Today has been a vile day and started badly with a huge family row. I think we are all getting a bit travel weary and it shows. We discuss our plans for the next few months and even talk about going home after China. In the end I don't feel like things have been properly resolved but we reach an uneasy truce. It leaves us all upset and I worry that this isn't the end of it but we try and get on with the day and set off for "Happy Valley" in the hope of brightening the day.

We had planned to visit Tiananmen Square and The Forbidden City but that’s not really an option today and Happy Valley Amusement Park, Beijing's answer to Disney seems to be a better choice. It's about half an hour taxi ride from the centre of town and we arrive mid afternoon. Its quite expensive, it costs us 11 quid each and despite the fact that we try and convince the ticket seller that Maisie is under 1.4m ( she isn't) we have to pay full price for her also.

There are so many people here it is amazing, many people seem to be part of school or college groups and are wearing matching tracksuits. It seems to be the trend for young couples to wear matching clothes also and that makes us laugh. I can't imagine that ever catching on at home. At first there seems to be an extraordinary amount of people on mobility scooters but we realise when we see kids jumping off them and running around that they are in fact little golf carts for getting around on. How lazy is that!

We check out some of the rides, we like the look of giant plastic bubbles which float across the lake with you scrabbling around inside and queue up for the Disco, a kind of spinning version of the pirate ship. Maisie is scared but we persuade her to go on and it turns out to be much faster than we thought, she likes it though.

Ali and Simon then queue for "Nemisis", Maisie just won't go on it and as she became hysterical when we tried to get her to go on during a trip to Alton Towers last year I stay with her. We have a lovely time wandering around, posing with the giant ants in Antworld, having a go on the teacups ride which makes me feel sick and chatting about her friends at school.

According to Ali the ride was really good, faster than Nemesis and as everything is starting to close we head for the gates. (Two rides each- 11 quid - not bad we feel, excellent budgeting). I look up at the sky and I'm not pleased to see it has suddenly become black. There are around 3 million people outside the gates waiting for a cab and we realise we aren't going to get one.

We walk along the road and suddenly China starts to feel very inhospitable. Its very ugly here, massive roads, with absolutely nothing to shelter under and it becomes really cold and windy and starts to throw it down. We are surrounded by huge blocks of flats and little else and Maisie says it's so cold she can see Russia.

We get soaked, we're freezing, it's getting dark and we are nowhere nearer getting a taxi. A few have gone past but they won't stop and I am feeling a bit panicky. We walk the 2 miles back to "Happy Valley" gates (Simon says it’s a spelling mistake and it's actually called Crappy Valley) and huddle together under a motorway bridge trying to think what to do. Suddenly we remember passing a Tesco on the way and decide that is our best option, at least we may be able to buy an umbrella, coffee, waterproof jacket etc there. We dodge the traffic to the other side (A little like trying to cross the M1 in the dark while it's pissing down) and trudge off up the road.

Silly us for thinking we might get any of the above it's not to be and instead we are forced to wander around looking at stuff in an attempt to dry out. After half an hour we decide to venture out again and we shelter in the doorway while Simon braves the wet. I don't know how he managed it amongst all these people desperate for a cab but he soon appears and we run after him to the waiting taxi.

What a relief. At last we get back to the hotel and we shower and change into warm stuff. The kids don't want to eat and we leave them snuggled up in bed. I decide to change into trousers and it's at this point that my misery of today is complete. My baggy trousers that used to hang off me are so tight I can hardly breathe. Oh my god how can I have put on so much weight and not even noticed. That’s it, diet tomorrow.

At last we arrived at Beijing International airport and it was the easiest immigration procedure that we have experienced since we started the trip. We were all through in around 20 minutes and soon got in a cab. Beijing is absolutely massive and our trip from the airport took around half an hour. It was now around midnight and the poor kids were shattered, I was panicking that the hostel we had booked would be closed, filthy etc and was so pleased when we arrived to find a little oasis in a somewhat dodgy looking area.


We didn't wake up until 10am today, although we are now another hour ahead (7 hour time difference). By the time I have had a coffee and about a gallon of water I feel ok, Ali seems to be completely improved and Maisie is now the one suffering. Poor Maisie she is absolutely burning up and complaining of headaches and "feeling tender" (her words bless her!)

We spend the day quietly, go across the road for some lunch, get the laundry sorted and try and make some plans for the next few days. In the afternoon Simon and Ali go and check out the string of guitar shops around here and Maisie and I watch some DVD's on the laptop to try and help plan our China route. We watch Destination China and Arthur's Travels in China. I join Simon and Ali for a beer downstairs (Corona- yeh!) and unfortunately when I slam our room door closed the ceiling tiles in our room fall down on Maisie. Poor Maisie she isn't hurt but not very impressed!

In the evening we walk 5 minutes up the road to a recommended restaurant. Its slightly intimidating walking in, the place is absolutely huge, we are the only westerners and it's packed with families. No one seems to speak much English but eventually we order the house speciality Crispy Peking Duck. (How cool is that, eating the real deal in Peking!) The amount of food on people's tables is amazing and it all looks beautiful. Very ornate, huge fish with teeth piled high with tiger prawns, plates of steamed vegetables, (we have celery and water lily), and lots of Chinese tea and "Snow" beer. (We have a few of them)

We sit there reading the Lonely Planet for a crash course in dinner etiquette. Most things we already know but we learn that we must point the spout of our teapot away from the table and not turn a fish over to get at the flesh underneath. (This may cause the next boat we see to capsize)

We wander back to the hotel and I decide to start taking a course of antibiotics as my throat is so painful. Previous experience tells me it probably won't clear up otherwise and I don't want to feel unwell for our time here. We call the kids grandparents Bob and Jude on skype and all have a good chat, then off to bed. Hope we are all feeling better tomorrow, can't wait to get out there and explore Beijing.

I'm writing this diary entry from 37,000 feet. Today has been a very difficult day for us. I slept with Ali last night as he went to bed immediately when we returned from the airport and I was also feeling unwell.

When I woke up this morning I can honestly say I don't ever remember feeling so ill. My head was splitting and my bones and joints felt like someone was tearing them apart. If it wasn't absolutely essential to travel I would have stayed in bed all day and did in fact virtually beg Simon to change our travel plans. I thought we could perhaps stay in Vietnam in HCMC until I feel better and then get a flight to Hanoi and cross into China overland. The main flaws in this plan are that our visas expire tomorrow and if we miss our flight to Beijing our future flights may be cancelled.

In the end with a lot of help from Simon I drag my sorry arse out of bed. For the first time ever as an adult I have to have some help to shower and feel so ill I can't even cry. I feel sorry for Simon, the kids aren't too well either and it must be very hard trying to carry all the gear and look after us all. He's so great and I thank my lucky stars that I have such a good travelling companion. This illness has just come at the wrong time. We are all feeling a bit low from Mum and Paul leaving and I'm very apprehensive about our visit to China. For the first time since we left I consider going home.

I feel like the day has passed in a haze of paracetamol, ibruprofen, caffeine and sugar. In an effort to relieve the headache and nerve pains I have been gobbling analgesia down like M&M's and happily they do seem to have worked a bit. We flew from HCMC to Singapore where I bought some Clarins moisturiser, drenched myself in my favourite Vera Wang perfume and sat in a massage chair for two minutes ( had to get out - too painful).

8.30pm- at 5pm we boarded our flight to Beijing. The six hours seems to be going painfully slowly, I have watched a film with Will Smith called The Pursuit of Happiness, listened to a bit of music and now writing this. I read my diary entry for 17th Nov earlier (The last time I wrote this on board a flight). It seems such a long time ago and so many things have changed since then. I did cry as we took off, when we left Singapore last time we had our whole SE Asia adventure ahead of us, now we are almost halfway through.

Despite my complete and abject misery today I realise that I'm not ready to go home at all, just feeling unbelievably sorry for myself and hoping we're all better tomorrow. If not then a few days in bed will do the trick I guess.

Our estimated flight arrival time is 11pm, its 9 now feeling really ill again so putting this down now. Only positive thing I can think is that Ali is slightly better today and therefore I guess this evil illness may be fairly short lived.

On to China now!

To sum up Vietnam is quite a hard thing to do. Of course we have only had a too short, 3 weeks here and as we have stayed in real luxury with Mum and Paul for 2 of them that has made it a fantastic holiday. Before we came to Vietnam we heard many people say it is very beautiful and I'm sorry that we didn't have the time to experience some of the most picturesque areas of central and northern Vietnam.

