's appeal with the arrival of middle-aged French people speaking at the top of their voice (think of a kind of Franco-SAGA) but it could be worse, at least we can understand what they're saying (and they're not German...;) )