Vietnamese Delights

We arrived in the boarder town of Hat Tien, Vietnam to catch the boat across to Phu Quoc island and were told that the engine on the boat had broken! We had to spend the night in this, quite simply...boring, sleepy town! After securing a room in a guesthouse, our tummies were rumbling, so we went on the hunt for food. We found a charming, no frills local café and after a series of hand signals consisting of rubbing our bellies, pretending to eat food and pointing at a lady's noodle soup, we managed to order 2 lots of this delicious looking lunch. To our surprise, 5 minutes later, we heard the buzz of a motorbike approaching and perched on the seat was a kind lady with a stand containing our soups tightly wrapped in cling-film.

Our chef who delivered our meals by motorbike

The soups came with chilli salt and some wedges of fresh lime for seasoning and some additional chillies for the brave or mad, (Dan!)

Our delightful noodle soup

The soup was a fresh blend of vegetables, and chilli’s with zesty lemon grass and lime. A true explosion of flavour!

You could tell we had arrived in Vietnam! The food was a class above that of Cambodia. Instantly I recognised why Vietnamese food is gaining such a world wide following.

The day after we arrived on Phu Quoc. It is a beautiful island of white sandy beaches still relatively undiscovered by the Western world. Unfortunately, we were not blessed with the best of weather in our time on the island with a rare storm bringing a number of wet and windy days, but there were still a number of highlights:

The food stalls at the night market in Duong Dong.

Every night the market was buzzing as people selected which stall they were going to feast at. The stalls had a large selection of fish on display that had been freshly caught that day and in many cases were still alive and kicking.  You would select your fish and sauce/marinade and your dinner would be cooked. Each dish we sampled was delicious and the vibrant, friendly atmosphere made for a great evening!

Fish Curry with carrots, potatoes and lemongrass

Shrimp in a chilli and garlic oil

When the sun did come out to play so did the fresh fruit sellers on the beach.

Rory’s bar! Although not run by Vietnamese, the Australian owners made us feel very welcome and provided respite and shelter from the storms. This bar is the perfect chill out spot come rain or shine.

Beer is cheaper than water so I am having to get to like it quickly. But another favourite beverage since being in South East Asia has been homemade lemonade. This is the most refreshing drink...especially when the sun has been beating down on us.

Our next stop is the capital, Ho Chi Minh. After 4 days of chilling out, the hustle and bustle of the city is calling.

Cambodia.... it's been a blast!

On Saturday we waved goodbye to Hope School where we have been teaching for the past 3 weeks. We have met some great people and taught some delightful children.

Hope school is situated among the rice paddies in the middle of rural Cambodia. Volunteering at the school has given us the chance to immerse ourselves in the true Cambodian culture and this has given us many unforgettable experiences.

The long road into the school 

The first of those experiences was attending a villager's wedding in the Paddy fields. A Cambodian wedding is 2 and a half days of celebrations. We were invited to join the celebrations on the second night where it had turned into quite a lively affair as the men had been drinking for 2 days. We were quickly ushered to the top table and presented with a spread of Cambodian dishes to feast on.

This was shortly followed by someone leaning under the table and bringing out the beer. Before we knew it, we all had glasses filled with beer and every few seconds a Cambodian man would shout 'jul mouy' (in English 'cheers') and everyone would have to have a sip of their drink. At any point where your glass was looking like it might be less than half full it would swiftly be topped up. As we were starting to catch up with the Cambodian men for numbers of drinks consumed, the music swiftly changed from traditional Cambodian music to Cambodia's favourite - Gangnam style! Suddenly the floor erupted and everyone was dancing the night away. It continued in this vein until we realised that the family were only keeping the wedding open for the volunteers and it was probably time to depart.

'jul mouy'

Food glorious food.... and lots of beer! 

Dancing in the moonlight

At the weekend all the volunteers vacate the school and head out to explore the rest of the country. On our first weekend at the school we headed to the picturesque Rabbit Island just a short boat ride from Kep in Cambodia. As well as this area possibly being the best chill out location in Cambodia with endless hammocks, white sandy beaches and the warm sea, the beaches are also lined with shacks selling crab renowned for being exceptionally good. I could soon see why Rabbit island had such a reputation for its delicious crab dishes. As soon as I placed my order people were running into the sea to catch my dinner, my crab was selected and prepared and I was presented with the softest, most delicate, deliciously sweet tasting crab I have ever had the pleasure to eat...all this on a backdrop of paradise. Perfection!

Freshly caught crab

View from the Restaurant 

In contrast to our blissful stay in Rabbit Island, the following weekend we headed to the hustle and bustle of Phomn Penh. This is a great city full of lively bars and great restaurants. By day we snacked cambodian style on chilli coated fried bugs and spider. Once you got over the fact they were bugs, they were not too dissimilar to pork scratchings and were actually quite enjoyable.

Beautiful bugs 

Fried spider 

Yummy!! 

By night Phomn Penh has some great restaurants and bars to enjoy. My favourite restaurant we went to whilst in the capital was called Friends. It is a charity run restaurant whereby deprived street children are trained by chefs in a similar scheme to Jamie Oliver's 15 restaurant. Although the food in Cambodian terms is quite pricey, the quality of the food soon make it an absolute bargain. Every dish we received was exceptional and the beauty of the place is that they offer tapas so you can try a little bit of everything. This is a great charity offering delicious food well worth a visit.


As well as all our foodie delights we have indulged in at the weekends, we were also very well fed in the week. Sreymon, the cook for the volunteers would lay on a nightly banquet which consisted of an array of delights; currys, spring rolls, chilli beef and sweet and sour pork to name but a few dishes and it was all cooked from this kitchen.....

It has been an amazing 3 weeks at Hope school. We have really got to know the community, taught some beautiful children and met a lot of great fellow volunteers. All this has been mixed in with some unforgettable foodie experiences.

30 ice creams for all the children at the orphanage- $2. The best money I have ever spent!

It has been sad to wave goodbye to Hope school and Cambodia after really getting to know the Country. However, it is onto the next adventure and I have been promised the food delights of Vietnam will not disappoint.