The biggest impact Vietnam made on our family is the friendly, gentle and welcoming nature of the Vietnamese people. Without exception, everywhere we visited we have been treated to smiles, laughter and interest in us. We all admitted that prior to our visit here we had some pre conceived thoughts about Vietnam, having witnessed how American history portrayed the war here but from the minute we arrived here all those images were swept away. On reflection it's very hard to understand the American war here and the use of chemical agents such as napalm was a terrible crime against the Vietnamese people.

My image of HCMC will always be of thousands of motorcycles. Weaving in and out of each other with amazing dexterity, we witnessed lots of minor bumps that we sorted out in seconds. I will always picture the Vietnamese women in their beautiful national dress. They are absolutely stylish, elegant and graceful with their conical hats and long silk gloves clutching a magazine and sheltering their faces from the sun.

The weather here has been at times overwhelmingly hot. In Mui Ne we were so lucky with clear blue skies and bright sunshine everyday. Paul said it is the only place he has ever been where the aircon causes condensation on the outside of the bungalow windows in the morning! I read before we started our trip that only the hardiest of travellers come to SE Asia in the killer month of April and feel proud to now class myself as one of the toughest of the tough! Come On!

The food in Vietnam has been nothing short of awesome. I have absolutely loved our diet of steamed rice with "something else" laid on top and we have certainly had our minds broadened as to the possibilities of what can constitute "edible"

I will be sorry to leave, of all the countries we have visited so far in Asia, I feel like we have seen the least of Vietnam. It has been an education for us all, particularly I think in forgiveness, pulling together and getting on with it. Despite the terror of the war that tore the country apart and only ended 35 years ago the Vietnamese people really do seem to have rebuilt Vietnam. It is a lovely country and I think we all leave here admiring the spirit of the place and hoping that we will come back one day.

Woke up with a massive headache and feeling slightly sick. Ali was sleeping in Mum and Paul's room and I stumbled across the corridor to check they were up. Of course they were all bright and breezy and after a quick shower I joined them for breakfast which I then found I didn't want.

We have decided to go shopping this morning but when we asked The Kindo Hotel if we could stay for another night they informed us they were full, leaving us with the problem of finding somewhere to stay tonight. In the end we decide the best thing to do would be to send the kids with Mum and Paul whilst we check out some rooms for tonight. As I'm not feeling too great I just can't face staying in a crappy dive tonight and we phone a midrange place for 40 dollars.

When we arrive in the taxi I'm a bit gutted to see that it looks like a bit of a shithole and I sit on the pile of rucksacks while Simon goes up the road to find somewhere better. After about 15 mins he comes back and we walk to the 2 star Hanh Hoa Hotel. What a great find, the rooms are lovely, freshly painted with massive windows and pretty bamboo furniture. At 15 dollars per night I'm really pleased and we chuck our gear in and head back to Dong Khoi.

We have arranged to meet everyone at 1pm and they are already weighted down with shopping bags when we arrive. Mum and Paul have given the kids some money and Ali shows us his MP4 player he has bought. Maisie, Mum and I head straight off for the mall and I take advantage of the fact that we can buy some souvenirs without worrying about carrying them. I get some chopsticks, a miniature Chinese tea set and a lacquered poster of "Tintin in Vietnam". I 'm worried that Simon won't like this and his look of disgust when I show him confirms it! We ring home and speak to my brother it's his birthday today and Mum and I sing down the phone. Happy Birthday Will!

The afternoon passes too quickly and soon it is time for Mum and Paul to start preparing for their flight home. We sit in a café listening to The Carpenters and getting very emotional and all end up laughing when mum tells us how she cried over Rolf Harris's Two Little Boys on the way up to Birmingham one day. Its starts me off crying also and we must have looked like a bunch of crazy people to the Vietnamese waiters all laughing our heads off with tears running down our faces!

We get in taxi and make our way to The Hanh Hoa Hotel where they have a quick freshen up. Ali has a terrible headache and it gets worse on the way to the airport. Poor Ali, I think he is worried about saying goodbye and feeling stressed out. We say our goodbyes and it's horrible. I feel very sad that they are going, in some ways worse than when we left as we know what it's like now. There are a few tears as we wave them off. We get back into a taxi and Ali falls asleep within 10 minutes.

Back at the hotel and Ali gets straight in bed. Hope he feels better tomorrow, we are flying to Singapore and then to China. I am looking forward to it but feeling a bit down really. We watch Robots and eat take out pizza for dinner. I guess I'll feel better tomorrow. Ready for the next bit of action.

Today is our last day in Mui Nne and we pack up our stuff sadly and then make our way to breakfast. Too soon it is time to go and we all pile in the taxi. The journey takes around 4 hours and we can tell we are nearing HCMC as the number of motorcycles on the road increases massively.

We stop on the way for a drink and Mum buys some horrible" jackfruit" crisps that none of us can stomach! We arrive back at The Kimdo Hotel and check in. We had planned to go out for dinner but as I'm feeling sick and headachy we decide to stay in. We make our way to the restaurant and have a good meal. Ali has a steak and as usual raises a few eyebrows when he asks for it to be cooked rare!

We all sit in our room afterwards and Ali plays his guitar showing off the songs he has written since we have been away. Simon and I bicker over who will be his manager when he makes it as a star and he solves that row by saying he will manage himself! Checked a few emails, great to see Lou the girl we met in Cambodia had such a great time there. Also heard from Nicky she's great keeps me in touch with the world at home. Hello mate you’re a star!

Off to bed now tomorrow Mum and Paul are leaving and we want to make the most of our last day.

Ali is better today and came in to see us first thing singing Reach for the Stars by S-Club 7 and dancing around the room. Hmmm! We have our breakfast and quickly shower and decide we will get ourselves ready and visit the nearby town of Phan Thiet. We call a taxi and all pile in. Phan Thiet is a busy fishing and market town and the cabbie drops us in the town square from where we can walk around easily.

First we head into the market and almost immediately are surrounded by women showing off their goods. Some of the silks look gorgeous but to show even the slightest interest results in an excitable crowd gathering around and high pressure selling techniques!
In the end we settle for drinks and some fried coconut and honey biscuits. We walk through the food areas and gaze around. The fish area is disgusting, huge piles of fish lie in baskets and on the floor and the smell is fairly grim.

We hurry through and make our way past the fruit and vegetables. Lots of ladies touch Maisie's face, legs and bottom and chatter to themselves. Mum and Paul comment on how friendly the Vietnamese people are and we definitely agree with this observation. Everywhere we look people smile, wave and call out to us and very generously agree to have their photographs taken.

We leave the market, have a quick drink in a rooftop restaurant of a local hotel and then set off for a walk along the river to photograph the boats. Simon gets a few shots and it makes an interesting walk. On the way back we look in a tank at some giant snails. I'm sure these will end up on someone's dinner plate. Urgh! We have seen some interesting food choices on the menus here including steamed claw and tail, baked pig stomach, roasted frog and fried crispy sand lizard.

We set off in a taxi back to Mui Ne and stop at The Victoria Hotel. We have a lovely lunch and a few glasses of wine sat high on a wooden veranda overlooking the sea. It is a perfect, breezy spot and Mum and I agree the kind of idyllic "honeymoon" destination place.

When we get back to Little Mui Ne Cottages Maisie, mum and I have a swim. We sit gossiping and reliving some of the best parts of this holiday. We agree it has been lovely and we've had a fantastic time.

Ali hasn't been very well for the past few days and spent all of yesterday in bed poor thing feeling crappy. Subsequently we have done nothing but that has suited us fine. We figure that once we arrive in China it will be much colder and there will be so much to see and do, we may as well take advantage and spending our time reading books, swimming and baking in the sun.

Mum went for a massage but although Simon asked me if I wanted to go I am too savvy for that and there's no way I would put myself through that torture. Mum did look slightly shell shocked when she came out! The fact that the girl had walked all over her back was a bit of a surprise although not as much of a surprise Paul got when he asked the female receptionist what type of massages were offered! We explained that their shocked expressions were something to do with the fact that they weren’t used to being asked for extras!

All around the resort are huge coconut palms. The past few days a small team of fellas have been working on the trees chopping them all back, removing all the older branches and hacking down the bunches of coconuts. Watching the fella shinning up the tree is awesome. He has a rope tying his ankles together and uses this and his machete to help him up. How brave is he. I stand watching him with the Vietnamese phrasebook in my hand but can't find "Oh my god aren't you scared you might fall off" in it.

We eat at Little Mui Ne Cottages in the evening and share all our dishes. Off to bed now hope Ai is better tomorrow.

