South East Asia

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Bong's Guesthouse, Koh Rong, Day 2
14 novembre 2017, Cambodge ⋅ ☀️ 15 °C
So it's the morning and both of us have had a rather sleepless night. We manage to drag ourselves out of bed for the free breakfast and meet the other three. Last night we had promised to go on a trek with them today, but that was before last night. Fortunately for us, they were kept up as well (they stayed in the dorm and as well as the noise, had a sick soaked bathroom to cope with). So we all decide a shorter walk is in order. We head out after Sandro gets a new hotel, and after around quarter of an hour, find 4k beach. As with most places here, it's a beautiful stretch of white sand and crystal clear sea.
A young Cambodian girl entertains us for a while by being crazy, as we dip in and out of the water and Reuben shares some beers around. This was just what we needed after last night. As midday crawls around, Amy is in the sea with the little girl trying to catch fish in a water bottle, and the rest of us are either laying on the beach, or floating on the water. Apart from Sandro, who is surprisingly agile on the water for such a large man.
As dinner comes around we eat on the beach, before deciding to rest in some deck chairs. It doesn't take long for every one of us to be fast asleep. It is over an hour later when we all wake. Reuben is seriously burnt, and we're all still pretty knackered, so we drag Sandro from the water where he has been the full time we've been sleeping, and head back to the hotel.
We all go out for tea again, before a final walk on the beach, and our final night in Koh Rong is over (when the music stops at 2)En savoir plus
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KIM Guesthouse, Phnom Penh, Day 1
15 novembre 2017, Cambodge ⋅ ⛅ 28 °C
Since getting to Cambodia, we've not really had a long bus journey, so to say I'm looking forward to the day ahead as I wake would be a lie. We get out of the room after another sleepless night, and get our free breakfast. I don't really mind the noise. It's a party hostel so it's kind of expected to be loud, but Amy is pretty fuming.
After eating and saying bye to Reuben, Olga and Sandro, we head onto the ferry. It's a lot less busy then last time and a lot more enjoyable. We are then back in Sihanoukville, where wequickly grab a bus to Phnom Penh. Thankfully it's a big air-conditioned bus, and we're not crammed into the back of a tiny mini van. The journey isn't that bad until we reach the outskirts of Phnom Penh and hit the trafffic. We probably spend around 90 minutes moving very slowly before we finally jump off. Amy is feeling unwell and as been on the verge of throwing up for the last hour, so we don't bother haggling the tuk tuk drivers, and we just jump straight in to get to our hotel quickly.
The room is delightful. It has air-con, TV, and is remarkably quiet. Just what we need. After getting some food, we go to bed, very much looking forward to an uninterrupted nights sleep!En savoir plus
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KIM gueshouse, Phnom Penh, Day 2
16 novembre 2017, Cambodge ⋅ 🌙 29 °C
So we get up and amy still doesn't feel up to scratch. After a slow morning we head off for an explore of Phnom Penh.
Our aim is to reach the Royal palace, and after half an hour of walking in the immense heat I realise I have read the map wrong and we are going the wrong way. We jump in a tuk tuk that takes us there, but we are faced with a roadblock manned with a big bunch of policemen. We're not sure what's going on so we jump onto the back of a tour and follow them in until we reach the palace.
Unfortunately it's more money then we have in our wallets to get in, so we head off down the very pretty streets. Phnom Penh is a strange place, with busy packed places making way for lovely parks and temples at random places. You never really know what you're going to find when you turn a corner here.
Amy still doesn't feel great so we get some money from an ATM, have some dinner, and head back to realx for the rest of the day, hoping she will feel better in the morning.En savoir plus
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KIM Guesthouse, Phnom Penh, Day 3
17 novembre 2017, Cambodge ⋅ 🌙 31 °C
Thankfully Amy feels a bit brighter today, so we decide to visit the infamous Killing Fields where thousands of bodies were executed and buried in one of the most horrific crimes not just the country, but the World has ever seen.
Our tuk tuk driver picks us up at nine and we set off on the dusty journey to Chuong Ek. After eating some breakfast we head inside, and the thing that immediately catches your eye is the monument built in rememberance of all the people who lost their lives here. That will be the last stop on our very informative tour though, so we head away and follow the track round. As we go we hear about what used to stand in the places we stand now. Huts that were used as jails, huts to store weapons, places where the prisoners were dropped off, and places were they were brutally beaten to death (bullets were too expensive to waste) are all on the path we walk now. It's a strange harrowing place. As you walk along either side of you are mass graves, now just divvets in the ground. I don't remember the exact number, but I think it is around 9000 bodies that were found here.
The audiguide is great, givig great information on why and how all this happened, and telling stories of survivors and people who didn't manage to survive. One of the final stops is a tree that was used to swing babies against until they were dead. Next to the tree is a grave that he bodies were thrown into like rubbish. 'To kill the tree, you have to destroy the roots' was the idea. As the tour ends we find ourselves at the monument mentioned earlier. It is full with the bones of the victims, with the first several of 17 tiers taken up with skulls. It is a horrendous yet oddly beaufitul place. As is most of the Killig Fields. The juxtaposition of the peaceful lake and nice scenerh that now sits there compared to what happened here is hard to wrap your head around. A crazy, thougjt provoking place that will linger long in the memory.
Before prisoners were taken to Chuong Ek to be killed, most were held at Tuol Sleng prison, a former shool that the Khmer Rogue took over when they took control of Cambodia. It is here that we head after a few hours relaxing in the room.
The first thing you notice as you walk towards the prison (now a museum) is the barbed wire that still surrounds it. In a way the prison seems more horrific than the killing fields, mostly because it has been kept in mostly the exact conditions that it was in when the Khmer Rogue were ousted in1979.
