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Published: December 24th 2006
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We had been warned! But we still decided to take the bus from Siem Reap to Bangkok, as it was the most cost effective way of getting into Thailand. We were told that it would be a 12hr journey, and were to be collected from our guesthouse at 7.15am - Another early start!
So we were up and sat out the front waiting, looking out for our bus. We kept waiting and looking. There were another couple of guys waiting, also for the bus to Bangkok. They were collected at about 7.45am, but when we got up to get on us well we were told that we had booked with another company, and not to worry as they sometimes run a bit late. At about 8.15 a guy on a moped appeared, saying that he had come to collect us - there was one problem, no bus in sight. He said that he would take us one at a time to where the bus was. When we pushed him as to why the bus was not collecting us from the guesthouse as we had originally been told, he stated that there was a problem with the buses steering, but that
it was being fixed. So one by one, with our backpacks we were taken to the bus on the back of the moped. When we got to the bus, the first people I spotted were the guys that had been waiting with us at the guesthouse originally!
So with everyone on the bus we set off, but slowly! We appeared to be driving around in circles, when lo and behold we wound up at our guesthouse again - they thought that they still needed to pick us up!
Thinking that we were now finally on the road, we couldn't understand why we were going no faster than 20mph - We asked, and it turned out that the driver had forgotten to pick up the petrol money,so we had to wait for someone to bring that to us. You can't believe these people make this trip every day!
Then we were on our way to Bangkok! We probably left Siem Reap at about 9.30am, so much for the early start and hoping to get to Bangkok before it was too late.
The road between Siem Reap and the border is as bad as everyone says! The road
is unsealed and you bounce around, reading the same sentence in your book about 10 times. We felt that we had 'shaken baby syndrome' by the time we reached the border. Our bus did not have any aircon, so the windows were open which allowed for a thick layer of dust to settle on us.
Having got our 3rd stamp in our passports for this trip, we got on a plusher bus to take us from the Thai side of the border to the capital. After about 15mins we stopped - not another rest stop so soon, but no, we had left a few people behind and needed to wait for them!
We got to Bangkok after 10pm, absolutely knackered. We took the first room we could find, filled up on some street food, and went to bed.
Bangkok was like being back in civilisation! They drive on the left hand side (going to give me difficulties crossing the road again having finally worked out which way to look when crossing the road!), and it didn't take long to spot a McDonalds. We walked a lot in Bangkok, taking in the sights. Though not officiallya tourist attraction,
we did see a small dog that was chained up on a treadmill, but no photos as they had signs up. Poor puppy!
We had a bucket of cocktail at an a bar that is an old petrol station.
We spent 3 days in Bangkok and then organised to go to Chiang Mai on the night bus - it was a v. cold night as the aircon felt like it was on about -5C! This was a 12 hr journey, and it was cold even when we got off the bus!
From Chiang Mai we went on a 3 day 2 night trek. We expected it to be similar to what we had done in Sapa, Vietnam but the scenery and set up was very different. For a start there was nobody trying to sell you things at each turn. We stayed in small villages overnight. The group of 13 was in a wooden hut, with a few blankets each for warmth. It was to be another 2 cold uncomfortable nights! The walking was good, but we didn't cover as many Kms as we did in Sapa.
On the third day we started the morning with an elephant trek.
The elephants were cool, but I was a bit peturbed when they told me I had to stand on the elephants head to get on! Then we found out that Rob didn't actually get to sit in the chair on the elephants back, but he was to sit on the elephants neck and hold on tight! Easier said than done! There were 2 young elephants with our group - so cute!
After the elephant trek, we walked for an hour and then had lunch in a village. From there we then went bamboo rafting. The rafts were unsteady to start with and as soon as we set off they wanted us to clamber over a horizontal bamboo bar - well that was my cue to fall over. I managed to rescue my flip flop from the water before it floated downstream, but I have a couple of good bruises on my knees now! One guy fell over and managed to cut his knee open (that needed a trip to hospital for stitches) so I actually got away quite lightly!
Before going on the trek we had thought about where we wanted to be for Christmas, and we knew
it wasn't Bangkok! So instead of 24hrs plus of bus journey we booked ourselves flights to Ko Samui. We are now in Ko Samui, and I am sad to say it is overcast.
That last sentence was written a couple of days ago, and I am happy to say that the sun in now shining, and my mood has improved with it, along with my tan!
Christmas eve today, which feels strange as there are no potatoes in sight to peel! For us it is just another day in the sun. We are surrounded by lots of holiday makers here (not a good thing!), but we are planning to join them tonight for a Christmas Eve boozy do!
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Steve
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Ah the memories are coming flooding back. Koh Samui is nice but i recommed getting to Ko Pha Ngan, expecially if the full moon rave is on, but stay in Koh Samui for that and get a speedboat accross. There is a place on the NW of KPN that is pretty secluded with a nice beach and not a lot. I'll try and get the name for you. Bungalows were about 500-800 baht a night. There was one on the cliff to the left of the beach that was lush and the food was dirt cheap. Details to follow. Enjoy