When I woke up this morning I was surprised to see it was only 8.30 as I felt I had been asleep for days. I left Simon and the kids asleep and headed off to the bar to send a few emails. Eventually Mum and Paul appeared and I woke Simon, Ali and Maisie at 9.30 for breakfast.

Mum and Paul's bungalow is in a prime position just by the beach and they have spent the past few days frying in the suns hot rays. The kids and I prefer the pool though and it's very luxurious. As it is so hot in the daytime most people seem to want the beach breeze and the gorgeous pool is nearly always empty apart from us. We love swimming around in the warm sometimes hot water under the shade of the tall palm trees.

We have our lunch over the road and at 2pm set off in the back of a jeep on a trip. As there is very little to do around Mui Ne the local sights and attractions are lumped together in a combination trip and we have planned to visit the "Fairy Spring", red and white sand dunes, the red canyon and a local fishing village.

We drive around 200 metres up the road and the fella stops, he motions that we should get out and we realise that we have arrived at the "Fairy Spring". A small group of local children surround us and lead us up a path to the murkiest looking drizzle of a river I have ever seen. We soon realise that the general idea is that we should paddle along the stream bed to the waterfall at the end.

We do pass some pretty red and white rock formations on the way but given the fact that it is boiling hot, it takes us at least half an hour to get there and the waterfall turns out to be only around 5ft high I reckon it must win a prize for the crappest attraction so far on a our trip.

Back in the jeep and we soon reach the fishing village. As we pull up loads of children run up with trays of shells to sell. We tell them firmly that we want to see their village first before we buy anything from them. We walk down the steps to the beach and Simon gets some beautiful photographs. A little girl clutches onto my hand and we chat as we walk along. She tells me she doesn't go to school, too expensive and that her mother has a bad chest. When we get back to the jeep I agree to buy a few shells. Simon points out that every dollar we give them encourages their parents not to send them to school but I figure that at least they aren't out begging.

Next we arrive at the white sand dunes, they are lovely but we felt we had all seen equally impressive dunes elsewhere in the world and were more interested in the sand sledging. What a rip off really!! The local kids charge 20000 dong per slide on a piece of laminate plastic and the sand gets everywhere. Still we have a great time, we laugh at the children they really are so enterprising we admire their tough little spirits and relentless exploitation of tourists! Our kids are so great chatting away with no shyness whatsoever and I'm proud that although they both have humanitarian spirits and acknowledge and recognise how poor it is in some areas here they aren't stupid and refuse to be ripped off by the Vietnamese kids!

We tell the driver we're not too fussed about seeing the red dunes but stop off quickly at the red canyon. We are all tired and refuse to get out of the jeep but Simon wanders off to get a photo to show us later on the laptop!

When we get back its takes ages to shower off the mixture of sun cream and sand and we lie on the bed watching the telly. There are some really interesting programs on the discovery channel and soon the kids are engrossed in a documentary about The Valley of the Kings in Egypt. Maisie in particular likes learning ancient Egyptian history and was very disappointed when we visited Egypt not to visit Cairo. I promise her we will take her one day.

We then start watching a documentary called The First Emperor of China about the Terracotta Army. We end up ordering take out pizza and lying on the bed watching TV. It's good for the kids to see and a bit of an easier way for them to research our next destination. Mum and Paul have their meal and join us for a quick beer. Later we all crash out completely knackered, our bit of exercise today has done us in.

I woke up early this morning and lay shivering in the aircon room. At 8 o'clock I decided to get us some coffee and wandered along to the restaurant. Despite it being early the sun burns into me and we spend most of the morning researching hostels in China on the net and staying in the shade. We do some science with the kids and it goes well. We have a revision session at the end of each section of work and they both seem to be able to answer all the questions fully.

I lie reading my book in the afternoon by the pool. It's excellent, set in 1960's Nigeria and called Half of a Yellow Sun. Like lots of books I like reading I was attracted to this one once I found it was set in Africa. Although I have visited a few African countries I would like to go there for a longer time and have added Africa to my mental list of places to go in the future. Simon and I were saying to Mum and Paul that although we have travelled to some great places and would like to revisit some of them, this trip has made us both want to explore new places that we hadn't previously considered.

In the evening we have booked to eat dinner here at Little Mui Ne Cottages Resort. The pool setting is ideal for a night time BBQ as it looks really magical in the dark. Fairy lights are hung in the trees and Chinese red lanterns swing gently in the light breeze. We can smell Jasmine and the scent of other flowers. The wine is displayed in an upturned round fishing boat, lined with huge banana plant leaves and there is a choice of salads, beef kebabs, fish steak and tiger prawns. We have fresh fruit and one of my favourite puddings crème caramel. Love it!

After dinner Paul crashes out and me, Simon, mum and the kids make our way to the beach. We sit gazing up at the stars and I show Maisie Orions Belt the only star constellation I can recognise. The tide is far out and its lovely sat on the warm sand listening to the waves and looking for crabs. We have a beer and head off for bed. Today has been perfect, tranquil and relaxing.

The past few days have been spent alternately lying by the pool, lazing on the beach, eating or drinking. I am beginning to feel completely apathetic and I guess really need a rocket up my arse to get motivated to do anything.

Yesterday wasn't too pleasant as Simon, Ali and I fell out over schoolwork. Trying to teach maths is really hard for me and I wondered afterwards if my total lack of enthusiasm for it contributed to Alisters uncooperative attitude. (Must try harder). Anyway after a few words we did eventually all make friends and got on with the day.

Due to the boiling heat we have spent a lot of time on the beach where it is cooler. The sea isn't very clean though and when I went for a swim I noticed a few brown jellyfish as well as a lot of sticks and seaweed. As Mui Ne is marketed as one of Vietnams most beautiful stretches of coastline we all agreed that it would benefit from some beach cleaning if Vietnam becomes really popular with tourists over the next few years.

I have spent a few hours researching our next destination which is China. At the moment we have no idea where we want to go other than walking on The Great Wall and to Xian to see The Terracotta Army. I am starting to realise that China is absolutely vast and wonder if we have made the right decision to only spend a month there.

Last night we walked to a small restaurant for dinner. Despite us being the only customers the food took ages to come! However it was tasty and we had a bit of excitement when the power went leaving us completely in the dark. The lovely friendly staff brought us a lamp that unfortunately attracted every bug in the vicinity.

Got back from dinner and the kids decided to go for a swim in the dark. Paul jumped in with them in his pants and they had a great time splashing around. I picked up a magazine from reception and lay reading the Australian equivalent of Take a Break. What a load of crap! Won't be buying that when we get to Oz.

How lazy are we, didn't wake up until 9.30 and had to race to breakfast before it finished. We were planning on spending the day at the beach but in the end never made it. We have no excuse it is so close to our room we can hear the waves crashing on the shoreline but the pool looked so inviting we didn't get any further than the sunbeds.

The Little Mui Ne Cottages Resort is really lovely. Off the main road you enter a long drive and eventually reach some steps. At the bottom of the steps are two large pots filled with water and flower blossoms are floated on the surface. Up the steps is the reception area which consists of a bar, restaurant and small library. There is a snooker table and dart board and games including back gammon, chess and connect four. From this area is another fight of steps down leading to the pool and the bungalows. The pool is so clean, absolutely sparkling and it's great as there are very few other guests staying here.

The grounds are immaculate and beautifully landscaped with coconut palms, scores of different brightly coloured flowers and bushes. It is for us completely different to anything we have experienced so far whilst on our trip. We did compare it to Ko Lanta but it is a much more luxurious experience than we had there. I think this will be our last beach place for a while and therefore am glad for the opportunity to laze around.

Although I have always needed hours of sleep and feel knackered all day if I don't get at least 9 hours a night I feel a bit embarrassed now Mum and Paul are here. They must think we are very idle! But then again they know what I am like and as Simon keeps pointing out to me travelling is tiring!

Simon has looked on the internet and discovered cashews are inedible until cooked and that he has on his face a kind of acid burn that may blister. I'm not too sympathetic as he picked it up from the floor but do rest the temptation to labour that point too much! (With difficulty!) We checked our emails today and heard from The Spiers family in Canada who are following our trip. Soon it will be their turn and we will be following them! Also caught up with news from some of our friends.

The area of Mui Ne is very quiet and apart from 3 small restaurants there is very little to do here. There is a fishing village just up the road and Simon gets some good photographs of their small round boats.

In the evening we walk up the road for ages before we find somewhere to eat. We pass a restaurant on the way advertising baked goats udders but none of us fancied those tonight and we keep walking. Dinner costs about a tenner for all six of us and we walk back in the dark. Stuffed and happy!

