The last leg

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This is the last entry on my travelling blog and so I have done a little summary on our trip at the end of this entry. We are now in Bangkok having spent the last few days in Ko Chang on the beach. As such, it’s been a fairly quiet affair.

After seeing the temples, we were in a bit of a predicament. We’d achieved our objectives in Cambodia, namely to see the temples, and our next plan was to grab some sun and sea for a few days before we headed home. However, we hit a snag. We didn’t know where to go. We needed somewhere that would be fairly close to Bangkok, so we drew up a list: Pattaya, Ko Samet, Ko Chang, and Bamboo Island in Cambodia. In the end, we chose Ko Chang, over its neighbour Pattaya, largely because we wanted to avoid the crass sex tourism. In the end, the beautiful, secluded beach was a perfect relaxing stop, and my review of the place will be light due to the lack of action here. Needless to say, we just stayed on the beach all day, topping up our brooding tans, and occasionally swimming in the perfect, crystal clear waters. I’ll emphasise the fact here and now that Ko Chang’s waters are absolutely boiling, from 7am onwards - it was literally like stepping into a hot tub!

It was also refreshing to be simply back in Thailand - driving on the roads here is an absolute dream, with smooth tarmac roads and proper road signs - the road from Siem Reap to the Thai border was disgustingly dirty and bumpy.

We then hit Bangkok for 4 day assault on the Thai capital. We commented on the legendary Khao San Road when we first arrived in Asia as being an absolute nightmare, but without the sleep deprivation and jet-lag we were able to appreciate the beauty of this eclectic road. It's a bustling street with people here from all four corners of the earth who are here to party, drink, eat very cheaply and merrily. There's a real sense of traveller community here, and the cheap beer and food from the food stalls are a god-send, although it's funny to watch the police come down the street on the days when traders are not allowed on the street, as those who are flouting the rules quickly rush into a little side street in order to avoid detection!

Whilst in Bangkok we visited the Grand Palace and the huge temple complex. One thing I loved about this was the vast, colourful and intricate designs on the walls. We also visited the huge MBK shopping complex here and managed to buy some very cheap real-looking Diesel jeans for eight quid! Bargain!

Summary

It doesn't seem like four months since we were last in BKK, in the huge brand-new airport awaiting our cheap bus to the Khao San Road, where hundreds of tuk-tuk touts were in line waiting for us; two British jet-lagged and tired people from York. We now await our bus back to the airport, but this time we're sun-kissed, proficient in saying hello and goodbye in various dialects, proficient in warding off persistent touts and proficient at eating, travelling and sleeping cheaply and sweatily. It's been a whirldwind and I'll miss this way of life. Having nothing to do but be a tourist for months on end would be an attractive career but unfortunately the real world awaits us when we get back. We've met some fantastic people and seen some amazing places that I had only ever dreamed of seeing on the internet. I'm so glad Kim and I had our chat in July when we decided to save up and visit Asia, six thousand miles away. It's been a whirl! I know that in a few months time when we get back to the mechanics of working at home without the south-east Asian project to look forward to it will hit us hard. It's safe to say I have caught the travelling bug and I'll miss the sights, sounds and smells of this corner of the earth and it's been the best time of my life, without question.

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Comments

[Jeremy]

Similar trip
Yo ! I chanced across your blog online. We re from Oxford.Me and my girl did a very similar trip 6 months after you guys. We met Daniel and his crew in Belaga and probably other local people you did too ! Check my blog out here http://jeremyleggett.blogspot.com/ Happy days ! regards Jeremy