This summer I went on a great 2 month trip to Cambodia, Vietnam and New Zealand with my girlfriend Claire. Some of my best pics are up on facebook, click on any of the thumbnails opposite to enjoy!

Cambodia was fascinating - a really poor country but on the whole the people were friendly. Angkor is of course the highlight and it lives up to its reputation - the scale of what the ancient Khmers achieved is still not fully realised as satellite imagery is revealing more and more of the lost city now swallowed by the jungle.

Vietnam is a bit more developed than Cambodia, there is more commerce and less of the rustic peasant customs, you rarely see ox carts on the highway in Vietnam. It has some stunning scenery however, Halong Bay is an incredible area of hundreds of islets which jut up from the sea into towering peaks and cliffs. The rice terracing around Sapa defies beleif and the local H'mong people add colour, however the extent to which the younger ones have been brought up to pester tourists to buy their wares can be uncomfortable and is a depressing omen for the future of the smaller ethnic groups in Vietnam.

What can I say about New Zealand that you don't already know? Mountains, greenery, stunning, unspoiled landscapes and clean air and rivers combined with friendly locals makes this one of my very favourite places to go - in fact this was my third visit already.