We have had a lovely peaceful day today and done very little. Simon woke me up too early and the bed was so cosy I felt like I could have slept for hours longer. By 7.45 though, I was wide awake and ready for breakfast. We leave Ali and Maisie in bed and meet Mum and Paul in the restaurant. The breakfast is very good with lots of choice which is great as we are here for 10 days. I have spread cheese on toast and coffee- Yum!

We spend the day very quietly by the pool. The kids have a lovely time playing in the pool and throw themselves into enjoying the day once the obligatory hour of maths is out of the way! As usual Simon and Ali have to go through a massive discussion over it but Maisie and I crack on learning shapes and angles and she does really well.

Simon and Ali go for a bike ride later on once it starts to cool down. It is extremely hot even in the evening and when we choose to walk up the road for dinner we wonder if we have made a mistake when we stroll along for half an hour before finding anywhere to eat. Eventually we stop and the food we get is fantastic. We share a wide range of Vietnamese dishes including salt fish in banana leaf, beef and coconut curry and chicken with basil and cashews.

On the way back Simon picks up a cashew nut from the floor and tries to crack it open with his teeth. Almost immediately he is complaining that he has a burnt mouth and when we get back he's got a burnt area on the side of his face. I give him some Piriton and he decides he will look it up on the internet tomorrow.

Mum and Paul and the kids play cards for half an hour and then Ali plays his guitar for a bit. Mum says how much she has missed hearing him play and he chooses some songs he has learnt since we have been away including Coldplay- The Scientist. Although I'm not really a fan of Coldplay (their songs are too sad for me) I love this song- it reminds me of home. He also plays Bob Marley (he learnt from this "G" in Langkawi) and some of his own songs he has written since we have been away.

Its 11pm now and we're off to bed. Goodnight.

Get up at 8.30 and after breakfast repack ready for our journey to Mui Ne. We have booked a big mini van for the 4 hour journey as Mum and Paul have a rather large suitcase with them!

We stop once on the way for a drink but as usual the time flies and we all chat on the way. The landscape is quite pretty in parts. Not as flat as Cambodia and there are lots of stony looking hills in the distance. We pass through lots of small towns on the way many of which seem to have a particular industry for example wooden furniture and aloe vera plantations etc

We enjoy pointing things out to Mum and Paul and it's good to see things through fresh eyes. Although we haven't been in Vietnam long there are many sights here that are common all over Asia and I think we don't notice them any more. Particularly the bad driving skills of many people which we seem to think is normal now and don't bat an eyelid at!

Eventually we arrive in Mui Ne and we're thrilled and relieved when we arrive at our resort to find it's really nice with gorgeous rooms, a lovely pool and beautiful gardens. We are also right on the beach which is clean and pretty with white sands and tall palm trees. In the evening we go across the road for dinner and despite having a great meal and a few beers are all really tired and head off to bed early.

Simon woke me up at 8.30 and I asked him to get the Hobnobs from Mum. They must have been knackered, all still asleep! We have our breakfast and make some plans for the day. We have decided to visit the Cu Chi tunnels.

The village of Cu Chi was of massive strategic importance during the war due to the closeness to HCMC and more importantly the massive network of underground tunnels that stretched 250km from Cu Chi almost to the Cambodian border. When the Americans arrived in Vietnam they set up a base camp at Cu Chi completely unaware that the tunnels were just below.

We get a big taxi and pay 35 dollars for our trip. We arrive at the Cu Chi tunnels and after paying 65 000 dong each make our way to the movie room. The movie showing is interesting and informative and we felt demonstrated that the Vietnamese are maybe not quite as forgiving towards the Americans as they would hope or have us believe when we have spoken to them about the war!

The guide that shows us around is really good. We wander over the tunnel complex and are amazed when we are shown the first tunnel entrance. It's absolutely tiny and so well hidden we would have had difficulty finding it even if given the rough location. It's easy to see how the American soldiers never stood a chance, especially in the dark with gunfire and explosions all around.

Next we are shown a tank that came to rest in this spot. It was blown up by a landmine. The Vietnamese were extremely resourceful and despite a lack of guns made some vicious weapons out of bombs that were dropped on them. The guide shows us the bamboo trap, the doortrap and the see saw trap amongst many others.

We continue on and are shown lots of underground bunkers including dining areas, hospital room and kitchen. I think we all felt a huge amount of respect for the resilience and toughness of the Vietcong. The conditions they lived in underground must have been horrendous, the tunnels sometimes collapsed and were plagued with pests like rats. To avoid detection by "war dogs" that were sent down the tunnels the Vietcong would place the uniforms of dead US soldiers around the tunnel network to confuse the dogs. They also took to smoking American brand cigarettes.

There is a shooting range at Cu Chi and Simon, Paul and Ali all have a go shooting an AK 47. I talk to Ali beforehand as I was quite reluctant to let him shoot the gun and explain again to him the importance of recognising how dangerous guns are. I remind him of how many Vietnamese and American soldiers died here. In the end I don't think he really enjoyed it anyway.

Next comes our opportunity to go down the tunnels. Even though we only make our way along a 40 metre stretch its quite scary. Pitch black and so narrow, the roof is so low I'm almost bent over double. We had read that many tourists find it too claustrophobic and I could see why.

Lastly we sit and have a cup of green tea with cooked tapioca. This is what the Vietnamese survived on and it's so disgusting. I don't think I could survive a month on it let alone years. The guide explained that the vents to the kitchen were over 100 metres away to avoid detection and only the minimum cooking was carried out.

We make a donation, give the guide a tip and head for the café. On the way we stop and look at some photographs of children injured by Agent Orange. Once the Americans realised the tunnel network was virtually impenetrable the entire area was blanket bombed with napalm and Agent Orange as well as blasted with huge B52 bombs. There are a number of massive bomb craters at the site also. The long term effects of the chemical weapons are that the fields still yield poor crops. In fact we only saw rubber plantations on the way and wondered if the ground is still too contaminated to grow food in.

After a quick drink we go back to the hotel. It has been a really interesting and informative visit which we all enjoyed. We agreed it has been very good to see the Vietnamese view of the war also as we felt previously we had been much more aware of the American version of events.

Mum, Maisie and I go to the health club and check out the facilities. We have a sauna, steam bath and Jacuzzi and emerge looking red and wrinkled! We wander up the road for dinner and have some decent Vietnamese food. Simon chooses snails and we all have a taste. I didn't like them much though a bit tough and chewy!

Tomorrow we are leaving HCMC for the beach. We have booked to stay at the resort of Mui Ne on the east coast. Going to go to bed now, leaving at 11am. Bye bye luxury sob sob !

At 8am Mum was banging on our door asking for clothes for Ali who slept in with them last night. It's so good to see them first thing and I have my coffee sat on the end of mum's bed. We head off for breakfast and the kids go wild! Ali has a mixture of sushi and chocolate cake for breakfast amongst other things and I'm not surprised when he starts complaining of belly ache. (Sorry Di!)

We sit and look at loads of photos on our laptop. As Mum and Paul moved house they have been unable to access our website while their internet has been off and have loads of catching up to do. We also look at photos of their new place and our niece Hope who is growing big now.

We set off for the Jade Pagoda. There doesn't seem to be as many temples here as we have seen in some of the other Asian cities we have visited but this one is supposed to be very impressive. We get out of the taxi and the smell of the incense is very strong. The temple depicts The Taoist Jade Emperor. (The King of Heaven) and also has some interesting wooden panelled carvings showing the ten halls of hell. We point them out to the kids and tell them you have been warned! They were more interested in the birds in cages and turtles and terrapins for sale outside!

We have planned to visit The War Remnants Museum this afternoon and get a taxi to the bank of the Saigon River first for a drink. We spend an hour or so there chatting and catching up on news from home and watching the boats going past. When we arrive at the museum it has just reopened after lunch and is very busy. We spend an hour or so wandering around and looking at the exhibits. These mainly consist of photographs and there are some very upsetting and graphic images of both American and Vietnamese suffering.

Worst of all are the photos of Vietnamese people injured by Agent Orange and napalm. We stand and look at the famous image of a naked little girl running down the road screaming having been injured by napalm. It is grim viewing and reminds us of the evil of war. Having looked at the replica's of so called "tiger cages" when political prisoners were held I feel like the kids have seen enough and we leave. In the taxi we talk about the war, all they can say is that it is horrible and I feel sad that they aren't little innocents like Hope anymore and like all kids are aware of bad stuff in the world.

Like in Cambodia I worry about them knowing stuff and don't want to upset them but don't want to ignore it and pretend it didn't happen either. It's difficult trying to balance this in a sensitive way though.

