Cambodia!

We left Kratie early on Tuesday morning and set off on yet another long journey, this time to Siem Reap. We finally arrived around 4pm, which gave us just enough time to get from the bus station to a guesthouse, drop off our bags and then hop into a tuk-tuk to...

...ANGKOR WAT!

Yes, after nine years of waiting, the time to see this masterpiece had finally arrived. We got to the entrance gates just after 5pm, which meant we could buy our tickets there and then for sunset, but they would only start from the following day, so in effect, we were getting a little bit of a freebie! Of course, there was no way that I could commit a heinous offence by buying just a one-day pass - oh no, I went for 3 full days!!!

Our tuk-tuk drivers recommended that we view the sunset from a mountain overlooking Angkor Wat, so off we set up the path, just as the sky started to turn beautiful shades of orange. Just as we made it to the top though, and began our ascent up some steep steps, the heavens opened and it absolutely HEAVED it down! So, it was just hilarious really, we just stood under my umbrella (which was not use for 4 people at all), getting soaked, and worrying about all the precious non-waterproof belongings we had in our daysacks, as we'd all been keeping our most important bits and bobs near to us on the bus journey!!! By some miracle, nothing was ruined, at least in my bag!

Once back at the guesthouse, we dried off and grabbed some dinner. It was soon time for bed before getting up (YET AGAIN) at the crack of dawn, literally this time... 4.30am did my alarm go off on Wednesday, and by 5.15am, we were back outside Angkor Wat to watch the sunrise. Was it worth it?...

...What do you think?!!

The early start meant we had loads of time to cram in the main sites on the "little circle" route that most people view. After watching the full sunrise, we spent about an hour exploring the complex, viewing the bas reliefs and for me, all this was done whilst listening to Tomb Raider themes on my iPod, I was in the game at last!

Next stop was Angkor Thom, the walled city just north of AW. The approach to the south gate was particularly impressive:

Devas lining the approach to Angkor Thom

The Bayon is within Angkor Thom, and it really is a spectacular place, 216 stone faces look out, in the cardinal directions, over the forest. I've never seen anything quite like it. After taking in a few more of the Thom temples, it was time for lunch and then just as it started to rain in the afternoon, we were off to Ta Prohm, THE Tomb Raider temple (well, in the film and as far as I am concerned, that doesn't count!!!) But anyway... this is the one that has the trees growing over the walls, so I really was in my element here and a good few Lara Croft poses were struck by yours truly! I must get around to wading through the hundreds of photos I took that day!

Anyway, I could ramble on and on about Angkor for pages, but I won't - the following day, I went off on my own back to the area to view the main sites on the "big circle" route and planned for the third day to be spent visiting a smaller area of temples at Roulous before visiting AW one last time for sunset. It wasn't to be, alas, as on Friday, it was overcast and then raining for most of the afternoon. It was a bit of a shame, but I felt that I had done it all justice in 2 days (plus it gave me 7½ hours to kill in an internet cafe and I finally got some more pictures uploaded to Flickr (check them out!!!))

On Saturday, I left Siem Reap and headed to Phnom Penh. Really, they should do bus miles!!! I stayed at Okay Guesthouse, near The Royal Palace, which I managed to cram in that afternoon. It was very beautiful, but similar to The Grand Palace in Bangkok, so it was a little bit "been there, done that!" but on the positive side, also "box ticked!" The Silver Pagoda was a bit of a damp squib - yes, there are some amazing treasures in there, but when most of the silver floor tiles are covered with carpet, and the ones that are exposed are covered in duct tape, it's a little hard to be excited. The guide books always make things sound much more exciting than they often are...

On Sunday, I got up early (not by choice now, but by body-clock habit) and walked to the S21 Prison, Tuol Sleng Genocide Museum. It wasn't quite as gruesome as I was expecting, but it was a very sombre experience to witness the school that was converted into the Khmer Rouge's main prison, where over 17,000 people were tortured and later executed at the Choeng Ek killing fields. it was hard to imagine how all this happened, under Pol Pot's dictatorship, just a few years before I was born. I also learned that for a long time, the Khmer Rouge were supported by the U.N. - how did that happen, it beggars belief???

In the afternoon, I took a motorbike ride to Choeng Ek Genocide Memorial - Mum, please note that I DID wear a crash helmet, so my insurance should have covered me!!! It was much smaller than I expected and again, not quite a grim, but still very humbling. It is now very serene, almost like an oasis of calm after the horrors that were carried out here, the peace interrupted only by the croaking of frogs in the pools formed in where many of the mass graves were excavated...

