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Published: August 19th 2008
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Hi All,
So here we are, last destination en route and what a destination!!! We are currently in Pondicherry to the south of Chennai and are fast on our way to becoming curry junkies!!! ohhh bliss
Leaving Laos via the southern most and little used border crossing into Cambodia we were surprised to find that visas and border stamps out of Laos and into Cambodia all cost 11 or 21 US dollars. All transactions included a 1 dollar add on fee which went towards the officials beer money. One guy actually asked us how many people were on our bus and then worked out how much money he would have for beers and smokes later.
We overnighted in Kratie which had little of interest so we continued to the capital Phnom Phen. Cambodia is famous for the recent atrocities commited against the population by Pol Pot and his Khymer Rouge. Up to 2 million people are believed to have died during thier 4 years in power. Most were educated members of the population deemed by the regime to be a threat to power. Also the Khymer Rouge wanted to create a peasant popluation working in the fields and
so doctors teachers lawyers etc didn't fit into this bracket. Despite the fact that all this happened very recently or perhaps because of it, the people in Cambodia are extremely welcoming and beam smiles at you at every occasion.
The stand out attraction in Cambodia was Angkor Wat and surrounding temples located in the north West of the country toward Thailand. As we were running short on time we headed staight to there from Phnom Pehn. Getting up before dawn to catch the sunrise at the temples, we chartered a friendly Tuk tuk driver to ferry us around all day. Because it was pretty cloudy the sunrise was a bit of an antclimax and the huge crowd that gathered at Angkor Wat to see it, looked a little disspapointed and tired in the cold light of the new day. Angkor Wat and the surrounding temples were built in the hayday of the Cambodian Angkor era (about 6th - 14th centuries) when, at the time, their influence and territory spread up to china in the north, Vietnam in the East and Burma in the West. Our favourite temple was Ta Prohm which has tree roots and vegetation snaking over the
temple walls. It really has an amazing look to it as it seems the jungle is just consuming it. (The Tomb Raider film was filmed here so Colette got into role and did some jumps and finger shooting from behind the walls - Angelina eat your heart out!!)
From Siem Reap (The town close to Ankor Wat) we got a bus ticket to Bangkok ready to fly to India. The road between Siem Reap and the border is one of the busiest in Cambodia and is in an absolutely terrible state. Apparently, the airlines bribe the government to keep it that way so that plenty of people make the trip from Thailand by plane. It looks as though they are slowly improving the road though so that it should take a more acceptable 2 hours instead of 5!!
Back in Bangkok we visited the Indian embassey and realised we would have to stick around for a week to process our visas. We changed our flights and and after submitting the initial paperwork headed off for a couple of days to Kanchanburi, which is 3 hrs from Bangkok by train and famous for the Bridge over the river Kwai
Claypot dinner
Cook your own food built by WW2 POWs. There was an interesting musem here which detailed the huge suffering of the POWs and inscripted workers in building the train line through the mountains to Burma. It was intended to be a supply line for the Japanese forces who had occupied Burma. The whole line was completed in just over a year which was an incredble feat but not without huge loss of life. The cemetery next door to the museum was very moving.
So it was that a few days after, the ink still wet on our Indian visas that we bid farewell to Sout East Asia and set out for the sub continent! John managed to loose his wallet at Singapore airport but he reckons that he did exceptionally well not to have lost it before then!! On the flight from Singapore to Chennai we were introduced to the India fascination for gold as most of the blokes sitting around us brought from their pockets bags full of gleaming chains, bracelts and ear rings and started to trade and barter. It was well amusing watching the air hostess trying to get the guys to sit down mid-barter "because the seatbelt sign was
illuminated". Never interupt an Indian when he is striking a deal.
Emerging into the heat of Chennai we were delighted to see that our first ride in the country would be the classic white ambassador (the Indian Version of the Morris Minor). As expected the journey was hell raIsing but we did arrive in one piece at our hostel. By this time it was well late and so when we discoverd the place was infested with bed bugs and a few roaches but it was too late and we were too tired to move. Coll shed a tear and we bedded down on the two plastic chairs in our room and wondered if we had made the right decision in coming here.
Our doubts were proven wrong early the next morning as we dined on beautiful pancakes stuffed with spiced mashed potato (Masala Dosa), a south indian breakfast speciality, and found a new bug free place to stay. We had heard before that India is a place of contrasts and that is really true. Often you feel it is the worst pace in the world (mainly due to the poverty and dirt) and then you meet someone or
Holy Cow!!
Cows are sacerd here, and they know it see something which makes you think the exact opposite. Because of this it makes for very interesting travels. From Chennai we headed 60 KM south to the beach/fishing village of Mamallapuram to relax for a couple of days.
This place has an interesting collection of stone carvings and a temple which is carved out of 1 giant rock. We were treated like minor celebrities here as several times people just came over and asked if they could take a photograph of us. We found this a bit different and wondered why they would want a photograph of two sweaty travellers. Our clothes left a lot to be desired as we have been wearing the same old things for months. We felt like scruffs next to the ladies looking gorgeous in their Saris!!
John managed to hire out the only surfboard in the village and get a fix for a few hrs to keep him going until Goa. The 15th August is India's Independence Day and so there was a real good turn out of folk milling around and we caught a couple of processions running through the town. Leaving Mamallapuram, we got ferried out to the maIn road
I got my new shoes on...
John getting a fitting. For the size the guy just traced his foot on a piece of paper and flagged down a stuffed bus heading south for Pondicherry.
On a final note, the way that some Indian folk extract 'baksheesh' is quite ingenious. Even when you agree a price on an autorickshaw when it comes to paying ''I accept that 5 rupees in your hand too sir, I will buy some tea with it'' The other favourite is just hanging around your room under the premise that they have brought you something really useful (like information on the price of their beer-''very cheap sir'') and staring until you give them some rupees to leave!
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Kanchanaburi
Dude - you made it!! The elusive Bridge x