There are cells with single beds in them. When the prison was emptied, these rooms all contained single bodies, strapped or shackled to the bed. The bodies are now buried outside. Pictures near the beds show the bodies as they were found. None of the people who died in these rooms could be named.
After that we head through the different blocks looking at the tiny cells, either made of stone or wood, that must have been awful to lay in on your own, let alone with other people. It is a hard place to walk around, as you hear of the torture that went on to gain falso confessions from everyone that entered.
One of the main features of the museum is the walls and walls of portraits that were taken as identification of the prisoners. The faces, mostly holding looks of fear and defeat stare out at you pleading for help. Women and children number almost the same as men. I may be wrong again with the number but i think they said around 20000 prisoners were taken in here. I will never forget the number of survivors, 12.
It's a long two hours, and when we leave we feel drained. It has been an exhausting day and a lot to take in. We grab some pizza on the way back, before relaxing in the room again, hoping the final remnants of Amy's illness will be gone by the morning!En savoir plus
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KIM Guesthouse, Phnom Penh, Day 4
18 novembre 2017, Cambodge ⋅ ⛅ 32 °C
It's another slow morning as Amy's illness still won't back off. By the time the clock reaches almost 11 though, I manage to drag her out of bed for another spot of walking. As it is our last day we plan to see the remaining sights that Phnom Penh has to offer.
Firstly, we head to the independence monument. It is a brilliant sculpture that was built to commemorate Cambodia becoming independent when the French left. It stands tall on a lovely park which runs through the middle of the road. Behind it is another monument, this one a statue of King Sihanouk surrounded by pillars. Wat Langka is a lovely temple just over the road, and we stoo for a quick look while we are there. As I mentioned before it is very strange to be in Phnom Penh were packed, bustling streets can turn into beautiful monuments or temples at the turn of a corner.
After thay we get dinner and book our bus to Kampong Cham (travel seems a lot more expensive here then it was in Vietnam!) Before heading off towards the Royal Palace again.
It is another unbearably hot day, so our relief when we leave the busy streets and reach the breezy riverside is enormous. We spend a bit of time sat facing the river, embracing the fact we weren't sweating profusely. We decide not to pay the 10 dollar entrance fee to the Royal Palace and stare through the gate instead. It looks like an incredible structure as these places often are.
The final two stops are the national museum, which again we decide against, and, after stopping for a refreshing beer, we head to Wat Phnom. It's another extraordinary place, but the heat and distance we have walked means our minds are firmly on the air conditioned room waiting for us. So, After six hours of trekking, we head back, picking up a couple of sandwiches for tea on the way, and a few beers that I can watch the North London Derby with later.
Phnom Penh has been great, but we feel we have done it now, and are ready for a change of scenery tomorrow!En savoir plus
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Sunrise Villa, Kampong Cham, Day 1
19 novembre 2017, Cambodge ⋅ ☀️ 16 °C
So we leave Phnom Penh and head off to Kampong Cham. It is the third biggest city in Cambodia apparently, but you can't tell when you arrive. As we get off the bus it is impossible not to notice how empty the roads are and how quiet the place is. It is lovely.
We get a tuk tuk to the homestay we are staying at and chill out in the room for a few hours. It has been a long few days of walking and we are glad for a bit of rest. After that we head off to the town on a couple of bicycles for a little explore. We grab something to eat (i try lok lak, which is a local dish which consists of beef in a spicy gravy style sauce and is pretty good) before a friendly tuk tuk driver comes and talks to us. He informs us that the bamboo bridge, one of the main tourist attractions of Kampong Cham, has been removed and replaced with a larger concrete one. We're disappointed but can't really complain at the locals making their lives a lot easier for themselves! All in all though Kampong Cham is a delightfully pleasant town, and the riverside benches and bars are lovely as we look out on the Mekong for the second time this trip.
After eating we start the very dark and rather scary cycle back. The potholes in the road that we can't really see and the lack of knowledge of the area means we are pretty glad when we get back to the nice room we have in the homestay (4 pound a night!).
It's strange that you can have long days of cycling or walking and yet the days you feel most tired are the travelling days. It just seems to suck the energy from us, so we have a quiet night, ready for an explore tomorrow!En savoir plus
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Sunrise Villa, Kampong Cham, Day 2
20 novembre 2017, Cambodge ⋅ 🌧 5 °C
Our second day in Kampog Cham soon comes around and we are greeted with a lovely free breakfast (not bad seen as though the room is 2 quid each a night!) We immediately rent a bicycle each and head off in the hope he rumours are false and the bamboo bridge is still standing.
We set off through the delightful town, and soon get to the spot where the bamboo bridge used to be. Unfortunately it has gone, but we keep to the plan of heading to the island anyway, and cross over the concrete bridge that is now in it's place.
The island is a great place to have a bike around. As you slowly go through the villages it is so interesting to see the lives of the people who live here. Most of the houses are wooden shacks built on high wooden stands to avoid flooding. Every child is waving and screaming the phrases they have obviously been taught in shool (Hello, What's your name, Where you from) and all the adults are smiling and welcoming.
The strangeness of the place is the fact you cycle along, and then out of the blue are met with huge, lavish temples that shadow the small houses opposite. The loop around the island is maybe about 15km, but due to it being mostly mud tracks, it is very hard on the legs, and we are glad when we cross over the bridge and get sat down for some dinner. Fish and chips, which is definitely my first meal when i get back, is surprisingly tasty out here.