Sunday evening, and a long day, I decided it was time to leave Cambodia and head off for pastures new. I booked my ticket, bought the guidebook and set my alarm - ready to head off (on my own, nonetheless) to Vietnam!

Leaving Laos

It was yet another early start for the intrepid travellers on Saturday, as we boarded yet another minivan, this time bound for Don Khong, the largest of Laos'4000 Islands. Soon, we were on the banks of the Mekong, waiting for another ferry to whisk us over to Muang Khong, the main (and perhaps only?) town on the island. Well, hamlet would be more accurate!!!

We quickly found a simple but cheap guesthouse (which was welcome after the expense of Vientiane) and dropped off our bags. We were soon off riding around the island on bicycles, all this before midday! It was great to finally feel like I was in the real Laos, cycling past forests, rice paddies and cattle grazing by the roadside.

As we sped along, the guesthouse leaving us further and further behind, I imagined getting a puncture and having to walk all the way back again in the midday sun. it would be just my luck! However, things were going swimmingly until Kendall's bike chain came off, and it took considerable effort and the use of some sturdy twigs to get it back on again, especially as it had got wedged behind the front and back cogs, and was bone dry - not a single drop of oil anywhere! It was a relief to set off again, and thank goodness we had got our bad luck over and done with for the day!

We enjoyed a leisurely lunch back at the guesthouse, before setting out in the afternoon in the opposite direction, and this was even more rewarding as we passed through many tiny settlements and watched the locals harvest their rice crop by hand. It was so good to be away from the tackiness of Vang Vieng, and the posh, touristy boutiques of Luang Prabang! Some children were fascinated with us as we zoomed by, so we stopped for some 'hellos' and photos - one little guy was chuffed to take a red biro from me, bless him!

Beautiful Laos Children

After using the GPS to work out that we were a good 5km away from the guesthouse (and that was as the crow flies), we thought it best to head back again. It wasn't long though before I found it a real struggle to keep going. "Are we going uphill?" I asked, my thighs burning, which I couldn't quite understand as the road looked as flat as a pancake...

Flat was the operative word - I looked down and Emma had a puncture! Damn it, I knew it!!! I peddled on regardless, but as the girls started to move away from me, it was futile to continue on. Kendall offered me her bike, and she took Fiona's (who hitched a ride on the back). Katie then took mine by the handlebars and cycled all the way back to the guesthouse with two bikes. I felt awful about it, but when I attempted to do the same, my weedy arms couldn't take the weight and I just couldn't cycle in a straight line.

Eventually, we all made it home again and worked out that we had done about 15 miles over the course of the day, not bad really! Cold showers were required all around and then we just took it easy until dinner on a verandah over the Mekong. It was time for bed as another early start lay ahead of us...

On Sunday, we took a little boat south along the river to Don Det, a much smaller island close to the border with Cambodia. It was a lovely journey, much better than all the buses we had been cramped into, and soon after landing on the island, we quickly found some quaint little bungalows with a sunset view. Imagine our delight to find that it was only 15,000 kip per night for a twin, which worked out at roughly 50p each!!!

Mr. Ki's Bungalows, 50p per night!!!

We soon met up with Nat, from Wales, who has a photography degree - poor girl had her ear bent by me all day, plus I showed here all my Moo cards!!! I don't think she minded too much really, and we spent the afternoon browsing each others' snaps. We ventured out in the evening to a little Indian restaurant, and I splashed out on a chicken rogan josh (well, I think it was really a tikka masala in disguise), steamed rice, a butter naan and TWO cans of Sprite! Well, I had an excess of kip and once you leave Laos, you can't exchange it anywhere! What a nightmare, when the bill arrived, it was 10,000 less than I thought it would be, so I had to order dessert, just to spend some more!!!

This morning, we had YET ANOTHER early start as we boarded the little ferry back to the mainland and squashed ourselves into another minivan to the Cambodian border. We were dropped off and were a little concerned when the vans pulled away. We were even more concerned when moments later, they drove back past us, with no bags on the roof, in the direction we had just come from!

We were charged a dollar each to be stamped out by Laos immigration, which we were expecting, even though technically this is a scam, as we all had Cambodian visas, paid for in full. However, once we walked the few hundred yards across no-man's land to the Cambodian officials, it all kicked off... They wanted to charge us $2 each to get in, even though we had all paid at least $20 for out visas. I was quite prepared to pay it, as a couple of dollars I could live with (although had it been much more than that, I may have joined in the fuss!)

