Mar 08

Left Bankok for Siem Reap on monday the 24th march. The journey was a grueling 14 hours. The 6 hours to the border were fine as we were still half asleep and enjoying the air con, it was fine apart from getting taken for a ride, literally!taking a few pounds extra from us first for the bus then for the visa (few ponuds equates to several beers in Cambodia) so we were quite upset. We live and learn. We crossed the border at Aranya Praphet (THAILAND), Poipet (Cambodia). The boder crossing was traumatic, in 35 degree heat and several hours of waiting around being ushered from one queue to the next. The change from one side of the border to the other was quite dramatic with Poipet resembling a scene from mad max, sand and dust flying up from everywhere, motorbikes and Cambodians dressed in army trousers and scarfs wrapped around their heads packing the streets. The journey to Siem Reap was crazy, bumping along the worst road ever built! I feel that we spent most of our time somewhere near the roof of the bus, rather than on the seat, sleep was not an option, the only option was to look out the window at the stark contrast in countryside. Many huts/shanty towns lined the road demontrating the poverty that is so often seen in Cambodia. The country side was often sparse and dusty with several wild anorexic cows trying to graze (they are scarily thin)! The journey was never boring!

Arrived in Siem Reap at about 9pm the gateway the the Angkor temples (built between the 9th and 13th century). The guesthouse staff were very friendly and helpfull and soon, in the morning after several hours of sleep and a stroll around Siem Reap we were off to see the temples driven by TUK TUK by the guesthouses owners son and our new buddy waanaa, we visited the temples firstly to watch the sunset at Angkor wat, the larget religious building in the world. Secondly waking up and seeing the temple for sun rise and spending the day visting the surrounding temples; Bayon, the temple with many faces, Ta Prohm, where tomb raider was filmed and has several trees and routes growing through the walls and Ta Keo, the unfinished temple. The two days were awesome and zoe got some fantastic snappy snaps. We did so well that we thought we would reward our selves with a curry, um tasty! Apart from the maggot staring at me from the plate just as we were finishing up.

We left for Sihnoukville on the south cost, to get some well deserved relaxation time.

Yay, we have arrived, the flight was ace, food was actually pretty decent and so far no dramas.
We arrived in bangkok at 3.30pm ish on Friday and got the bus into town... Andy was commenting that its far easier than when he did it 6 years ago... which basically just makes him an old man! The heat is crazy man, so so hot..... we got off the bus with our bags and yes admitted to ourselves that we probably should of booked somewhere. In hindsight we should of been spoilt for choice for accomodation... but somehow.... we managed to miss it all and head in the complete opposite direction to the accomodation. An hour or so and many sweat patches later we arrived at what has actually turned out to be a wicked little hotel and so far only one cockroach (and that was a baby one)! We celebrated with a chang and a singha beer, Rosey stylee.... basically a taste test!
So far we have checked out the Super modern MBK shopping centre which we thought was gross, then Siam square which is massively trendy and full of quirky little boutiques and shake shops.... maybe more modern than London in some ways and definately cleaner.
We are staying a 10minute walk from Koah San Road which is ace and super trippy hippy, so have been drinking around there in the evenings. Our hotel is far enough away to be in a much more local area which is a lot more real Bangkok than Koah san and when we walk down in the morning there are lots of local markets and masses of food that we cant tell what it is.
Loving the tuk tuks and getting much better at bargaining. We have been to china town and the Thieves market and today we visitied the grand palace and I brought a super cool umbrella to shade my pale skin from the sunshine!
Off to Cambodia tomorrow and desperate to get to a beach soon, have really enjoyed Bangkok, not as scary or as dirty as I expected, although havent visited Patpong the main sex district yet....

oh yeah last minute orgainsing going off. Only 2 more days to go now, getting really excited. Going out for two bad boy meals tomorrow to fatten up before the fixed diet of rice, beans and beer!!!! Zoe is rehearsing "no meat" in the 12 or so different languages: good luck! will be setting off from Nottingham mid afternoon on the 20th and flying later that evening. Come on Bangkok!