We cycle back after dinner and settle in the room. The balcony is great for chilling out and reading as the sun goes down and the immense heat dwindles slightly. The owner of the homestay cooks us some very tasty noodles and we settle in for the night. Like Kampot and Kep, Kampong Cham is somewhere you can cover in a couple of days, so we are moving on tomorrow to Kratie.En savoir plus
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Heng Heng Hotel 2, Kratie, Day 1
21 novembre 2017, Cambodge ⋅ ☀️ 23 °C
So it's onto Kratie we go. We get up slowly and have another great breakfast before waitig for our tuk tuk driver to drive us to the bus station. Of course, he is late, but then of course so is the bus so no problems.
It's a nicely empty bus and we have a quite relaxing and comfortable 3 hour journey, despite the incredibly bumpy road.
As we arrive in Kratie, the heat is incredible. Luckily, our hotel is right next to the bus stop, so we soon get in and settled. The room is hot, not monkey republic hot, but hot. To rub it in more, we have an air con machine in our room that we aren't allowed to use as we paid for a fan room.
We plan to go for an explore, before realising we have lost our suncream, so our explore soon becomes a shopping trip. After finding some in one of the first shops, we decide to look for some cheaper, only to not find anymore and spend about half an hour looking for the first shop again. All this while walking in the boiling sun with no sun cream.
We finally get it sorted and go back to the room to escape the sun. Amy then sends me out to buy some water, and thank god she did. As i step out i am greeted by one of the best sunsets I have seen so far this trip. The sky is all different colours as the Sun quickly drops down below the trees on the side of he Mekong. It is a great 30 minutes spent on the hotel balcony staring out at this amazing scene.
After the sunset we go out for one of the worst meals we have had so far. I have the famous cambodian dish of spaghetti carbonara that tastes even more flavourless then plain pasta, and Amy tried tofu amok, and soon vows to never try it again.
After that we go back and go to sleep in the heat. Our alarm is set for 7.30 ready to make the most of our second day in Kratie tomorrow.En savoir plus
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Heng Heng Hotel, Kratie, Day 2
22 novembre 2017, Cambodge ⋅ ☁️ 6 °C
Amy is still not feeling well today, and our plan of getting up early and biking to see the dolphins soon goes to pot. We wait in the room hoping Amy will feel enough at some point of the day.
It soon reaches 1 o clock and we decide to take the lunge. We've heard it's not a bad ride so we decide on bikes, which we soon regret after we leave the nice coastal path and head onto a bumpy dirt road that makes pedalling on our one gear bikes very hard. The ten mile ride takes well over an hour in the boiling heat, but we eventually make it. Amy still doesn't feel great, but is glad to get off the bike and onto the Mekong where there is a bit of a breeze.
We pay for an hour on the boat, and about 25 minutes in Amy is the only one of us to have caught a glimpse of one of the very endangered Irrawaddy dolphins. Soon 4 more boats join us though, and we soon spot where the dolpins are. The rest of the time is spent watching them regularly popping up for air, some in pairs, some right near the boat. It is lovely when all the boat engines are turned off and all you can hear is the lapping of the oars and the occasional water breaking when a dolphin appears.
The hour goes quuickly and we are soon back on the bikes, ready for the ten miles home. It's another long, painful journey, with Amy on the point of vomiting most of the way, but the views of the Sun setting over the Mekong make if worth it (for me, not Amy).
After we finally get back we have our last meal in Kratie, and prepare for our early start and bus to Siem Reap tomorrow! It has been very short, but Kratie is another Mekong riverside town that i would definitely reccomend for a visist.En savoir plus
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Chamraoen's Home, Siem Reap, Day 1
23 novembre 2017, Cambodge ⋅ ⛅ 30 °C
It's another travel day, and this one promises to be the longest journey we will take in Cambodia. It is meant to be about 6 hours, and by 7.30 we are sat on the bus ready to go.
The first 3 hours i spend watching a very interesting George Harrison documentary, and it doesn't seem like the journey will be too bad. We swap onto a smaller bus for the final leg of the journey, and soon realise it will be a lot longer then we first thought.
It is pretty uncomfortable, and ends up taking a horrible 8 and a half hours. We arrive in Siem Reap just after 4pm and are ready to relax a bit. A tuk tuk takes us to our hotel and we pray it is nice. What we see when we enter is much better then we expected. It's a huge room, clean, tidy, and with working air conditioning! Just what we need after the journey of today.
We are pretty tired after it all, so we go out to get some food before settling in for the night and relaxing, ready to explore Siem Reap tomorrow.En savoir plus
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Chamraoen's Home, Siem Reap, Day 2
24 novembre 2017, Cambodge ⋅ ⛅ 27 °C
As we got here pretty late last night we didn't get a tour to Angkor sorted, so today we plan to have a chilled day and explore the town a bit. It's lovely to wake up after a nice nights sleep (air con really is worth every penny) and we slowly get up and head out for some breakfast.
After eating we head for a walk around the market, which is busy but the vendors aren't as pushy and insistent on you buying something as they are in Vietnam which is nice. It's nice to be able to look at things freely. After that we decide to check out the famous pub street. Usually, these streets are the most expensive places for drinks, but not this one. Beer is 50 cents, and we soon take one of the bars up on that offer.
It is a strange day. Drinking draft beer in the sun gives a feeling of being on holiday that you don't often get whilst travelling. It's a lovely, relaxing afternoon in the sun, helped along by a lovely Welsh couple who are sat next to us.