It's very hot now and we are in need of a bit of aircon so stop off for some drinks and pizza. When we get back to the hotel Simon and Ali go to the gym. (Mad) and Mum, Paul and Maisie go swimming. I lie on the bed reading Hello magazine and generally chilling out.
In the evening we cross the road to a sushi bar, Ali is desperate to show off his love of sushi and I think Paul is very brave when we are offered an almost raw egg to drink. Simon also knocks his back but the rest of us chicken out.

After dinner we catch a taxi to Pham Ngu Lao and have a walk along the busy streets. We stop for a drink and watch the world go by. Ali asks for a tonic and they bring him gin and tonic! I 'm tempted to have a go on a machine that weighs you, checks your blood pressure, takes your temperature and plays the theme tune from Titanic when it's all done. The kids persuade me it’s a bad idea though and I guess I am a little concerned about having my temperature taken with some grubby thermometer!

We get back around 11pm and crash out, feeling very tired and hoping to have a good nights sleep.

We transferred to the The Kindo Hotel as soon as was possible today. It was like stepping into heaven and I know we acted like the Clampits. Walking around the room fiddling with the complimentary slippers and bathrobes, marvelling over the expensive toiletries in stone pots and flicking through the numerous TV channels. We all showered and pampered and finally, thrilled with our new and posh surroundings ordered room service.

The entire day was spent lazing around counting down the hours until Mum and Paul arrive. At last its 6.30 and time to go, we get in a taxi and head for the airport. The kids have made signs to hold up saying "Nana and Granddad" and "Welcome to Vietnam".

Two hours later and finally we see them waving through the barrier, at last they are here and its tears all round! It's wonderful to see them, until this point I don't think I had realised how much I have missed my family and we gabble at each other in the taxi on the way to the hotel.

They have brought the kids loads of presents and Maisie poses in her new clothes looking like a real star. We have a few beers sat on their bed and Ali orders some food from room service. Its so good to see them catching up on all the news and gossip, we all have so much to say but eventually crash out and head for bed. I'm so excited that they are here and can't wait for the morning.

We are really looking forward to sharing a bit of our world with them. As they were landing Mum said how amazing that they were about to land in Saigon. They of course remember watching the war footage on the telly. I don't remember that but them being in Vietnam does seem amazing, a bit unreal after all our months of travelling but really great.

Our task for the day is to find a decent hotel for the next three nights. This isn't as easy as it sounds as the prices in HCMC are considerably higher than in the Mekong Delta. We have checked out loads of places on the internet and having discarded all the big hotels as too expensive we set off for the area of Dong Khoi. It is the best area in District 1 which is where we want to be. On the banks of the Saigon River, all the top name hotels are here and we check out The Continental first. At 300 dollars per night, its time to look elsewhere.

We head for a three star place we have checked on the internet. It is called The Kindo Hotel. We are pleased to see it looks great, lovely rooms, a pretty restaurant and even a pool although it has to be the smallest pool I have ever seen. After a prolonged bargaining session we eventually book it. Really we are just trying it on, as we know it’s a good deal at 140 dollars a night per room. Seeing it in black and white is slightly scary though. The grand total cost of this place is 18 dollars a night for 2 rooms.

We stop for lunch in a gorgeous restaurant Ali and I have lentil and bacon soup and Simon and Maisie have sandwiches. We have decided to visit The Reunification Palace this afternoon and try and learn a bit more about the conflict here in the 1960 and 70's.

Following a thousand years of Chinese rule, the Chinese were eventually expelled in the 15th century. The mid 18th century saw the beginning of 70 years of French colonial rule and in 1941 Ho Chi Minh established the Viet Minh whose goal was independence from the French. This was finally achieved in 1954 after years of fighting.

Vietnam was by now, divided into the communist north and the anti communist south. For years, the United States had been supplying the French with military support to forward the" worldwide struggle against creeping communism." The campaign to liberate the south and the battle against the communist National Liberation Front of the north had begun. The NLF would come to be known as the Vietcong or VC. There would be American soldiers on Vietnamese soil for the next 25 years.

The war in Vietnam escalated rapidly with the intervention of America. US President Johnson ordered 1000's of bombing raids on the north and eventually every road and railbridge in the country had been bombed. The American soldiers usually controlled the countryside by day but by night the Vietcong got the upperhand.

By 1968 the war had been raging for years. The VC frequently led raids into the south and hundreds of villages were evacuated by the US troops so that they could use heavy weaponry such as napalm. Although the US soldiers were meant to protect the villagers many were killed and their surviving relatives soon joined the VC. The cost of the war in lives and money was absolutely massive, 60,000 Americans, 4 million Vietnamese and a cost to the US of 165 billion dollars. What a waste.

At the end of January 1968 the Vietcong launched a stunning offensive, bombing hundreds of villages. The Americans immediately counter attacked and the result was massive bombing and shelling of the cities. This would prove to be a turning point in the war, as Americans sat watching their TV's at home grew increasingly disillusioned with the war. There were anti war demonstrations in the States as news of atrocities and massacres against unarmed Vietnamese villagers and the bombing of neutral Cambodia began to leak out.

On the 30th April 1975 the Vietcong tanks smashed into The Independence Palace in the capital of Saigon and South Vietnam surrendered. Saigon was immediately renamed Ho Chi Minh City. As the South collapsed, the last of the American soldiers left as did thousands of southern Vietnamese people. They would come to be known as the "Vietnamese boat people"

As we walk towards the gates of The Independence Palace we stare up at the flag of United Vietnam. We can both remember seeing TV footage of the tanks as they crashed through the gates and a VC soldier ran up the steps and raised the flag on the roof. The Independence Palace was renamed The Reunification Palace and remains today as it was left in 1975. We wander around for a few hours trying to explain the historical importance of this place to the kids. We all enjoy looking at the 1970's décor which Ali thinks is cool in a retro way!

We head back to our hotel. I am having difficulty understanding the complicated history of the war here and we decide to buy some films to watch to see if this will help. We get Platoon, Apocalypse Now and The Quiet American. (2 quid for 3 films) and decide on Platoon first. It’s a gory film that I have seen before and we decide at the end of it that it has done nothing to make us understand the war history anymore. Although Simon felt it showed how war strips people of humanity and makes them do unbelievable things, we didn't feel any connection between the film and being here in Vietnam.

It's quite late but we turn the telly on and are delighted to find an episode of Globe Trekker on. Although Simon and I read loads and did lots of internet research for our trip watching Globe Trekker DVD's was a huge part of our introduction to travelling for the kids. Listening to the familiar music makes us think of all the nights I used to sit watching them longing for our trip to start. This episode is about Cambodia and its interesting seeing all the places we visited. It does make us both want to go back there though and explore it more.

Off to bed now. Mum and Paul are coming tomorrow, so excited just can't wait.

Our repacking was a very quick affair today as we had hardly unpacked much. We did have some laundry done so have clean gear although we are having to get our stuff washed after one wear as it is so hot and we all get fairly sweaty! We have arranged a taxi to Ho Chi Minh City. (HCMC) and it is supposed to collect us at 11am for the 3 hour trip. At 10.15 the phone rings ad reception tell us the driver has arrived. Oh my god! We chuck everything else in quickly, race downstairs, pay up and collect our passports.

Two hours later and we have travelled the grand distance of 2 km. The kids have been angels, no complaints at all despite the fact that we haven't eaten today and when it eventually becomes apparent that we are in fact queuing for a ferry across the Bassac, Simon jumps out and runs across the road to buy some rice, spare ribs and bananas. Our driver speaks no English but drives well and I quite enjoy the ride despite the increased journey time.

We pass lots of rivers and at Vinh Long cross the huge Mekong. As we get nearer to HCMC the number of motorbikes increases a lot. Everyone we have spoken to has mentioned the traffic here and we're not surprised when the driver is pulled over by the police for committing some minor traffic offence. He pays the fine and gets back, despite his lack of English and our lack of Vietnamese we all speak the same language when nicked by the police and his resigned acceptance and obvious pissed off face was plain to see!

He drops us at An Phu Hotel in Pham Ngu Lao. This is the backpacker HCMC equivalent of Bangkok's Th Khao San Road. A great place to be, loads of cheap accommodation and very central. As we will be overspending in a serious way once Mum and Paul arrive on Friday we opt for a budget place that turns out to be a real bargain with a bath in the kid's room, loads of TV channels and free wifi. For 4 pounds 50 per night per room we are pleased with our choice.

I sit and watch American Idol and we head out to get some food around 8pm. As Simon gets some money from the ATM he bumps into Dave the conservation biologist we spent some time with in Chau Doc. It's good to see him and he joins us for dinner and tells us about his past few days further exploring The Mekong Delta. After a hourn or so catching up we say our goodbyes again, return to the hotel and crash out.

