No Sign of MH370, South China Sea, March 17th 2014

To Phnom Penh above the South China Sea and no sign of the missing Malaysian jet...

Up at 3.15, taxi at 3.45 and bus at 4.15 which if all go's to plan then I shall be on that 7.05 flight to Phnom Penh. So far then running 10 minutes early and there's a taxi already loitering at the front door. Taxi by force though since there isn't any public transport in KL before 5.30am - £5 to KL Sentral, the cities major rail and airport bus interchange.

Buses, lined up in the basement and filling fast with passengers heading to LCCT at Kuala Lumpur International Airport. £2 for the ride, exactly 1 hour on the motorway, seems to be that irrespective of the time of day.

Some queuing at the desks, not surprising since it's the rush hour in flight terms of course. Immigration is a breeze as always, straight out, no interrogation and always a smile. Gate T5 has the flight listed as on time and the plane parking bay is F81 - get it wrong and you could end up somewhere like Hong Kong, which actually wouldn't be so bad - maybe one day I'll try that!

Dawn breaks as the Airbus climbs away from a misty KL setting course directly to Phnom Penh and over the point at which MH370's whereabouts was last known. Nothing to see as I keep my eyes peeled though, just a couple of container ships.

VIDEO - Prepare for Landing, Phnom Penh, March 2014

Flight to Phnom Penh...


http://youtu.be/-W26tX7_5CQ

Prepare for landing as this AirAsia Airbus A320 positions for a final approach..... here is the video

Bus to Sihanoukville, Cambodia, March 17th 2014

On the bus down to Sihanoukville, Cambodia March 2014

A familiar routine on a well trodden path.- 3 bits of paper to complete before setting foot on Cambodian soil with an official blessing. The immigration form, a customs declaration then the visa application all have to be in-order but once the $25 visa fee is handed over one gets the impression nothing else really matters. A few tourists milling around contemplating - taxi or tuk tuk.I manage to hitch a ride with a couple of  Phnom Penh virgins but when I mention the bus station and Sihanoukville there seems to be some confusion.  Turns out I can get the bus from a spot close to the end of the runway and I can still that ride, although walking wouldn't have been too much effort.

$10 and 10 minutes for the next bus to Sihanoukville - that's the first price rise in 3 years, up from $8! The ride is around 4 1/2 hours on a good road. Noticeable this time is how much less garbage there is but still plenty of it strewn around. The usual pit stop at an expensive roadside joint where its either noodle soup or fried rice for hungry passengers.

Rolling into Sihanoukville at 1.30pm but this time it's different. we're not going to downtown as usual but looks like the dedicated bus station. Yes, its the bus station which is good news since its just a 10 minute hike to Victory Hill and Mealy Chander Guest House.The Tuk Tuk mafia are there in force to greet passengers with some good advice and travel options of course. Easily avoided by finding a quiet spot and then an excuse that I need the exercise seems to have done the trick.

Here is a short video taken from the bus....

The Video Here http://youtu.be/bxnDbBo8XCk

ALBUM - Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia 2014

A poignant reminder that Malaysian Flight 370 is still missing and a night view of KL's famous landmarks - the KL Tower and just peeking behind a skyscraper one Petronas Tower.

ALBUM - On a Jet Plane, Bali, Indonesia 2014

Leaving on a jet plane as Kuta Bali dissolves into the horizon....