samlewis

Woke up well before 3am which was totally unnecessary as not due toget lift to Stansted until 4, So no isssue with getting there bosrded plane on time and we omly left slightly late Got into Dublin, caught airlink to city centre had a stroll about then went fot gorgeous Irish breakfast in a cafe called Gerrys just south of St Stephens Green After that needed a longwalk so wandered round bit more before getting flight to Heathrow On arrival at Heathrow all seemed well ( apart from being ripped off £4.70 gor a pint of Strongbow in the whetherspoons.Boarded plane - brand new Dreamliner no less only to be delayed due to a technical issue with the door So there we sat for knocking on 2 hours while engineers tried to sort It. Eventually fixed ... read more

Well not too much to write about in the meantime- couple more pleasant days in Battanbamg, spent a day visiting villages and seeing rural work which was cool tehn did another bus journey to get back into Thailand. Did plan on going to Koh Chang but weather reported thunderstorms and seemed unable t get any reasonably priced accommodation book, so decided to head to Kanchanaburi instead. After a 2hr queue at passport control I decided to break the journey in Bangkok and managed to get a room in same guesthouse I started at That evening went out for a drink with Wayne who had crossed over from Cambodia at the same time as me and he told me that the Monkey Festival was on in Lopburi on the Monday. So we agreed to travel up there ... read more

It was at this point that I had obviously taken leave of my senses attempting to travel from Chiang Mai to Cambodia by bus without a break...... Departing from Chiang Mai Arcade bus station I boarded a rather nice bus with 21 seats in total. No sooner were we out of the bus tsation and sitting in a traffic jam the hostess brought round water, carton of carrot juice and an unidentifiable snack As soon aS we got on the highway the interior lights were dimmed and all he Thai people seemed to be soundo within 2 mins, despite it not even being 9pmThis is a trait Ive observed frequently on any Thai public transport and one I am very envious of, being able to fall asleep at the drop of a hat So I reclined ... read more

Went to CM on the 8am Green Bus from Chiang Rai bus station. Journey was just under 3 hours and bus was like National express coach so perfectly comfortable for that short journey. On arrival got a songthaew to the old city and wandered down to Julies on hunt for a room. Success first time, I was able to get a small cell for the grand sum of 120 baht a night which was comfortable enough and perfectly adequate for my needs Went and got a bite to eat and had a wander around visiting old haunts. Was pretty tired so so spent evening in the common area playing pool and chatting Next day was spent just chilling and went to the Night Bazaar in the evening where I saw an item I wanted ( cant ... read more

Well was collected from guesthouse on Soi Rambrutti by a van and taken to Don Muang Airport for my flight to Chiang Rai. Uneventful flight and went to taxi desk at airport ( after collecting luggage from prettiest carousel ever) and gave them name of guesthouse. Had to pay 200baht at the desk which saved any chance of being ripped off by driver Got to guesthouse found myself In a shared dorm room with 2 blokes. One was from Taiwan and pleasant enough but he did not stop talking lol Dumped my stuff and went to explore. First impressions were of a smaller Chiang Mai, Was beginning not to feel too well though- burning with fever dizzy and queasy so rather than go back to Mr Talkalot in the room I sat and sipped a coke ... read more