An American girl started kicking off at the officials, protesting that she had paid already and that "I want you to give me my passport back right now!!!" To cut a very long story short, many people made such a fuss that the passports were stamped and no money was taken - by the time I made it to the front, I simply handed over mine, and waited. I wasn't asked for any money, so when it was handed back to me, I simply thanked them and made a discreet exit...

Anyway, off we went after a good while in a different minivan to Stung Treng for lunch, then onto a third van to Kratie - it was gone 4pm by the time we arrived. The girls went straight out on motorbikes back to the Mekong to go look for Irrawaddy dolphins - I stayed back to have a long shower and a long nap...

Week Three

Well, I've a lot to cram in here since my last post, so I'll try and avoid "going around the houses" too much (good luck with that!)

Last Sunday, we had an easy day - that is, after waking up at 5am to watch the almsgiving to the monks, which was pointless as I was at the wrong end of town and then nothing happened until 6am. After going back to bed, it was a rainy morning, so we took the opportunity to grab a cuppa and plan our onward movements.

In the afternoon, Katie and I made it up Mount Phou Si, so admire the views of Luang Prabang and do a little more temple spotting! I must admit, I had had my fill of the town by now; yes it was very pretty, but I felt like I was stuck in an expensive resort on the Med, all the boutiques and cafes were full of middle-aged Europeans with greying hair. No offence to middle-aged Europeans with greying hair, but I'm backpacking, I could have seen you all out on the Greek islands, this is Asia!!! I guess there was just something I couldn't put my finger on about LPB that didn't sit right with me, but to many others, they loved the place, so each to their own I guess.

Monday - we were off on a "VIP" bus to Vang Vieng that should have taken "4 hours" - and there was a lovely toilet on board!!! Hmmmm, the toilet didn't function, and was dirtier than most of the squatters I have encountered so far, the "AC" was possibly wind because we were moving, the roads were HORRENDOUS and then we suffered a blowout at the rear of the bus, just under where we were sat! Everybody jumped up and someone spotted "smoke", so mass hysteria set in and everyone shouted "stop the bus!" and grabbed their belongings. In fairness, it was a standard puncture and the "smoke" was probably dust, but it later transpired that many people thought that the local guy with a rifle sticking out of his trousers, that we had noticed at lunch, had got a little trigger happy!!!

Bang Vieng!!!

We eventually arrived in Vang Vieng after 7 hours (OK, 30 minutes of that was stoppage time whilst the back wheel was changed). Vang Vieng is a pointless little backwater that exists only for tubing, a silly 'sport' where you float downriver on an inflated tractor tyre inner tube, stopping every few hundred yards at bamboo shacks, to get drunk and jump off rope swings and zip lines. Sorry, I can't be more generous than that; without the tubing, there would be nothing there. The main street was a line of guesthouses, playing Friends on repeat all day, every day. I decided to avoid alcohol whilst tubing, so it was quite boring for me to sit in the bars doing nothing, so I decided to float off down to the end. Once again, that was just my opinion, as everyone else had a great laugh!

Katie was feeling a bit ropey, so she decided to float downriver with me, so off we went, avoiding the bars and just taking in the scenery (which in fairness to VV, is pretty spectacular). The heavens opened and we froze for about 10 minutes, then I got wedged on a tree in the middle of the river, which was absolutely hilarious as I had to pull Katie back by the arm, so she could hold on to the branch while I freed myself... we had a real giggle over that one!

Eventually, we could just about make out a (poor) sign that the tubing stretch was at an end and we needed to disembark - unfortunately, we were right on the other side of the river and the current was very strong. I jumped out of my tube, and was pleasantly surprised to find that it was only a few feet deep at this point... However, the current was so strong that it was pulling me along the gravel bottom on my feet and it was impossible to stand still. I could see the "Get Out Here" sign moving closer and then away from me again at a huge rate of knots, and it was only when a local boy jumped into rescue me, did I manage to make it to the river bank at last!

By Wednesday morning, we were ready to leave and after getting up early, we managed to squeeze onto a minivan to Vientiane at 9am. We had had enough of VV and arrived in the capital in the early afternoon. We had a bit of a shock when all the guesthouses claimed to be full, and then when we did find one with space, it was three times the price of a room in VV. Very expensive for Asia, but I guess still very cheap compared to home.

We had a general wander around the town and market in the afternoon, and then met up with Josh, Guy and Adam for a lovely dinner at La Terrasse (as recommended by the Lonely Planet and Rough Guide). I settled for a tomato salad whilst the others splashed out on steaks, and we had a lovely evening strolling through the night market. On Thursday, we took a tuk-tuk to Phra That Luang, the national symbol of Laos, and it was great to actually see some authentic Asian culture.