Its 10.45 now and I'm feeling knackered, tomorrow we have to go and get a decent hotel sorted for the weekend so as I guess we will be traipsing around for a few hours I'm going to get some sleep now.

Due to sleeping late yesterday I was completely unable to drift off last night and as we had to be up at 5.30 I had a complete freaky at 1am and resorted to a chemically induced coma. Taking sleeping tablets is something I only do in an emergency and when Simon woke me up when the clock went off I really didn't think I had been asleep for any longer than an hour max.

I was so tempted to tell him that the floating markets could shove it and it was only due to his usual chirpiness that I managed to scrape my sorry arse from the sheets. It was as much as I could do to brush my teeth, chuck some clothes on, my sunglasses and in an effort to convince myself I looked normal, some lipstick. If I still smoked I would have had about 10 by now and even I admit I probably looked fairly sad stumbling along the street, clutching a baguette and scowling around at the world. I am so not a morning and that is the understatement of the century. Being drugged with night sedation really doesn't help.

By the time we reached the river a little of the early morning goodness has started to seep into my black world and I am actually feeling not too bad. We clamber into the boat and I lean back close my eyes and let the warm sun slowly coax me awake. After about an hour we reach the floating markets and hallelujah the first seller we meet does coffee. Simon grabs a few and despite the fact that he has to gently point out that the fella has short changed him (Twice!) we are on our way.

The floating market here is the largest in this region and we can see straight away the difference between this and the less authentic floating markets near Bangkok that are geared towards tourists. For a start the sellers ignore us knowing that we won't buy anything of substance. The huge wooden boats are laden down with all sorts of fruit and vegetables. We see pumpkins, pineapples, potatoes etc. The much smaller boats are busy buying from them and will take their produce back to Can Tho to sell in the street markets there.

After paddling around for an hour we start to head back but take a much quieter route through a network of canals. It is a shame to see how disgusting and polluted the water is. We had to stop 4 or 5 times when the propeller became choked with plastic and despite the natural outstanding beauty of the waterways it was spoilt by the rubbish everywhere.

When we arrive back we have our photo taken with a giant Ho Chi Minh statue (No Vietnamese city is complete without him. We make our way to Nanbo's for breakfast and try and consolidate some of the information we have learnt with the kids about Vietnam and Ho Chi Minh. It is complicated and takes us a few hours to decipher the American intervention in the civil war here. Explaining it to Ali and Maisie is hard and inevitably they draw comparisons on their own about the current situation in Iraq.


In the afternoon we swim at the Victoria hotel and Simon and Ali play tennis. In this heat they must be mad and return to the poolside very hot and tired! We get pizza for dinner and eat it in our room. Tomorrow we are going to Ho Chi Minh City and are hoping to see a bit more of Vietnam and make a bit more of a connection with it. The people I have met here have been so friendly and welcoming to us but I feel there is so much more to Vietnam that we haven't touched yet. Feeling tired tonight, hopefully will get to sleep a bit earlier and feel more refreshed tomorrow.

Today has been quiet. We didn't get out of bed until very late and spent a few hours with the kids teaching them the history of Vietnam. They make notes and we decide we are going to base their literacy learning on this subject over the next few weeks.

In the afternoon we had planned to visit the waterpark but unfortunately when we arrived it was closed. Taking the easy option we headed for the most expensive hotel in town and were delighted to find there is no charge for the use of their pool. We surround ourselves in luxury and get on with doing nothing all afternoon.

I have been feeling slightly guilty that we have done very little since we arrived in Vietnam but decide in the end that is a waste of time and just get on with it. Although it does sound very lazy, the heat is draining and sucks all the energy out of you. Like the locals we seem to be spending longer sleeping than usual and have resigned ourselves to the fact that Vietnam is probably not going to be a great cultural experience for us but more of an extended holiday.

Tomorrow we are going to be getting up at 5.30 to visit the floating markets. Oh god. I will never get used to the idea of getting up that early. Enough culture there to last a lifetime I reckon.

When we awoke this morning not only was our room in total darkness as usual but it was also very hot. We quickly realised there had been a power cut overnight which isn't too good as we have to pack. Simon goes and asks the fella downstairs if we can move to a room with a window so we at least have the benefit of some sunlight and when he agrees we lug everything across and go down for breakfast. We have got the kids some chocolate money and give them 20 dollars each. Happy Easter everyone!

By midday it is unbearably hot and I have already had 2 showers. The fans in the restaurant do make a big difference and after packing our stuff up we sit and do some science with the kids. Maisie and I learn the composition of rocks and soil and Simon and Ali learn about sound and the structure of the ear. We are leaving at 2pm and nip round to a decent bookshop so I can change the latest trash medical drama I'm reading for something a bit more interesting.

At 2.15 a car arrives to take us to the bus station. We have paid 5 dollars each for our tickets and this turns out to be nothing short of daylight robbery as we see the locals all piling in the mini van and paying around a dollar each. Most intriguing is a very large lady who gets on in front of Simon. Half way through our journey she starts to undress and we realise she is padded all over with cigarettes. She must have had at least 20 thousand fags strapped around her body, legs and arms! It was quite bizarre watching her taking them all off. Simon said she went from being Jo Brand to Twiggy in 15 minutes. We sat there wondering if she had stolen them or smuggled them perhaps. Either way we decided it definitely wasn't the usual way to transport your smokes!

Despite that bit of interest the journey is pretty bad. We literally have no room and I felt very sorry for Simon who looked like a scrunched up spider with his knees up around his chest. We don't see much of Vietnam on the way but what we do see looks very densely populated after the miles of deserted roads in Cambodia. We follow the river and I look at the houses on the way. They are built over the river half on the bank and the other half on long wooden stilts.

After a shorter journey than we expected, which was a godsend due to our squashed up conditions, we arrive in Can Tho. It is described as a large cosmopolitan city and also the political, economic, cultural and transportation centre of this area. We have arranged to stay in a midrange hotel at a cost of 10 dollars per room per night. We are pleased to see it's in a great location and the rooms are clean and bright with a few extras such as a fridge and telly.

We choose a restaurant by the river for dinner and have a fantastic Easter nosh up. Not very traditional I guess, the kids had pizza and Simon and I shared a set Vietnamese meal which was really good. We had fresh tomato soup, spring rolls, beef with green chillies, chicken with lemongrass, pork with coconut, mixed vegetables, steamed rice and apple pie with ice cream. We washed it all down with a few local beers and filter coffee and despite saying we would get a taxi back decided to walk in an effort to walk off a few calories! The bill only came to 13 quid which was great and we sat in our room planning how to spend the next few days.

Today has been a much more interesting and eventful experience than the past few. It started early enough (5.30am) when the metal grinders thought they would greet the sunrise. I did manage to go back to sleep around 7.30 but Simon woke me at 8.30 bright and breezy with a cup of "lucky draw coffee" that stripped the enamel from my teeth.

I then discover the packet of cookies in my bag has a hole in and a bite taken from one. We accuse Maisie but she is so outraged that we decide to investigate further and I'm slightly upset to find mouse droppings in my bag. Mystery solved and the biscuits are binned! Still after a shower I'm feeling excited about doing something and we set off for the river.

Chau Doc is a small, very busy and extremely noisy industrial town. On the way to the river we take our lives into our hands as we struggle to cross the roads. They are teeming with bikes, pushbikes, motorbikes and 3 wheeler things with a shelf on the back. Actually there are very few cars so it isn't too dangerous but there isn't any let up and the knack is to step out into the road and move across at a steady pace hoping they will go around you which seems to happen most of the time anyway!

The shops are all open for business and the market is bustling. Everywhere we look are piles of fruit and vegetables. We don't recognise them all although we are getting better and can spot durian, rambutan and sugarcane amongst other things. I see some chickens scratching around waiting for the chop, as well as cakes, biscuits and all kinds of food sizzling in pans, boiling in pots or grilling on skewers.

The Bassac River is massive and we arrange with a lady to have a one hour trip up the river to see the fish farms and the indigenous Cham peoples floating village. We all clamber into the boat and after pouring a litre of green fluid in the engine the lady starts it up and we set off. There are lots of other boats on the river, mainly rowed or steered by women. In the long silk "pyjamas" that are the Vietnamese national dress and the conical hats the women are very elegant and serene looking as they row the boats from a standing position.

