Puppies and Pizza

San Sok, Koh Rong, Cambodia -- Day 2

It's a bit of a mystery to me why this little beach side community is not completely overrun with dogs. Right now, there are easily two dozen of the cutest little puppies within just a hundred yards of our rooms. Animals are not "fixed," so I figure after a few years there should easily be hundreds of dogs around. In any event, at every available opportunity, the kids are cuddling or playing with one of the cute little guys.

This morning, we also noticed a couple water buffalo tied up just across the waterway. They wandered into town around 8:30. When on the beach, Dex and Kylie love to find the little sand crabs that run around and dig down into the sand. Dex was "happy as a clam" when he caught a bigger guy with half a coconut shell. Meg and I told him today that with his love and fascination of animal life, he should think about being a biologist. He and the others have searched the area just outside the rooms where the little fresh water lagoon empties into the ocean. Their impressive collection of shells is lined up on the deck railing.

Abandoned house just across the water way

Naturally, the day was once again spent playing in the water. We've grown comfortable sitting at the nearby open air restaurant just off the beach on one of the wooden piers. The owner seems happy to see us each day. We can dive right into the water from the table, order food when ever we want, and otherwise relax in the shade. Not too shabby, I must say.

Fun in the sand, slightly disturbing...

For New Year's Eve we decided to skip the party boat excursions to Koh Touch Beach, which promise to return by 2 a.m. Instead, we reserved a table at the Italian restaurant run by a few actual Italian guys. They offer authentic pizza and pasta and have the only expresso machine in town, which would normally make it the hands-down choice for breakfast. However, the guys running the place sleep in rooms right next to the dining area upstairs. Breakfast (and coffee) are available in the morning... whenever they happen to wake up. Sadly, this is generally an hour or two after we and the kids have already eaten.

Eat, Pray, Love.  Italian food.

In any event, the pizza and pasta this evening were excellent. Dex had gnocchi and Kylie, Meg and I had pizzas with thin, crispy crusts. A nice bottle of Italian red wine shared amongst the adults helped wash it all down and ring in the new year. Not to get too crazy, we were all safely in bed by 10 p.m., long before the party boat and younger crowd was back in town