The national symbol of Laos

That morning, I had walked over three miles at 7am to the Cambodian Embassy to drop off my passport and visa application. I then had to do the trip again at 4pm to collect it, so I certainly got my fair share of exercise! Mad, you might think, but it would have been 160,000 kip in a tuk-tuk or an extra $20 for an agent to arrange it for me, so you do the math...

At 9pm, we boarded the "VIP" sleeper bus to Pakse - oh no, not "VIP"!!! However, we were pleasantly surprised when it finally pulled up at the bus station and it had proper air-con, actual beds, pillows and duvets, and looked as if it wasn't half a century old! It was great, just like caravanning (well, a little bit!) I was lucky enough to have a "double" to myself, so I settled down to read Homer's Odyssey with my head lamp, before I popped on the eyemask and ear plugs and settled down for the night.

We arrived in Pakse at around 7am this morning and quickly hopped into a tuk-tuk to Sabaidy Guesthouse. Quaint little place, reasonably priced, miserable staff, poor communication skills, but it will be fine for one night until we head off to the 4000 Islands tomorrow. Today, we were off on a tuk-tuk yet again, this time going on a river ferry with it, to Wat Phou, a pre-Angkorian Hindu temple in the mountains near Champasak. It was very Tomb Raider, I was expecting wolves to jump out at me and to find shotgun shells under rocks, but it was nowhere near as impressive as the Rough Guide made out - I'll save that kind of excitement for Angkor Wat. However, it was another box to tick and another place I have seen that many others will never get the opportunity to visit, so it was well worth it.

So, here I am again after a much needed shower and I'm very, very tired. It'll be an early night tonight before another early morning bus trip to Don Khong. I'm not sure how likely it will be to find an internet cafe on the islands, so it may be some time next week before I am online again. By that point, I should be in Cambodia (YIPPEE!!!) but that all depends if we make it across the "unofficial" Laos-Cambodia border... See you on the other side!

Laos Lowdown

Yes indeed, Laotians have the Internet (and I happen to be in the nicest net cafe so far, with a fast connection and an SD card reader!!!)

The adventure continues on - we got up early on Thursday morning, to be stamped out of Thailand, shuttled across the Mekong to Laos, where it took a while to organise our visas, but nothing too stressful. By around 10am, we were walking the plank onto the slowboat, like pack horses complete with all our bags, and goodness knows how I didn't take a tumble! As we expected, we were confronted with rows of hard, wooden benches, but the atmosphere was good.

Crossing the Mekong

We set off downstream and the views were beautiful. By mid afternoon, we had commandeered the rear (aft?) of the boat and were singing loudly to songs such as Wonderwall, The Final Countdown and Livin' On A Prayer - much to the amusement (and bemusement) of the locals!!! Thank goodness for iPod speakers!

We touched down in Pakbeng some time after 6pm, after a long but fun day. Then it happened again, touts and tuk-tuks descended on us like locusts and after retrieving our bags from the hold, we made our way up the hill into the tiny village. Our guesthouse, Bounme, was basic, but cheap and cheerful and suited us just fine. We enjoyed a lovely Laos meal in a local restaurant (and Laos fried rice is even more delicious than Thai fried rice!)

Pakbeng is practically just one street, and Laotians are early to bed, but we met up with some of the guys from the boat and then it was time for some good ol' drinking games. We were in the only bar with music, and that was thanks to an iPod being plugged into the speaker system! At about 10.30, Katie, Fiona and I made our way home, and the electricity went out en route - none of us had remembered a torch, so we managed to stumbled up the potholed slope to our guesthouse, arm in arm!

Off again we were on Friday morning for the second leg on the slowboat. We boarded at about 8.30am, but didn't leave for over 2 hours as one person on the boat had not given in a ticket!!! This resulted in an official making everyone show their passports and ticking off names on a huge list. I don't know if, or how, the issue was resolved, but it set us back a good couple of hours!

Day 2 was not as fun, as most people were really tired and all available floor space was filled with sleeping bodies. I lay down in the corridor at one point, in the dust and sand, just because I was too tired to sit upright any longer. It was a huge relief to finally make it to Luang Prabang yesterday evening.

Again, the touts descended but in full force - we just needed a break after the trip and took it upon ourselves to seek out our own accommodation, as recommended by the Rough Guide. We were a little disoriented, but yet again, Emma's map skills were spot on and the Heritage guesthouse appeared in view. Unfortunately, it was being gutted and renovated (just as the touts had warned but did we believe them??) so we settled for a little place, Namsuk, further up the road. 50,000 kip sounded extremely pricey and we weren't able to barter them any lower, but we were that drained, we agreed to stay for the night.