First we stop off at the fish farm. The river people live in houses constructed of oil barrels as floats and wood and corrugated tin. Underneath many homes are fish cages. We read that over 90% over the fish is exported to the US and Europe. We stop off and get out, it's interesting and we are given handfuls of fish food to throw in. The water immediately becomes completely alive with hundreds of large fish all battling each other for the food. Three fellas are fishing with a line and we eventually realise that a large eel is in there also and they are trying to catch it. We guessed that it has perhaps been eating some of the farmed fish.

Next we go to the Cham floating village. As we pass the houses we talk to the kids about the differences in the people's lives here and our lives. Although the river people don't live in complete poverty it is obvious that money is very tight and they don't seem to have many home comforts. The river looks quite dirty and the Cham people use the water for bathing, washing their clothes and as a toilet. I tell Ali not to trail his fingers in it and give him some alcohol gel to rub on his hands. We then watch two, cute naked little boys swimming like otters in the river. It's funny watching them throwing themselves in and although they must have, in those 5 minutes, swallowed several mouthfuls they looked as healthy as can be so maybe it wasn't too bad after all.

After slightly longer than an hour we ask to be taken back and are expecting a full on discussion about how much is owed. Basically that’s what we get! We had agreed a price of 3 dollars but when we go to give the lady 4 dollars in Vietnamese dong. (Local currency) she looks at us as if we are mad and obviously don't understand the currency. Simon is too savvy for that though and after pointing out on a calculator that we have in fact over paid she concedes to him and gives a dirty cackle when she realises we guessed what she was up to. It makes us laugh and we set off for the Victoria hotel for a swim.

This hotel is the best in town and we have to pay to swim there. We manage to get Maisie for free and all head straight for the pool. Its lovely to splash around in the bright clear water and when I get out I sit on a comfy sunbed over looking the river. Simon says it's quite a paradox sitting in luxury looking at the jumble of metal that are peoples homes just a 10 minute boat ride away.

We have a blissful afternoon soaking up all the luxury of the hotel including huge fluffy towels, free wifi and great western food. We have lived very cheaply in the past few days spending around 15 pounds a day on accommodation and food. Although it justifies to us today's extra we always end up feeling guilty when we splash out a bit and seeing the Cham peoples simple and basic homes adds to that. Quite rightly I guess.

In the evening we book bus tickets to Can Tho. This is on the way to Ho Chi Minh City (HCMC) and should take around 3 hours. We have also spent a lot of time looking for somewhere to stay with mum and Paul, that fits in nicely with their idea of a decent hotel and our budget. Could be tough but I'm sure the place is out there somewhere.

Well today has been very peaceful and quiet. I have been feeling sick all morning (Taken anti malarials on very little food) and we didn't really make any moves except to do some maths with the kids. We have been thinking about their schoolwork and are going to try and separate what they are learning a bit more from now on. Although Maisie learnt all the biology really well the physics and chemistry are proving to be a bit more of a challenge for her and we think they will benefit more now from one to one schooling.

We walked up to the river and tried some of the world's worst ice cream. Simon ate Maisie's and I looked around for a plant pot or something in which to dump Alisters. Later we spent some time chatting to an American fella called Sam. The highlight of that was finding out he was born in California and went to UCLA. I wanted to know if he regularly rubbed shoulders with the stars and he did mention a few names which disappointingly I hadn't heard of! (Basketball players).

Tomorrow we are going to catch a boat up the river and see a bit more of Chau Doc. In the afternoon we have planned to go swimming. My last chance to top up my tan before mum and Paul arrive. I don't want them looking browner than me!

I guess as we didn't scrape our lazy arses out of bed until gone 11am today that does constitute a long lie in and it's so good! The room we are all sharing is quite big but doesn't have any windows which is why I suppose, we slept so late. I had a slightly disturbed night though as I was a bit paranoid about cockroaches.

Although I have got used to lizards everywhere and don't mind the roaches as long as they stay away from me, I had a complete hysterical hissy fit last night when I picked up my towel and a huge roach crawled across my hand. The kids thought it was funny and so did I after about 10 minutes of sat sobbing on the bed. Even though I love Asia and everything about being here I will never get used to some of the big bugs that we have seen.

After breakfast we head off for the internet and send a few emails. The kids spend their time researching the American/Vietnam war and we plan that they will share the information with us and write it up later. We walk through the market up to the river. It's really amazing we sit having a drink in a floating restaurant and watch the river traffic going by. It looks exactly as I have always pictured Vietnam. The small narrow boats are paddled by women in conical hats and huge dense clumps of water plants drift past.

We spend the afternoon chatting to Dave, he tells us he is from Boston and works as a conservation biologist. He has spent the past 4 years living in South Korea and is travelling around SE Asia for 2 months before returning to the States. Like us he has just arrived from Cambodia and also seemed very enamoured with it. I'm jealous when he tells us he spent a month in north east Cambodia living with the indigenous tribes. It sounds really amazing and something we would love to do in the future.

By the time it is dark we have had a few beers and wander back to The Vinh Phouc Hotel for dinner. Again the food is really good, and we stuff our faces for under a fiver. There are many interesting dishes on the menu and we ask the family to get us some fish and frog for tomorrow nights meal. We are definitely getting braver and after watching a telly program about food taboos on the National Geographic Channel feel we are up for most things.

We get a slightly earlier night and plan to try and see a little more of Vietnam tomorrow.

We have now left the beautiful and complex country of Cambodia.

Over now to Vietnam

Today we are travelling to Vietnam. We set our alarm and Simon set off in search of some hot water so we could make coffee. There are no ATM machines here and we get some dollars over the counter at the bank to see us through when we first arrive in Vietnam.

Our guide book advises we don't use this particular border as the roads to it are bad and it is very quiet with hardly any international travellers using it. However if we don't go through here we will have to return to Phnom Penh and then catch a boat down The Mekong. Although this sounds good we want to maximise our time in Asia and spend as little time as possible back tracking. So decide to go for it after chatting to Cheang. He can't take us as he has a prior booking through the hotel which is a pity but has sorted it out with his friend.

After breakfast we return to The Bokor Hotel. Cheang is sat in reception apparently his job today fell through and we ask him if he can take us but he explains he has promised his friend he can take us so its not possible. It’s a shame as he speaks great English and we have got friendly over the past few days. We set off with his friend and before long can see why this border crossing isn't recommended. The roads are almost deserted and not surfaced and the journey takes around 2 and a half hours of serious sweating.

The aircon doesn't really work and sat on the leather seats bouncing around at over 35 degrees is pretty tough. The roads are also very dusty and when we finally arrive after getting lost once in the middle of nowhere our gear is absolutely covered in a thick layer of red grime. I have spent the last 20 minutes worrying about accidentally straying across the border as an illegal and getting captured and shot by the Vietnamese but Simon assures me this is not possible across a road even if it is only a track.

By the time we arrive I am slightly nervous especially as the Cambodian border guards seem to think its funny to poke Ali's arm muscles and rag him around a bit. We leave Cambodia and walk across the bridge to Vietnam and sit anxiously at the SARS detention area. The stern looking Vietnamese border guard touches Maisie's hair (I guess they don't see too many blond kids here) and gives us some Rambutan fruit. We are all thirsty and hot and they are very good.

We ask the border guards to ring a taxi for us to take us to the town of Chau Doc. We picked up a card telling us it costs 20 US dollars. But when the taxi arrives on the other side of the border barrier the motorbike fellas all crowd around him and he tells Simon it will cost 80 US dollars. They are clearly trying to intimidate the driver into charging more but Simon sticks his ground and refuses to pay up. We ask the border guards for help and they let the taxi driver up to us where we all pile in. As soon as we are through the barrier they surround the car but we just ask the driver to keep going and make it quite clear we aren't paying any more.

We get to Chau Doc around 3pm. It seems to be a busy small town and is so noisy. We have rang ahead and made a reservation at The Vinh Phouc Hotel. The owner speaks excellent English and they make us feel so welcome. After our slightly scary morning it's good to be somewhere that feels safe and friendly.

We get some food, steamed rice, chicken with lemongrass, Lok Lak beef and beef with green peppers. The beer in Vietnam is the cheapest in the world at around 35pence for a largish bottle- hurray there is a beer god! We guzzle down a couple which will I'm sure be the first of many here.

The Guesthouse owner tells Ali that he has a friend who also plays the guitar, he introduces us to an Australian fella called Ray and they spend a bit of time playing together. It must have been a bit intimidating for Ali. The whole family appeared and pulled up chairs the instant we had finished eating and sat there looking at him expectantly!

We head off to bed around 11.30 and have already decided we are going nowhere and doing nothing tomorrow. Looking forward to a seriously long lie in.