After the beers we grab some nachos which taste delicious and head back, ready for the sleep that daytime drinking often leads to. I wake up pretty late, but still with a taste for beer, so we head out to pub street again. I want to try a fried tarantula but bottle it at the last minute. We have a few more drinks and head back, ready to see Angkor Wat tomorrow morning!En savoir plus
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Chamraoen's Home, Siem Reap, Day 3
25 novembre 2017, Cambodge ⋅ ⛅ 27 °C
It's Angkor day! We set off with our tuk tuk driver at 8am and soon find ourselves with tickets in hand and passing through he checkpoint into the park. I first thought it was Angkor Wat and a few small temples, but it soon becomes apparent it is on a much larger scale then i imagined.
Our first stop is the famous Angkor Wat. The largest religious monument in the World (according to the internet, possbly fake news) is such a symbol of national pride that is stands in the centre of the flag. It is soon apparent why. As you walk over the bridge towards the temple, leaving the tuk tuk driver in the car park, you forst catch a glimpseof the towers looming over the huge stone gate that leads in. We stay at Angkor Wat for around ninety minutes, and could have stayed ninety more. The place is huge, and the carvings that seem to take up all of the wall space are so intricate and precise that it is impossible to comprehend it has all been created by human hand. Today is Saturday though, so unfortunately we are sharing this experience with a lot of other people who are constantly jostling to make their way through the corridors and get the best angle for their photo. The great thing about Angkor Wat though, is there are many places you can escape the madness. The gardens round the back of the temple are beautiful and give great views of the temple itself, and the lakes by the front are great to see the reflection in as you sit on a rock lakeside.
It's a good start to the day, and our next stop is Bayon. We pass under a huge stone gate, being looked down on by the face built into it as we enter the Angkor Thom square. Bayon is one we have been excited for, and it doesn't dissapoint. As you pull up the many faces (of Buddha?) Look out territorially. It's not quite the walk from the car park as Ankor Wat, and you can soon climb up the stairs until you are in line with the rock faces. This place is even busier then Angkor Wat, and at points it is a push to make your way around, but the views are just as good. The stone hallways and buildings that you can walk in and listen to the bats above give it a sense of eeriness that Angkor Wat doesn't, and some of the faces are so well sculpted it is astonishing. We walk back down the stairs and unknowingly come out of the wrong entrance. We can see a temple named Baphuon (i think) a short walk away so assume that is part of this stop. It is a steep climb to the top of Baphuon which is a lot more run down then the previous temples, but the views at the top are great. We then head down past the terrace of the leper king, and through a corridor full of small sculptures of mythical figures that is great. It is when we finally get back on the road we realise we don't know where we are and we have been two hours. A quick look at the map tells us we are quite a way away, so we head back to Bayon. It's a ten minute walk, and we soon get back, only to realise there are four car parks. It takes three attempts to find the right one, and our driver soon pulls up after doing a loop looking for us!
The next stop is Ta Keo, a sandstone temple wih a very steep and dishevelled staircase running to the top. It is a tough climb up, and an even tougher one down, but the temples on top are worth it.
Ta Prohm is next. A temple famous for the Tomb Raider film that was shot there. It is a change to the other temples as it is surrounded by huge trees that have become interwoven with the rocks. A few in particular are stunning as the huge roots twist through the walls, leading to gigantice trees. It is another great place, with many great carvings in the walls, but the nature that has become one with the temple really makes this one. Walking through the many different hallways and gardens is awesome, and it is considerably quieter then Angkor Wat and Bayon which makes a welcome change!
By now our legs are starting to ache, and the final temple of the day is Banteay Kdei, a small mazelike structure that consist of a long walkway throughout. It's not as spectacular as the others but still very cool. When we arrive back in the tuk tuk we are relieved to head back as our legs are aching and we are covered in sweat. We get back to the room and crash, only leaving for tea he rest of the night. What a day, and our three day pass means we can do it all again soon!En savoir plus
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Chamraoen's Home, Siem Reap, Day 4
26 novembre 2017, Cambodge ⋅ ⛅ 30 °C
After all the walking around yesterday, we are going to have a quieter day today, and have a break from temples ready for another tour tomorrow.
We get up slowly before heading into the town. As we don't want to do anything too exerting, we decide to plan our Thailand trip. The fact we plan to do it whilst having a few beers on Pub Street makes it a lot more pleasant. After a few hours we have our first month planned and are a few beers deep. We head back, stopping on the way for some nachos and beer. We meet an English guy called Steve who gives us some great information on Siem Reap, that make us plan to stay a bit longer then first intended.
After that we chill out for a bit before finding a friendly lookig tuk tuk driver who will take us on our tour tomorrow. We go to a very nice restaurant for tea, and the spiced pork belly was amazing!
Not a day where much happened, but a much needed day of relaxation and future planning between our two tours of Angkor Wat!En savoir plus
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Chamraoen's Home, Siem Reap, Day 5
27 novembre 2017, Cambodge ⋅ 🌙 28 °C
Back to Angkor we go. Our driver seems much better this time, and speaks much better English which is great as he explains some of the temples as we go past. We were tempted to bike around today, but the way our legs ached after the smaller tour two days ago, we decided it would be best to get driven about again.
9 o clock is the pick up time, so we grab a quick breakfast before nearly jumping into the wrong tuk tuk and going with someone else. We find Nun ten minutes before the arranged time though, and are soon setting off.
We decide to take the tour the opposite way to the usual route, hoping the temples will be slightly less busy then they were two delays ago.
Our first temple is Pre Rup, which Nun tells us means something like rejuvenation of a body. It is a very cool temple, with steps leading to the top, and best of all it is empty. After having a quick walk round it is great to find a spot in the shade to sit and take it all in. The carvings are again amazing, and the five or six towers on top are fascinating. The next temple, East Mebon, is very similar as it was built by the same King for the same religion (Buddhism?) at roughly the same time. It is again really quiet and really nice to sit and look at everything around us.