On reflection, we calculated that it was only GBP 1.60 per person per night, and that it is going to take a while to get used to all this silly Laos money!!! It was then time for dinner and after yet another delicious meal (of rice!) we met up with most of the people from the boat, who had all gone off in a myriad of directions with various tuk-tuk touts! There's not much to do in Laos of an evening, so while most people went off to the 24-hour bowling alley, I elected to go back to the guesthouse for an early night, I was far too tired for any strenuous activity.

When I got there, I was rather concerned to see that the guesthouse had locked up for the night, especially as I had been assured that guests were free to come and go as they pleased. I sped back to the gang, but they had already left for the bowling alley! Once again, I tried the door, which wasn't actually padlocked, but wedged shut somehow. I tried knocking... and knocking... and knocking. No answer.

OK, I can wait until the others get back, I thought, but I felt like I was being eaten alive and I didn't relish the thought of spending a few hours outside. I ran over to another guesthouse to tell of my plight, hoping that a local might be able to rouse my landlord, but he just told me to keep knocking! Eventually, a flicker of light appear around the door, and a sleepy looking man emerged - I was so relieved - until I saw that the room behind him was not my guesthouse!!!

So, I was banging on the wrong door, I was so apologetic, but the adjoining property wasn't a guesthouse either and the one next to that was, but not the right one! I was thoroughly confused, and felt awful for getting this guy out of bed, but I sheepishly walked down the road to the next crossroads - and then I saw it... my guesthouse, in an entirely different place to where I thought it was, with an unlocked door that I could creep through up to my room in shame... Something to tell the grandkids about, hey?!!!

Today we went off to Kuang Si waterfall, which was absolutely beautiful and a great time was had by all, swimming around in the turquoise pools. We were quite a large group by this point - me, Katie, Fiona, Ashley & Brian (U.S.A.), Sophie (Belgium) and Kendall, Josh, Guy & Vicky (U.K.). When we returned to Luang Prabang in the afternoon, it was gloriously hot and sunny, and after a big lunch of rice (again!) I was nodding off! It was good to take a warm shower and do a spot of laundry before heading here to the Internet cafe.

Kuang Si Waterfall

I think I'll take a wander around the night market later on, and maybe a bit of temple spotting tomorrow... who knows!

Chiang Mai Part Two

After another night in a bamboo hut, Day 3 started with an easier walk along the river to white-water rafting!!! Can you imagine my face when we arrived and I realised just what I had let myself in for??? I paid a great deal of attention to the safety instructions and was somewhat perturbed when i couldn't fully tighten my helmet under my chin...

Well, I was soon in a dinghy-like raft and I promptly shoved my feet under the cushions in front and behind as directed! Surprisingly, I felt quite secure with only this to keep me into the raft; believe me, i got 'em wedged right in there! The first patch of white water appeared quickly and I braced myself for the worst, yet it was smashing fun and the only injury incurred was that of Adam and his eardrums after my screams of joy had split them!

We were soon paddling along, singing the Indiana Jones theme tune and The Lion Sleeps Tonight (amongst others), zipping downstream through the jungle! It was all over way too soon, and all I could say was "Is that it?" - apparently, the river was "Grade 3" out of a possible 10, so I certainly need to take on at least a 5 next time!

We then hopped out of the dinghy, onto bamboo rafts, which promptly started to sink under the weight of 9 people! it was a little hair-raising, until we realised that the river was only about half a metre deep at this point! Clean showers were awaiting us, just a little further upstream, as was another delicious lunch and time to laze around in hammocks!

It was good to be back at Julie's a few hours later, and we took the time to chill out in the rear gardens and grab some food and drinks. Then it was off to the bars and clubs in Chiang Mai, en masse! We first stopped off at a new bar that had only opened on Friday, owned by Brian from the UK! There, watching Wigan vs Manchester City, were four ex-pats, who joked about looking like Last Of The Summer Wine as we all piled into the bar! "Which one is Compo?" I quickly quipped, which was met with roars of laughter by all and shouts of "Now that's a British sense of humour!"

So, I spent my time chatting to Steve (Leeds), Dave (Southampton), Dave (Scotland) and Brian (?) about our plans to navigate the globe and they were all rather impressed with our proposed itinerary! They recommended a club we should try, but said that we'd best lave it until after 2 a.m. as it would be dead until then!!!

