BangCamNamKong

February - March 2019

A 55-day adventure by Julia & Paul Read more

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- Feb 5, 2019
- ☁️ 7 °C
- Altitude: 21 m
- England Hillingdon Heathrow Heathrow Terminal 2 51.469704, -0.44943151°28’11” N 0°26’58” W
Day 1
Heathrow
February 5, 2019 in England ⋅ ☁️ 7 °C
After a lovely evening with Kathryn & Josh we had a good trip on the coach from Cheltenham & now in holiday mode. Boarded the plane on time & just started to taxi to the runway when a fault showed in the cockpit. Had to return to the stand for diagnostics and then after the change of an oil filter we took off 2 hours late.Read more
Paul Hersey Not even had a beer yet!
2/5/19Reply
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- Feb 6, 2019, 3:54pm
- ⛅ 32 °C
- Altitude: 37 m
- Thailand Bangkok Samphantawong Wat Mongkhon Samakhom 13.740772, 100.51005613°44’27” N 100°30’36” E
Day 2
Arrived in Bangkok
February 6, 2019 in Thailand ⋅ ⛅ 32 °C
After the initial delay the flight was good and we landed in Bangkok at 12 noon. Train, then metro and short walk to the hotel in Chinatown. It is the last day of celebrations here for the Chinese New Year so the streets are crowded with people, dragons & dancers. Checked into the hotel & out again to join in with the celebrations.Read more
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- Feb 7, 2019, 3:01pm
- ⛅ 33 °C
- Altitude: 17 m
- Thailand Bangkok Samphantawong 13.739627, 100.51112413°44’23” N 100°30’40” E
Day 3
Buddhas, Temples & Jazz
February 7, 2019 in Thailand ⋅ ⛅ 33 °C
After a good nights sleep our first visit was to Wat Pho to see the reclining Buddha. Much bigger temple than we expected so took a while to walk around. The Buddha is a very impressive 46 meters in length covered in gold leaf. Then walked to the river & caught a river taxi - lots of whistle blowing and standing room only but efficiently transports people along the river. I just pointed to where we wanted to go on the map & we were told where to get off. Next stop Wat Traimit to see the Golden Buddha - the largest solid gold statue in the world. It had been hidden inside a plaster Buddha to make it look worthless & so not worth taking by the invading Burmese. 200 years later no one remembered it was hidden there. The statue was moved to a new temple & when the hoist broke lifting it into place, it sat overnight in mud & through a rain storm - the plaster broke away to reveal the treasure inside -what a find! Back to the hotel for a quick shower & change & then to a dinner - we both ate far too much at the buffet - & show about the history & beliefs of Siam people - good food & entertaining show with over 100 performers and 500 costumes. The stage even had a river running across it. Finished the day with a beer listening to a jazz band - perfect!Read more
Traveler Hello! What show did you see and where? Best regards Petra
2/13/23Reply
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- Feb 8, 2019, 11:38am
- ☀️ 32 °C
- Altitude: 37 m
- Thailand Bangkok Samphantawong Wat Mongkhon Samakhom 13.740795, 100.51003713°44’27” N 100°30’36” E
Day 4
The Grand Palace & lots of food
February 8, 2019 in Thailand ⋅ ☀️ 32 °C
Walked to the river & caught a river taxi to the Grand Palace. Huge grounds and buildings which were very impressive from the outside but disappointing that visitors could only enter the Temple of the Emerald Buddha and the museum. No entry to the palace or any other buildings. Back on the river boat to the hotel stop. The river boats are quite manic experiences - like being on the London Underground in rush hour - a quick way to get from one area to another but crowded and rushed. Late afternoon we went on a 'Chefs tour of street food'. We met our guide and other people on the tour (5 of us in total) & set off for our 15 course street food experience. We ate food I would never have tried in places I would not have been comfortable stopping let alone eat. We ate prawn dumplings, pork & noodle soup, fish soup, chicken satay, prawn omelette, morning glory (spicy veg), chinese donuts, mango sticky rice, chicken Thai curry, pork Thai curry, green vegetable dumpling, coconut ice cream with dark sweet soy sauce, green mango with shrimp sauce and more! Most quite delicious - some just a little hot for me. Early night as have to be up for the coach to Cambodia tomorrow.Read more
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- Feb 9, 2019, 10:35am
- ☀️ 30 °C
- Altitude: 14 m
- Cambodia Siem Reap Phum Spéan Thmei 13.352377, 103.86572313°21’9” N 103°51’57” E
Day 5
Hello Cambodia
February 9, 2019 in Cambodia ⋅ ☀️ 30 °C
Up early for taxi to bus collection point. Nice bus with loads of leg room and reclining seats. Roads fairly good and crossing through border went smoothly. Long journey though & arrived in Siem Reap at 4.30pm to be met by the tuk tuk driver from the hotel. I knew when we booked it that the hotel was outside the centre but wasn't expecting the rough roads to get there. Nice small hotel with good food & definitely can't complain at £20 per night including breakfast. Just ate at the hotel tonight as up again early tomorrow for a tour to Angkor Wat.Read more
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- Feb 10, 2019, 2:46pm
- ⛅ 33 °C
- Altitude: 26 m
- Cambodia Siem Reap Phum Ta Sĕn Khang Tbong 13.410588, 103.86563913°24’38” N 103°51’56” E
Day 6
Angkor Thom, Ta Prohm & Angkor Wat
February 10, 2019 in Cambodia ⋅ ⛅ 33 °C