Next up is Ta Som, which is similar to Ta Prohm in the way trees have overtaken the temple in a way. It is a long structure that you walk through almost in a straight line. The final stop before turning back is a giant tree that has spread his roots around a doorway rather possessively. It is another wonderful temple on this seemingly endless list of them.
After Ta Son we head to the next temple, which is very different to all the others. Neak Pean is in the middle of the beautiful lake in Angkor park. After crossing a small foot bridge you find this temple, which is in a small lake, surrounded by four even smaller lakes in a cross shape. You can only walk half way round, but it is very interesting to see something so different, and the horse statues that are mostly underwater, with mostly just heads peering out over the top are great.
Next up is Bantay Prea. A small step on our trip, as it is what looks like a tiny abandoned church. We are the only people here as most people miss It, but it is probably the most spooky of all the places we have been, with cobwebs coating most of the surrounding rocks. From the very small Bantay Prea we head to the huge Preah Khan. A huge gate with another giant tree interwoven into it, leads onto many different hallways heading off in all directions. The gates at either end are one of the main attractions, as are the walkways towards them that are lined with mostly beheaded statues. Nun told us to make sure we knew the way, and thank God he did as it would be very easy to get lost in the maze.
So, with the majority of the grand tour done, we now only have two temples left, and they are Bayon and Angkor Wat which I described two days ago. We visit these for the second time hoping they would be less busy, and the difference is massive. There is hardly anyone at Bayon, giving us a free walk around the huge faces. Angkor Wat is predictably more busy, but we manage to work our way to the top of the tower and take in the great view of the temple from above. And that is our tour of Angkor over, apart from a trip to see the sunrise above Angkor Wat tomorrow morning. What a place. Worth every penny of the 62 dollar three day ticket.
Again, we are knackered from all the temple climbing and walking, so we grab some food and end up buying a few beers and heading back to the room. A 5 o clock alarm means a rather early night!
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Chamraoen's Home, Siem Reap, Day 6
28 novembre 2017, Cambodge ⋅ ⛅ 28 °C
It's a very early start today as we get up to watch the sun rise behind Angkor Wat. As our 5 o clock alarm goes off we get some clothes on and head out in Nun's tuk tuk. It doesn't take long to get there but when we arrive the morning light has already started to show. We make our way through the throngs of people trying to get a good shot of the amazing view on offer, and find a good spot after a while of wandering. It is maybe not the incredible sight we had heard it was, but it is still pretty great and a very good way to start the day, especially seen as though we can go back to bed for a few hours now.
As we wake it is almost midday so we head out for some food. As we leave the hotel we bump into Zeno and Tom who we hadn't seen since Phong Nha. It is bizarre that we have arrived in the same place, only a few hotels apart after around two months of travelling in the opposite direction around South East Asia. It is great to catch up with them over dinner about what they have been up to.
After dinner we go book our bus to Battambang and head for the bat tree that Steve told us about a few days ago. As we head towards it the first thingg you notice is the sound of hundreds of bats screaming. It takes a while to realise where they Are, as they kind of look like leaves, but once you notice one, they all seem to appear. They are incredibly loud as they fly from tree to tree, and it is so strange to see them living in the middle of a city like this.
After the tree we head back and relax for a bit before heading out for some drinks. We eat at Khmer Grill (good food!) before heading onto pub street. The beer is cheap and goes down very easily. Before we know it we've been drinking for a few hours and are both pretty drunk. I am so drunk I decide to eat one of the tarantulas that the street vendors are selling. It's not as bad as i thought, but that may be the beer clouding my judgement. After the spider I need another beer to get the taste from my mouth, before we head back. We both realise we are either getting old or our tolerance to alcohol is decreasing as the room is rather spinny as we get into bed. Here's hoping tomorrow isn't too painful!En savoir plus
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Chamraoen's Home, Siem Reap, Day 7
29 novembre 2017, Cambodge ⋅ ⛅ 30 °C
Our final full day in Siem Reap begins with a slight hangover. Amy is of course throwing up the beer from last night for most of the morning, so we don't venture out until around midday. It's always good to have a day before you leave to get sorted, so we get all our stuff (that has spread out across the room over 7 days) packed ready for tomorrow.
Before we know it it is already getting dark, so we head out for a short walk to the night market in search of some new clothes. This place really does come alive at night as all the lights down the streets are turned on, illuminating the more popular places in a pretty way.
There is a mexican restaurant (viva) that we have often been to for afternoon beer and nachos so we head there for tea. It does not dissapoint, and you certainly don't want pudding after!
The market is in the process of closing when we arrive after eating, but we still manage to get some clothes, haggling like professionals now. It really does pay to try go as cheap as you can. I got 2 t-shirts for 6 dollars, and the seller initially wanted 12 for 1!
After a final walk around Siem Reap we head back to the hotel, sad to be saying goodbye but ready to move onto Battambang, our final stop in Cambodia!En savoir plus
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Royal Hotel, Battambang, Day 1
30 novembre 2017, Cambodge ⋅ ⛅ 27 °C
After a quick breakfast, it is ready to say bye to Chamraoen's home. The owner surprise us with two traditional Cambodian scarves, and takes our photo with his sign that I am sure will crop up online on some point.
At 10.30 we board the bus and set off, leaving Siem Reap behind us. It's another good bus, I don't think we have had a bad one in Cambodia yet, but it is again a long journey. What is meant to be 3 hours soon turns into 4, and it is already late afternoon as we arrive. The hotel is nice, but we are starvig so quickly go out to grab some food. We both have a baguette at About The World restaurant which we later find out is the number 1 rated place to eat on tripadvisor (justified) before Amy heads back and I get my hair cut.