Anyway, we made it to "Spicy" in the end, which was indeed rather quiet, and I was really ready for bed by this time, but my little ears did indeed prick up when I heard the first chords of "For An Angel" - everyone seemed rather amused by my enthusiastic screams of "Paul Van Dyk! It's Paul Van Dyk" and my new Dutch friends were rather impressed that I knew of this legendary Netherlander! After that though, the high point (for me at least) had passed and we ended the night in a rammed Thai bar, where an ensemble of at least 8 Thais were playing live reggae music... bizarre.

Monday was a day of rest and I managed to send one parcel home and realise that to send mail from Thailand is nowhere near as cheap as it was in Korea, so I still have to organise a big parcel tomorrow morning... Not fun. In the afternoon, we hired a minivan to take 6 of us up to Wat Doi Suthep, the largest and holiest temple in Chiang Mai, where we were afforded fantastic views of the city. Goodness only knows when I will find the time to upload my photos, my super-dooper Powershot takes them in such high resolution, it takes an age to get just a handful online using Thai "high-speed" Internet!

Today, Tuesday, was fantastic! Katie, Fiona and I went to the Chiang Mai Thai Cookery School, for a day's course! The girls headed off to a local market to look at the produce, while I stayed back for vegetable carving. I am now going to work on cruise ships making roses and lotus flowers from tomatoes and fern leaves from carrots! Fiona didn't believe that I had produced such amazing results without a template!

Thai Red Curry with Roast Duck

We leaned how to make six delicious meals - pork ball soup, spring rolls, red curry with duck, chicken and ginger stir-fry, chicken in pandanus leaves and sticky rice with mango. It was all superb fun and every dish I made turned out just right, so i can't wait to try them all out again at home (assuming I will remember how to do it in a year's time!) We have a cookbook each that includes all the recipes, so I am sure it will all come flooding back!

Anyway, we had a lovely swim in a local hotel's pool, and a good ol' chinwag before coming into yet another Internet cafe to upload photos, blog, email, Facebook, Flickr... I really don't know how the human race got by without the Internet!

So, I must repack again tonight, get up early to locate a damn geocache in which to deposit the damn travel bug I brought with me (couldn't find it last night in the dark), go to the P.O. to rid myself of a kilo or two, check out of Julie's and then wait for the bus to take us up to the Thai-Laos border. We will then stop for a night, before crossing over on Thursday and embarking upon the notorious 2-day slowboat to Luang Prabang.

Do Laotians have Internet access? We will soon find out, watch this space!

Chiang Mai Part One

What a weekend! We arrived in Chiang Mai on Thursday, a little after 9.30 a.m. The night train was great fun (just like caravanning on rails) and I actually had my best night's sleep so far. The Rough Guide was 100% accurate when it warned about the crazy tuk-tuk drivers and touts at the train station - it was like the paparazzi had descended on us! Anyway, we managed to negotiate a minivan to take us to Julie's Guesthouse (as long as we agreed to view another one first!)

Julie's is great, we arrived and there were vacancies for us (that's me, Katie, Fiona and Brendan from Australia who we met on the train.) Sitting in the chilled-out lounge area waiting for our rooms, we also met Rianne from the Netherlands, who I ended up sharing a twin room with.

It was soon time to organise our activities, and we were quickly booked onto a 3-day trek for the next day. That evening, the gang headed off to a Muay Thai match - I decided to stay "home" and repack - some stuff went in the bin and some is still waiting to be posted home soon! Still... too... heavy...

Friday was trek day, and off we set in the morning, after Fiona had to be whisked off by moped to a photo printers, to retake her Vietnam visa passport snaps - Vietnam immigration won't grant a visa to an applicant wearing a boob tube in the picture!!! And then there were 12: me, Katie, Fiona, Rianne, Daniel (Italy), Manuel & Sandro (Germany), Tuomas (Finland), Adam (U.S.A.), Narani and another couple whose names I didn't catch (Netherlands).

First stop was a market to stock up on food for the weekend, where I discovered that my bag (on the floor of the van) was now soaked in fish "juice" - not sure exactly what it was, pooling about under the seat, but I still stink of Grimsby docks!

Then we had about 40 minutes riding elephants through the jungle, after which the baby one decided it would pick up my leg with its trunk and head-butt me into the mud! Then it began - the "2 hour" (read 3 hour) trek up to the mountain tops to camp. I nearly died! It was incredibly steep and I really found it hard on the old thighs. Just as I felt things couldn't get any worse, the heavens opened and I experienced my first monsoon rain, so now I had gravity and slippery mud to contend with!

