Cambodia here we come.

filling in our visa applications at the Cambodian Embassy.

After a dreadful ride into Ho Chi Minh city, to obtain our Cambodian visas, we are now looking forward to trying a new country. Why was it so dreadful? 80kms of non stop city with traffic to go with it. The god awful bus drivers blasted their horns at us so they could undertake in our lane which wasn't a lane but the verge. Add in insane amount of scooter riders who were so numerous they were using what footpath there was for a lane, and factor in the idiotic scooter riders who were riding on the wrong side of the road against oncoming traffic and tooting at us because we were in their way!!!

This is a two way road, but both sides are filled with scooters trying to go in one direction - this is what we were trying to cycle against. add in the buses, and you get the picture.

Need-less-to-say, I was irritable to the extreme and swearing at  bad drivers and yelling at them to get licences. No one must have a licence in this country as no one has any idea about road rules, it is NOT the more you blast someone with your horn the more  they should give way to you. Actually the authorities must know about this overuse of the horn, as we saw big billboard signs with a picture of a horn with a line through it. As we saw this sign, a bus driver went past tooting a tune with his horn!!

Today is my birthday. Niel got me a lovely yogurt and blueberry cake from a fancy bakery. It is lovely. The very nice ladies at the reception, who have our passport details, saw it was my birthday and put a plate of fruit in our room. And to top it off, we got our Cambodian visas.

My yogurt and blueberry birthday cake.

I have seen more stray dogs coming into Ho Chi Minh than in the whole of Vietnam so far, that is really saying something. They broke my heart as they looked so scared and miserable. some were only puppies. If I had millions of dollars I would set up an SPCA in this country and do something about all the abandoned, non stop pregnant females, starving and ill and injured animals here - especially the dogs. If they like to eat dogs, why don't they eat the strays to end their misery.

Vietnam hasn't been the delight I had hoped for, although there is no denying their friendliness. The potential is there, but they have a long way  to go to be a good tourist destination. Roll on Cambodia.