Not going to bed after checking in and just dealing with what I got on the bus, I was off to get a much need breakfast at a local cafe. Done in minutes, it was time to plan the day. There really wasn't much to do here, that was evident right away. However it was only for one day before moving on the the ruins and the islands, can't wait. So having decided to head towards the old royal palace as a main goal, I headed down the main road the opposite to not do any backtracking. About halfway there I noticed a small temple and decided to check it out before heading back. Small signs sit outside the temples here letting you know tourists are welcome and that these our "tourist attractions" lol. The signs show that tourism in it's true form just isn't here yet, not really a bad thing.

      About halfway back after touring the temple and a small chat with a novice, I was called over by two little girls probably 6 or 7 trying to practice there english. Turns out it was a school for teaching english and the teacher was a mid-aged woman who invited me in to sit down and chat away. It's quite amazing how open some of these people can be. I stayed maybe 10 minutes and then was off. About a 30 minute walf over a small bridge and passing nothing but the same block building roads that make this town very mediocre, I arrived at the palace. This place is sooo amazing looking. But what makes it all the better is where it is! It's smack dab in the middle of a small town's business district, litter, shutdown places etc. This would be fine as you can't control what happens to the area around one building, but they turned this once residence of a prince and his concubines into a hotel! Yes, a upscale hotel with hundreds of dollar rooms. It's just so.... I have no words, I just laugh and enjoy its beauty.

     Leaving the "hotel", I noticed a temple straight ahead and decided it couldn't hurt. At the gate, another eually funny sign trying to make it seem like there was serious attractions here. The signs are an attraction of there own.

     Inside the temple, while I found it pleasing to the eye it was nothing great. I was headed straight out when a young novice asked if I could help him with his english. No he really meant it lol. I was invited into the monastery and into his quarters where we sat down with english books and I spent the next hour or so playing teacher. What was amazing was his desire to learn and he had already taught himself through books very good english. All I was doing was explaining things like the variations in words like "various" and "different" which he really had a hard time with. Never a dull day here. Not really what you think young monks are doing, but I think it's time well spent. I was given a giant bag of candy as a token of gratitude on my way out. lol No clue what to do with it but I'll probably just give most to children passing by. Can't wait to see what tomorrow holds in store.....