The language barrier hasn't caused too many problems so far on our travels, until today. After sitting in the chair for nearly an hour getting my head shaved on the sides and trimmed on top(30 minutes just shaving!) I finish up with short hair and half a beard. There is no option but to say an emotional goodbye to the beard that has accompanied me through all my early twenties.
After the heartbreak of the beard fiasco, we decide to head out to the Joseba Extebarria Human Art gallery. A truly remarkable photo gallery run by two truly remarkable people. Joseba spent a great amount of time biking (bicycle that is) through 29 countries to get the snaps. He had no money, and relied on the kindness of the very people he photographed to survive. The photos are beautiful, and Joseba talks for almost an hour on the great work him and his wife are doing helping young Cambodian children who live in very poor conditions to go to school. It is an uplifting and heartwarming story of human kindness.
After visitig the gallery we grab some tom yam which is great, before heading back to the room, ready to see more of Battambang tomorrow.En savoir plus
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Royal Hotel, Battambang, Day 2
1 décembre 2017, Cambodge ⋅ ⛅ 25 °C
It's a slow morning today as I come to terms with my childlike face and Amy sleeps. It is a slight shock the first time I look into a mirror and remember the horrific crime inflicted upon me yesterday, but after Amy talks me out of my slight depression, we are ready for a meal.
We grab some food before going for a walk around Battambang. There wasn't much to see on our small walk, and we were soon back at the hotel, chilling out in the hammocks on the roof top. Before long our tuk tuk driver picks us up and we head off on the very dusty journey to the caves. As we get dropped off, we pay for entry and begin our sweaty trek up the mountain. Our first stop after around 25 minutes of walking was the killing cave. It is a strange, eery place that we don't fell like staying in for too long. It has now become a shrine, with a large Buddha statue laying down next to a monument which consists of the skulls of the dead found in the area, much like the one at the killing fields. It was shocking to see and hear about what went on in the cave, where many victims of the Khmer Rouge met a gruesome death.
After that we headed up further to the peak of the mountain. The peak was covered in several temples, and along with humans, was the home of many monkeys. Amy was in her element and it took everything I had to keep her on schedule to see the bats. The views at the top were incredible though, and we'll worth the walk. There was another cave which was pretty spooky as we were the only people walking off road to make the journey through the cave and up a narrow staircase (while being ushered on by a scary local). We survived though and treated ourselves to an ice cream for the walk to the Flower cave.
The flower cave was tiny, and we were shown the way by a friendly local, who helped us climb through the rocks and out at the other side. It was nerveracking with the light from Amy's phone our only hope to get out. Amy managed to walk into a rock, getting a nice whack on the head. After this we began the walk down. Amy, still carrying her ice lolly wrapper, walked a bit too close to the monkeys, and soon threw it down in fear as one (the smallest one) approached curiously.
We made it down for 5 and got some seats to sit and watch the bats. We had a beer each, and both won free ones, so the wait wasn't too bad. At around 6, just as the sun was beginning to set, the bats came out in their thousands. It was an amazing spectacle and one that has to be seen to be believed. It was an endless black stream ducking and weaving across the darkening sky. Our tuk tuk driver drove us to a great spot to watch the bats flying for their food, and it made every penny of the tuk tuk worth it.
After the bats, we headed back on our windy journey, so windy Amy lost the shirt that was on her shoulders. We got back to the hotel and grabbed some tea, before getting an early night, ready for the long journey to Bangkok tomorrow.
A great final day in what has been an amazing country to visit. We will be sad to leave, but we are excited to visit Thailand!En savoir plus
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Amarin Inn, Bangkok, Day 1
2 décembre 2017, Thaïlande ⋅ ⛅ 31 °C
Goodbye Cambodia! For a country we had heard many mixed reviews off, I can honestly say it has been amazing. Every place we have visited we have really liked, and we are sad that our month has come to an end.
It is an early start as we are ferried to a small bus station on the outskirts of Battambang. Here we wait for around quarter of an hour wondering what is going on, before we are picked up. It is a sleeper bus, but no ordinary one. We climb onto what is like a double bed, with curtains concealing our compartment, and plenty of room to stretch out. Just what we need after such an early get up, and before we know it we are at the border.
The border isn't quite as insane as expected, and it is pretty straigtforward to get out passports stamped for 30 days in Thailand, it is a long walk through though and we are delighted when we get into our mini bus for the rest of the journey. A scouse man called Steve sits next to us and gives us some good Thai tips, before we are ferried onto another bus. This one is even more weird then the first, with me and Amy sharing a full area downstairs to ourselves. We can streth out or lie down, and have loads of room to relax for the rest of the journey. Thank God because it has been 10 hours since we arrived at our bus stop!
And so we arrive in Bangkok. As he bus pulls in it is clear to see it is a lot more built up hen anywhere we have previously been to. We get off the bus and have a short walk to the hotel. The room isn't the best, but will do for a night.
As night draws in we go out for a curry (very good) before having a walk round the famous Khao San road. It is packed full of tourists and people trying to flog you everyting from suits, to bugs, to very offensive wristbands that I wouldn't dare writing down here as I know who reads this.
After a beer we head back to the room, exhausted after a long day, and ready to start our journey up North tomorrow.En savoir plus
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San Sook Place, Ayutthaya, Day 1
3 décembre 2017, Thaïlande ⋅ 🌙 23 °C
After he business of last night, we are excited to leave the bug city and see what else Tahailand has to offer. After being offered ridiculous prices for a bus, we decide to use the train. It's a more worrying alternative, but costs about 60p for both of us.