Lovely banana pancakes for breakfast. Collected from the hotel for our tour of the temples. First stop Angkor Thom. Very impressive moat around the outside - 12k in length, 100m wide and 3m deep. Figures representing God on one side and Demons on the other (having a tug of war with a snake as the rope) line each side of the bridge over the moat. The Bayon Temple in the centre of Angkor Thom was impressive - a Khmer temple built in just 20 years. Once richly decorated but anything of value has been taken by various invading forces. Next stop was Ta Prohm - the Tomb Raiders Temple - left to the jungle. Tree roots entwine through the stones. In the afternoon we visited Angkor Wat - much larger than the previous temples we had seen & better preserved. We climbed up steep steps to the top - good views. Spent the evening at the hotel after a very hot exhausting day. Managed to find the England France Rugby 6 Nations match on TV so happy end to day.Read more
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- Feb 11, 2019, 8:43pm
- 🌙 26 °C
- Altitude: 13 m
- Cambodia Siem Reap Phum Spéan Thmei 13.352454, 103.86561313°21’9” N 103°51’56” E
Day 7
Siem Reap lazy day
February 11, 2019 in Cambodia ⋅ 🌙 26 °C
Decided to have a more restful day today so no alarms set & woke up just in time for breakfast. Walked to the town - quite dusty lanes & very hot. Wandered around the market - interesting to see all the different fish, fruits and vegetables. Stopped at a cafe for some beers and a crocodile pizza - meat was a little chewy but nice! Caught a tuk tuk back to the hotel but were stopped by the police part way back as our driver was not wearing his helmet. We had to wait while he paid his fine (he had to borrow part of our fare from us to pay this) before we carried on (driver still not wearing his helmet). Swim & rest beside the pool - watching a family of rats run through the gardens at the edge of the pool. Went on the hotel tuk tuk back into town for the evening. Walked around the night markets & had dinner in Pub Street.Read more
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- Feb 12, 2019, 2:23pm
- ⛅ 31 °C
- Altitude: 18 m
- Cambodia Siem Reap Phum Spéan Thmei 13.354676, 103.85532613°21’17” N 103°51’19” E
Day 8
Massage & tales
February 12, 2019 in Cambodia ⋅ ⛅ 31 °C
Tuk tuk into town & wandered around the markets. What was supposed to be a light lunch was huge - stir fry veg (which came with rice) & chicken & pineapple rice. Back to the hotel for a swim and our 30 minute free massages. Not sure what to ask for so they gave us a traditional massage. So much pressure it was painful at times but somehow refreshing by the end! I am certain we will have bruises later! Went to the story telling theatre in the evening - 2 men with a variety of musical instruments telling the legends of the Khmer and Cambodia. Interesting performance.Read more
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- Feb 13, 2019, 5:29pm
- ☀️ 32 °C
- Altitude: 17 m
- Cambodia Phnom Penh 11.556547, 104.92561311°33’24” N 104°55’32” E
Day 9
Siem Reap to Phnom Penh
February 13, 2019 in Cambodia ⋅ ☀️ 32 °C
Up early and tuk tuk to bus station. Good journey on the Giant Ibis bus. Interesting to see the countryside. Short comfort breaks and lunch stop and arrived in Phom Penh at 3pm. Tuk tuk to the hotel. Walked along the river and through one of the markets - lots of fish. Watched the fishermen on the Tonle Sap, stopped for dinner at a small cafe and walked around the night market. Had a couple of beers in the roof top bar back at the hotel - good views of the city at night.Read more
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- Feb 14, 2019, 8:04pm
- 🌙 29 °C
- Altitude: 12 m
- Cambodia Phnom Penh 11.556889, 104.92554511°33’25” N 104°55’32” E
Day 10
Reflection, food & beer
February 14, 2019 in Cambodia ⋅ 🌙 29 °C
Visited the Tuol Sleng Genocide Museum first. It is so hard to understand how this could happen in our lifetime - it was all so brutal & cruel. 12000 - 20000 imprisoned, tortured and brutally killed at this site alone. Heartbreaking to hear parts of the testimony of the brother of Kelly Hamill - a New Zealander imprisoned tortured and killed together with British man John Dawson Dewhirst. They were captured after their yacht drifted into Cambodian waters during a round the world sailing trip within days of Pol Pot coming to power. We spent about 4 hours walking around with an audio tour and we're thankful that we were not on a guided tour being rushed through. Came back to the hotel, showered & read a little more on the circumstances leading up to the Khmer Rouge taking power.

Found a restaurant a short walk away, recommended on trip advisor, so headed there. Lovely place - sitting in the garden to eat. They are committed to using local food in season and not using plastic - bamboo straws, filtered water served in a glass etc. Food was good too. We then had a cache to find - in a beer garden! Found the place and bought some expensive beers - Paul had a large Road Trip & I had half a French Kiss. Had to ask the barman for a bucket of water to retrieve the cache as one of these in a tube that needs water to make it float - also had holes in the tube so while Paul plugged the holes, the barman held a torch and caught the cache whilst I poured the water - a bit of fun at the end of the day. On the walk back to the hotel there were lots of balloon sellers at the side of the road - looked quite pretty illuminated with little lights. Then we saw one being filled with butane gas (unless the container was labelled incorrectly as do not think butane is lighter than air?). We did not hang around to find out.Read more
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