Just before the "attack"

Eventually we arrived, completely soaked to the skin and all our clothes were promptly hung out over the camp fire to dry. After a good meal, campfire songs and mind-bending riddle stories, it was time for our first night in a bamboo hut.
Luckily, day 2 was much more leisurely (relatively speaking) although without the kind assistance of Daniel and Tuomas, it would have taken me a good few hours longer than everyone else to make my way down the hill to swim in the waterfalls. By mid-afternoon, we were at our next camp, this time not at the top of the mountain, but by a roaring stream...

Ayutthaya

Well, I am sat in a very comfortable internet cafe (with powerful AC) after an incredibly long, tiring, but exciting day!

We arrived in Ayutthaya at 11.30 this morning. It took a while to get about and work out where we needed to be, but we eventually found a place to hire bicycles! That was at 1.30 and we were on them until 4.45!!! We've been zipping around looking at all the Angkor-style temples here (impressive, but on a much smaller scale!)

It was very manic zipping in and out of traffic (sorry Mum!), across dual carriageways and in front of tuk-tuks and mopeds, but even though the drivers appear to be crazier here than at home, they are very good and actually stop for you as you need to get across. Good thing really...

Lunch was greatly required around 2pm, and we were away from the obvious touristy places by this point. We swung into a little roadside place, hoping for a Coke or two. Well, the lovely Thai ladies there were fascinated with us, and out came two of the largest glass Coke bottles I have ever seen!

We decided we were also desperate for food, but didn't fancy the barbecued chicken up at the front, so we though rice was a nice easy option. We asked for plain rice, but they didn't seem to understand (so far, English has been widespread). Katie went off to ask again for it, and all me and Fiona could hear was "No, not cow... rice!!!" Time to get out the Rough Guide and read the food dictionary at the back.

Turns out that rice is "khao" - not cow - so we were on the right lines all along. Fiona opted for some plain sticky rice, but Katie and I attempted to order fried rice, "khao phat" (cow pat!!!) It took a while to communicate this, but eventually, out came two large plates of delicious fried rice and veg, accompanied with a salad of shredded radish (maybe) dressed with lime juice and chilli. AMAZING!!!

We had no idea how much this would all cost as no menus were involved, so imagine our surprise when 2 huge Cokes, 2 plates of fried rice and 1 portion of plain rice totalled only 150 baht (2.40 GBP!)

It was then back onto the bikes to finish off the temple tour. At the main one in the town (I forget the name!) we encountered a huge group of schoolkids, all in bright yellow polo shirts, who were as fascinated with us, as we were with the temples!!! It was time for a photo op, and we introduced ourselves - I think we made their day!

School Outing!

Anyway, I am filthy, I have bike chain oil on my trousers, I had the largest wet patch all over the seat of my pants (no, I didn't have an accident!) and I really stink, but I don't care, it was the greatest day so far. So, next is the train to Chiang Mai in an hour and a half's time. This one is overnight, 13 hours long, so I will be sleeping in the stink until we find a suitable hostel/guesthouse tomorrow. Oh well, this is all what it is about and I am loving it so far.

I've been really pleased with myself also, I'm always off asking for directions, advice and I have perfected "hello" and "thank you" in Thai. I forgot to mention that on Monday morning (when I was in the internet cafe at 7.30am!) that I introduced myself to a lovely Korean girl called Claire, and we had a good old natter about Korea and life over there. I love being back in Asia and last night I found a Korean restaurant in Bangkok, which the girls kindly accompanied me to. I had kimchi jjigae (kimchi stew) and it was authentic, we even sat on the floor at a low Korean table! My mother would have been do proud, fantastic...

Emma and the Emerald Buddha

Well, what a weekend!

We arrived safely and without hitch on Sunday afternoon. The hotel is exactly like it was shown on the website, in fact the girls are rather pleased with my choice! Our room is fab, we have a balcony overlooking the Chao Phraya river, and the water taxi stops right behind the hotel restaurant!

Yesterday, we had a wander around the Khao San Road area, which is a mere 5 minute walk away. I had stir-fried vegetables and rice, and it was absolutely delicious - that and a bottle of Coke for only GBP 1.28! (I must re-learn how to write the pound sign again, without a pound sign key!!)

Unfortunately, I didn't get a lot of sleep last night due to my ever-active brain whizzing over the ridiculous size and weight of my backpack!!! I am so going to jettison most of it back home as soon as I locate a post office!!! I got up at 6am today (not good for the jetlag, but what the hell) and went off to find my first international geocache!