The train station is busy, and we expect to be crushed onto a small train for the journey, but we actually manage to get seats that we can fit our bags near. The seats aren't ideal, right next to the toilet, but they will do.
The journey takes just under 2 hours and we are relieved when we pull into Ayutthaya and get off. We grab a tuk tuk and head to our hotel, which is small and homely. It is already early afternoon now so we decide to head out and grab something to eat. As is often the case in the smaller cities and towns, findig somewhere to eat is a nightmare, and it takes us around half an hour to find somewhere open where we can get some noodles.
After eating we are wonderig what Ayutthaya has to offer. So far it has looked like a big road and pretty empty streets. Then we head for the park and our view changes. It is a beautiful place. There are loads of places to sit and relax in the shade of the trees, and the ruins that are scattered around it are great. We walk around the lake and see the elephants and market, and it is a really good afternoon. As we sit on a bench by the lake, we notice something in the water that I initially think is a crocodile, but Amy thinks is a snake. Whatever it is, it is pretty big. When it finally leaves the water we see it is some kind of lizard. To see one just roaming about freely is very odd and makes you wonder what else is hanging around out here.
As we didn't head out until late it is now almost dark, so we head back. We get some Pad Thai at a small stall and relax for the night, ready for a bike ride to the furher away temples tomorrow.En savoir plus
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San Sook Place, Ayutthaya, Day 2
4 décembre 2017, Thaïlande ⋅ ☀️ 27 °C
Our second day in Ayutthaya starts pretty early as we rent a couple of bikes and head out to explore. Our first stop is a temple just over the river that surrounds the city. It's pretty cool but I think we are both pretty temples out now so we don't spend long there. After stopping for some food at a 7/11 we aim to check out st Joseph church and another temple but, after missing our turn, we end up biking through a small village, albeit with some very cool, brightly coloured temples in it.
It's a boiling hot day and after finding our way back, we aim to head back, but to take in a few more of the sights on the way. This involves a detour that looks pretty simple on the map we have been given. After biking for around 30 minutes we arrive at a point on the map that looks completely diferent in real life. After some deliberation, we head over a bridge thinking it would take us to town, but end up heading towards Bangkok on a motorway. It's too hot, we're both burning, and Amy is very angry with me for not turning back when she said (where is he fun in turning back). After asking for help we finally arrive on the right track, and soon we are heading back to Ayutthaya with aching legs and sweaty clothes. We arrive back in the park and relax in some shade for a bit, and see another giant lizard thing, before heading back to the house.
We head out after dark on the bikes again and get some food. It is pretty dissapointing though so, still hungry, we head to the night market. The choice of food is great and we decide to try the traditional Asian dishes of choclate brownies and garlic bread. We bike back full up and ready to sleep after what turned into an unneccesarily hard days cycling. We did get to see a lot of the surrounding area though!En savoir plus
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Windsor Resort, Lopburi, Day 1
5 décembre 2017, Thaïlande ⋅ ⛅ 28 °C
We leave Ayutthaya today and head to Lopburi. We feel we are getting the hang of the trains, but are a bit confused when two come at very similar times. We board one and ask someone if it is the correct one. He nods, so we feel happy until the conductor comes and tells us we are on the wrong train. Luckily, we are heading in the right direction, and so we get off after about twenty minutes and wait for the correct one. Some helpful locals point out the right one this time, and seem to be having quite a laugh at our expense. All's well that ends well though, and just after midday we head into Lopburi.
Immediately as we leave the station it looks like a great place. Quiet, pretty, and a monkey statue as you set off the train sets the tone for what is about to come. We drop our bags off at the hotel and head out to look for the monkey temple. On the way we try and buy a sim card but realise we must have left Amy's passport in the room instead of packing it like we meant to. Luckily, she has a photo of it so she can give her passport number and get one sorted. Now we are armed with google maps and soon find our way to the temple.
We both expected to see a few monkeys, but what we see when we arrive is ridiculous. The surrounding area is covered with them, swinging on the electricity lines, climbing over rooftops and into the trailers of passig cars. They seem to run about this areas in the hundreds casuing incredible amounts of mischief. As we enter the temple itself we are told to put our sunglasses in our pockets or else they will grab them, which isn't the most reassuring thing to hear. The temple is almost forgotten as monekys are everywhere. They climb on people, sometimes painfully swinging on long hair. Amy is in her element and ends up feeding some with an orange. We walk around the temple three or four times, and go inside it once. Inside is shut off from the monkeys, so is a nice break from them jumping on you.
After the monkey temple we head to a fun fair right next door. It's loud and crazy and very fun. A bit like hull fair but with less polyester. One ride spins while a local boy does some very questionable dance moves in the middle. He has good balance, I'll give him that. Amy finds some baby guinea pigs and hedgehogs that I think are there just to be stroked and I get some chicken nuggets before we head back to the hotel. It has been a great day and we stop for beer and pizza pn the way.
