It felt delicious to sleep to 6:00 am! We met Dane again in the lobby and headed right out to Angkor Thom, what was once the capital city of the early Khmer Empire. (12th century). Bayon temple, within the confines of the ancient city, is primarily what we came to see, as our time was very short. It is famous for the sculptures of massive heads and faces. It was built as a Buddhist temple but eventually emerged as a Hindu place of worship. The carvings of heads were formidable!

And then we had to hurry to get to the plane...for the next stop. Thank you, Dane, for your expertise and kindness to us. Before we left the hotel, we had the pleasure of meeting Mario, a Baha’i working there! What a surprise. We headed to the Amansara and had a chance to bid adieu to Astrid...so many many thanks to you!

Back on the airplane, while Julian was busy flying, I struggled to take in the enormity of history we had just experienced. A thousand years of struggle and worship and art...and we never really touched the pain of more recent years for the Cambodians. I came away determined to learn more fully the suffering of these kind people.

We landed next in Saigon or rather, Ho Chi Minh city. Vietnam is a place Julian particularly wanted to visit, and I was keen to learn. He experienced the tenor of the time of the war, but my experience of it in Canada was muted. I didn’t know what to expect.

What I didn’t expect at all was the 30-pound bouquet (ok, I’m exaggerating) of gorgeous lotus flowers! What an overwhelming welcome! Again, we were treated to utmost hospitality by HondaJet representatives as we arrived.

It was late in the day, and our two early morning adventures had worn us out, so we claimed a quiet night with noodle soup...ready for the morrow.