Five Metre Smile

We took a dip in the rooftop pool before breakfast, then headed over to Wat Pho, the temple that houses the huge, golden, reclining Buddha and it was stunning! So far, there has been glorious sunshine and no rain!!. Then we fell into the textbook trap of getting taken on a tuk-tuk tour of the city...

I know this one like the back of my hand and I was very adamant to ignore the first guy to assure us that "today is Buddhist holiday, temple closed, you no go, you take tuk-tuk to free Buddha, tallest in Bangkok!" - I've read all about this, telling you that things are closed so they can drive you to gem shops/clothes shops/tourist info centres.

But around lunchtime when an official at the Grand Palace told us it was closed until 2pm as the locals were praying, we were quickly and inexplicably loaded into 2 tuk-tuks and set off for "5 different other Buddhas" - here's the summary in short:

1 Buddha
1 T.I. shop
1 jewellery store ("you help me, you help me get gasoline coupon!!")
1 T.I. shop
1 tailors

We finally reached the Grand Palace at 3pm. Good job really as it shut at half past, and what do you know, it is open every day from 9am!!! They saw us coming at 100 paces I think! When we re-read the Rough Guide later on, it said "beware of people posing as officials outside palaces" - well, we won't fall for that old chestnut a second time!

Anyway, the Grand Palace was fantastic, it was a perfect photo op, with a glorious blue sky with billowing white clouds behind the golden spires - I'll get some photos on here as soon as I work out how to do it! We saw the revered Emerald Buddha, very small in reality, but absolutely beautiful and so awe-inspiring.

It was then time for a water taxi back to the hotel, a quick bite to eat of Thai noodles, which are like nothing I've ever seen before, I thought it was squid at first, but they were very tasty.

I was so excited about my photos, that I tried to back them up onto my iPod. It didn't work and now I can't even get it to play music... I haven't cried yet (which is a miracle in itself) but I just hope I can find an Apple dealer tomorrow with magic powers. Otherwise I am going to be carrying an expensive brick around for the next 12 months!

Anyway, moving on... tomorrow, we are going to book a train ticket to Ayutthaya, where you can hire bikes and cycle around Thailand's original 600 year old capital. From there it wil be an overnight train journey (with AC and beds) up to Chiang Mai for elephant rides, trekking, Thai cookery classes and to apply for yet more visas, this time for Vietnam!

Yes, the plan is to add Laos and Vietnam to our itinerary before heading into Cambodia from Phnom Penh, then back to Bangkok! From there we will head to the Thai islands, hopefully Ko Tao, to learn how to scuba dive. The onto Malaysia and Indonesia to hit Bali by 13th December!

Phew! Watch this space...

For Tomorrow...

Well, I'm nearly there. In the last few weeks I've been to Cornwall, discovered Geocaching, finished packing (after at least five attempts), uploaded most of my music to my iPod...

Tomorrow is departure day, and yes my backpack is way too heavy and bulky but I genuinely can't see what I could leave out, so I've decided that if I can't cope with the weight and size, it is better to bin stuff on the way, than leave it all at home... I may live to regret this...

So, world here I come, watch this space...

Tick Tock, Tick Tock...

Well I've not been online for a while (long story, but I unexpectedly lost net access for 2 weeks!) but I have being making progress. I have insurance, traveller's cheques, all my jabs are complete (that's 12 in total, yes that's 12!!!). I've dyed my silk sleeping sack - could I be happier with the results? Erm, no...

I was dyeing to see the results!

I still haven't organised my rucksack and regrettably, I will not be all packed by tomorrow evening, which was my goal: to be ready before I go to Cornwall on Saturday, so my last week at home would be 100% fun and games!

Oh well! I do have a 65l rucksack already which I can use - I did want to downsize to a 45l, but it would leave me no room for extras and I really can't see what can be left out. I know seasoned backpackers say travel light, but I am already! Seriously, we are talking 4 shirts, 2 t-shirts, 2 skirts and a week's worth of underwear - and that's for the entire year!!! Admittedly, that's still about double the recommended clothing quota, but halving it wouldn't make much difference. "Pack light" they say, then give you a list of essentials, all of which are heavy and bulky. So you do the math...

Anyway, it'll be fine. I still haven't read that monstrous pile of library books (it'll never happen) so that makes me panic, just like the night before all my University essays were due in!

I have got a new hobby though, one that I wish I had discovered months ago, but one I am extremely glad I have found before I leave to travel the world...

...Geocaching!!

I've already found 5 in 2 days, and I know that there is one about 500m away from our hotel in Bangkok (not to mention another 150+ in Sydney!) So now I have to buy a handheld GPS... as if the budget wasn't stretched enough!!!