As we arrive back we expect to see Amy's passport on the bed. It's not there, nor is it in the folder where we usually keep all that stuff. Frantically, the room is turned upside down, first by us and then with the help of the hotel staff. It's not in the room or any of our bags. The hotel calls the tourist police, who pick us up and take us to the station. We have heard the horror stories about Thai police, so we are pretty worried on the journey, but we soon learn there is no reason to be. The police officers are incredibly friendly and helpful, and big Harry Potter fans apparently. We write our statement before they translate it and take all our details. Next we go to the local police station who copy down our statement again, before we are ready to head back to the hotel. After the policemen ask us to pose with them for a photo outside, they drive us back. We go to sleep, with an alarm set for 6am to go back to Bangkok!En savoir plus
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Windsor Resort, Lopburi, Day 2
6 décembre 2017, Thaïlande ⋅ ⛅ 29 °C
It is never easy to get up in an air conditioned room, but free breakfast helps. Unfortunately my stomach is feeling a bit off today so after two slices of toast I walk past the eggs and noodles and rice and get ready for a long day of travelling. It is three hours to Bangkok and the train is mercifully empty. Apart from barging into a woman who seemed to be hiding from the ticket man in the toilet and getting berated in Thai (I have no sympathy for people who don't lock the toilet door and complain that someone saw them going about their business, a lock is there for a reason) it was a good journey.
We arrive in Bangkok to get a passport, so our first stop (that we hope would be our only stop) is the Embassy. I don't know what to expect, but what we get is shoved into a tiny room with nothing but a telephone in it. It feels like a daft game show, but we ring the number and Amy is soon chatting to a very unhelpful man, who gives her another number to ring and a website to go on (which we have already been on). That is as far into the embassy that we can go, and for the first time it feels like we may be getting the next flight back to England.
We decide while in Bangkok we may as well go to the UK visa centre and ask about extending our visas. We planned to do this in Chiang Mai but Amy has no proof of her visa as it was in her passport. So off we go in another taxi to a huge shopping mall kind of place. 28 floors up we find the office and tell a woman behind a desk of our situation. We are immediately sent into a room where a man (a real human, not a voice down a telephone) gives us some forms and sorts everything. A new passport, temporary documents that can act as one until the new one is ready, and information on our visas. He is a Godsend on what we thought was going to be a wasted trip.
Elated, we walk through Bangkok to the train station, ready to go back to Lopburi where our bags have been left and our journey can continue. It is a crazy city, and the roads are mostly packed full of cars. Luckily a walkway has been built above all the roads, so the walk isn't too bad, just insanely hot.
After some pad Thai we are back on the train, and another three hour journey soon passes by. We walk back to the hotel, getting slightly worried about the wild dogs that apparently roam the streets at night, and can finally relax in our cool, comfy room. We eat some crisps that come wirh sachets of chilli and kethcup sauce that sound disgusting but taste like heaven and get ready for a long overdue rest. We left at seven, and arrive back just before nine, but the mission has been accomplished, and we can sleep a lot better tonight knowing the only thing the alarm is set for is so we don't miss the free buffet breakfast!En savoir plus
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Banmeesuko, Phitsanulok, Day 1
7 décembre 2017, Thaïlande ⋅ ☀️ 30 °C
Not much to report today. We have a slow start and actually take advantage of the free breakfast, having about two plates full each, before we head to the train station again. It's a 5 hour journey today and we are both delighted when we board a mostly empty train.
These trains are definitely the best and cheapest ways to travel. It's great to sit back and relax as the train winds through the countryside. The 5 hours seems to fly by and when we arrive in Phitsanulok it is already dark. The tuk tuk drivers are an annoying bunch here, constantly increasing the price they first said to us until we have had enough and decide to walk. It's a long, sweaty journey but we soon make it the hotel/home stay.
We get settled into our weirdly English based room (Beatles posters and union jacks everywhere) before heading out for something to eat. Unfortunately, the amount of restaurants is similar to the number in Ayutthaya and Lopburi, so we walk for a while (past a pretty amazing temple that is under construction) until we find somewhere selling food. It is a restaurant/bar that has recently been bought by a Canadian guy who seems very friendly, and the pizza is awesome! We also have a Canadian dish named poutine, which is basically cheese, chips and gravy.
After the meal we head back to the room, hoping that Phitsanulok will have more to offer tomorrow.En savoir plus
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Banmeesuko, Phitsanulok, Day 2
8 décembre 2017, Thaïlande ⋅ ⛅ 29 °C
We wake up in Phitsanulok early for our free breakfast. it is an odd rice soup dish which tastes very good, but it is far too early and we go straight back to bed. It is a few hours later and nearly reaching midday by the time we decide to head out and explore the town/city? a bit. There isn't much to do apart from a few temples to look around, so we head off in their direction. For a few seconds we are heading the right way, but we decide to turn around after consulting the map. We are both hungry and walking down roads that are pretty deserted for around 20 minutes before we realise we're heading out of town into what looks like nothing much, so we turn around again and start heading the correct way.
After about half an hour of walking we find somewhere to eat. A tiny place serves a good Pad Thai for 30 baht, and it tastes good, but we were so hungry anything would have done. The walk continues, and after about 45 minutes we find ourselves at the cluster of temples. The walk there is nice, as you get to walk alongside a lake, off the road so it is nice and quiet. It is another incredibly hot day though, and opportunities for shade are fleeting at best.
The temples are nice, and I feel we would appreciate them a lot more if we hadn't already been out here so long and seen so many, especially the ones at Angkor.
We don't actually head back into the temples, but just have a quick walk outside before heading back on the long walk down the other side of the river and back to the hotel. It is a long, tedious walk and a pack of dogs decide we aren't very welcome down their street. Thank God Amy is here as she seems to know how to deal with them, while i go into flight mode and start running, which only makes them chase me more. We arrive back unscathed thanks to Amy and her dog whispering, and relax in the air con for a bit.
The last time we head out we go for food at the same place as last night, mostly due to lack of options. We've kind of had enough of the small towns and change our plans for tomorrow, when we will now head to Chiang Mai. A live band was promised but a power cut means they aren't coming anymore, so we head back to the hotel and prepare for our long train journey that starts at 7.30 tomorrow.En savoir plus
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