We met Cheang at 9.30 and headed off to Kep. After yesterdays bumpy journey we are all relieved to see the road is good and despite the lack of air con (Cheang explains it won't work in his car due to the frequent trips up to Bokor) its cool enough with the windows all down. We arrive in Kep and find somewhere for breakfast, a gorgeous wooden hut style resort with the most amazing views over the sea to Vietnam. We stuff our faces with pancakes. Ali and Simon have bacon, baguettes and "cheese cow" which I correctly guessed to be Dairy Lee Triangles!

Like Bokor Hill Station, Kep was mostly abandoned in the 1970's when the Khmer Rouge drove everyone out into the rice field labour camps. Many of the beautiful French colonial villas still lie empty although Cheang tells us they are being quickly bought up by foreigners. Hardly surprising as it is one of the most peaceful and naturally beautiful places I have seen.

After breakfast we head for the beach and quickly become a tourist attraction for a van full of villagers who have come to the seaside for the day. We try the spiky Durian fruit. It is sold all over Asia and well loved by the Asians but generally detested by westerners. It absolutely stinks, a combination of rotten meat ad fish and is banned from nearly all hotels and the MRT train system in Singapore. Although we all give it our best go, we don't eat much each although Cheang wolfs it down!

Several hours later and we are ready to try the local crab which turns out to be delicious and cheap cooked with local green and black pepper. We all enjoy this even Maisie who tells us determinedly that she doesn't like crab and has tried it many times before. (Crabsticks maybe!)

In the afternoon we drive the short distance to the local caves, we have to walk through a small village to get there and collect a large group of local children on the way. We have noticed that the kids in Kampot don't beg for money as much and although "one dollar" is still their favourite saying they guide us to the cave and show us their temple inside so we're happy to give it .Ali and Cheang climb back through the cave complex on their bellies and we walk down the steps outside.

That many people live in poverty is obvious in Cambodia and like in India, children begging for money are hard to ignore. In Phnom Penh we saw many little kids aged around 4 begging with tiny babies (perhaps 1-2 months old) in their arms. Both Simon and I would like to contribute something more in the future when Ali and Maisie have left home perhaps. But for now even though it might not be the most helpful contribution we just give some small change to the kids sometimes and hope it does go towards food for them.

In the evening Simon spends an hour doing some science with the kids. They have been learning about light and reflection. I have been looking through their science curriculum and it seems we are on track at the moment with their science at least. Which is good.

We have some dinner, Simon and I try the pork volcano, his choice and its very good the fella cooks it at the table which the kids enjoy watching. We then hunt for an internet café. Internet access is fairly poor here but we want to update our website and check a few emails. That done Maisie and I head back to The Bokor Hotel. We are leaving Cambodia tomorrow for Vietnam. I feel very sad about this. In the end we have only spent 10 days here and hardly scratched the surface.

I read before we came that no one visits Cambodia and leaves without a measure of admiration for the spirit of the Khmer people. This is definitely true for us. In every way Cambodia is absolutely stunning. From the fantastic Angkor Temples to the evilness of the Khmer Rouge we have been completely captivated by the history, the people and the beauty of the land. With India it has been without a doubt my favourite place we have visited so far and I've loved it here. We agreed today that Cambodia hasn't seen the last of us that’s for sure!

We set our alarm for 8 and Simon went across the road to get us some coffee. We voted it the worst coffee we have had since starting our trip and that is saying something as it has had some stiff competition particularly in Malaysia. It actually made me gag and I had to clean my teeth after a few mouthfuls to scrub the taste away.

The fella we had spoken to yesterday is called Cheang Try, he picks us up at 9.30 and we set off for the Bokor Hill Station. From Kampot we have to drive 40 km, although this isn't far away the road is really bad and we only got out of first gear a handful of times. Ideally this road shouldn't be attempted in anything other than a 4WD but our little ancient Toyota Camry had a strong heart as well as suspension and despite the journey to the hill station taking 2 and a half hours we got there in the end.

The Bokor Hill station was built by the French in 1925 and consisted of a hotel, a church, a post office and a small school amongst other buildings. It is completely abandoned now and has been since the 1970's when the Khmer Rouge drove the villagers out. It is a proper ghost town and has been described as the spookiest place on earth. As it is over 1000 meters above sea level it can be quite cool and very foggy up here.

We have a quick look around King Sinhanouk's summer palace, also abandoned it doesn't have any fixtures and only the walls remain standing. There is a great view over to Vietnam's Phu Quoc Island. The entire hill station was actually abandoned twice, once in the 1940's due to fighting between the Free Khmer movement and the French and then again 35 years later. Next we reach the Catholic Church. Khmer Rouge guerrillas were still in this province until as late as 1998 and the area wasn't safe until fairly recently. Three western tourists were captured and shot here in 1994- scary. The church was used as their hideout and a small group lived there.

On the way up here I asked Cheang the driver to explain some of the history of the hill station to us but he misunderstands me and tells us his history instead. He describes how he watched his parents murdered by the Khmer Rouge and fled to the mountains. He lived alone in the jungle for a year and then joined the liberating Vietnamese army. He became a commander and had many soldiers under him. I suppose the first impression of the Khmer people is of a nation of smiling happy people but the hurt and bitterness is just below the surface and understandably so. It's difficult to know what to say as he pours his story out and in the end we don't say anything and just listen.

After a quick lunch of super noodles and chocolate biscuits, we set off around The Bokor Palace Hotel. It was once the height of luxury and architecturally is very beautiful. We wander through the ruined corridors, suites, huge ballroom and then down to the kitchens. It must have been absolutely wonderful in its heyday and overlooks a fantastic view. Maisie and I sit in the ballroom imagining how it once must have looked, full of rich French people enjoying the place. We asked Cheang if there are any plans to restore the hotel but he didn't think so at the moment.

We set off back down the mountain and unsurprisingly get a flat tyre on the way. It only takes Cheang and Simon 5 minutes to change it though and soon we're on our way. It doesn't seem to take quite as long on the way back. Maisie starts to pick her hair braids out and when we get back it takes both Simon and I another hour to get them out and brush her hair through. She loses loads of hair and cries as it's so tangled up, eventually it's sorted but a painful experience for us all!

We decide on a place for dinner but when we arrive don't like the look of it at all and have a quick drink and leave. We end up at an "Italian" restaurant and have some great kebabs and Khmer chicken, so tasty and reasonably cheap. Tomorrow we are going with Cheang to the nearby village of Kep to see the caves, have a swim in the sea and sample the fresh crab lunch. Yum can't wait.

Today we are travelling to the provincial town of Kampot close to the Vietnamese border. We have some breakfast and after our showers quickly pack up our gear, it doesn't take too long. Simon usually packs most of it and is now an expert. We have arranged with one of the taxi drivers to pay 35 dollars for the drive to Kampot. Although there are buses the service is stopped today because of the election but as we didn't really want to spend any longer in Phnom Penh we decided to cough up and get moving.

We leave at 11am. The driver is careful, that’s good and the road is largely ok. It is mostly surfaced although very bumpy at times and I quite enjoy the journey. I'm sure that the rural Cambodian countryside probably looks very different in the wet season when the rice fields are ready for harvest. As it is almost the height of summer everywhere looks brown, dusty and dry and in need of a good rainfall. Some areas are still flooded and there the bright green of the water plants stands out. It is very beautiful, really so different to what I imagined.

I wouldn't describe the appearance as desolate but at times it's almost deserted with maybe a single motorbike driver with a thick scarf covering his face from the sun and the dust. We stop off at a small village to buy a drink; next to the Fanta box are 3 skinned cow halves hanging up. Maisie is disgusted especially when Ali helpfully points out the hooves are still intact and blood is dripping onto the floor.

After several hours of being jolted around we arrive. We haven't booked any accommodation and ask the driver to take us to The Bokor Hotel. It is described as the best hotel in town and as there are no other tourists around at all we think we will be able to get a decent discount. In the end we pay 12 dollars per room. As they have 2 double beds in each and all mod cons we're pleased with this. They are very smart and definitely the best place we have stayed since we left Surat Thani in Thailand.

We walk up to the river and sit and watch the sunset, its lovely sat on the riverside in the heat watching the sun go down. We have a drink, make our way back to our hotel and Simon goes out to get pizza for tea. Very expensive at 12 dollars but worth every dollar. We are going to visit the deserted Bokor Hill Station tomorrow and have read the journey is a very bumpy ride. Described as "rump reducing " by one traveller, we're all excited at the thought of visiting the hotel straight out the film "The Shining" even if the prospect of developing a bum bruise isn't quite so enticing.