Ankor, Siem Reap & Koh Samui
Having completed a three week tour of Laos, Cambodia and Thailand (see Past Tours),I took some time off with the opportunity to visit areas new to me. The highlight remained exploring the remoter parts 
of Angkor Wat with its over-grown empty temples, so different from the thronging hordes clambering about the more accessible and well-known ones. I biked round Siem Reap enjoying the shady roads and charming Cambodian friendliness. Koh Samui turned out to be an island I definitely do not wish to return to, but my stay at the Orient-Express hotel was a delightful rest and a day yachting amongst the nearby islands was peaceful – a relief from the garish advertising plastered everywhere. I checked out each of the top-end hotels on the island, from the Four Seasons to W Hotel, but each was simply a big soulless machine. The weather was of course glorious: beach lounging and dining became increasingly seductive as my holiday days sped past and return to London loomed ever nearer.