My cousin lives in Pattaya, our next stop after Bangkok. It would be rude not to pop by and grab a wee bit of free accommodation. And the opportunity to be in a house. Not a hostel, or a guest house or a scummy something between the two...but a house. A home. With a kettle so you can just make a lovely brew when you feel like it. And watch dvds and pick dog hairs from off your pyjama bottoms...and run to the corner shop at 2am in the middle of a thunder storm because you need biscuits to really crown this Nirvana. And it was so lovely to see my big cousin, Ashley, and successfully get him to speak to his grandma (albeit after several beers) and act as a covert spy on behalf of the rest of the family to which we belong. And his dog is funny.
Greeted by a grinning Ashley, a fairly strapping, tattooed (naturally - it is Thailand) and a little bit burnt lad, sat astride a small, mint Vesper was a joy to see. Especially when he took off his very fetching helmet to reveal ginger hair (not natural by any means)...hahahaha. An excellent experience with the local beauty salon, evidently. A good night out was to be had, beginning with an introduction to Ashley's bar, 'Çrocodile Bar', where a spot of whiskey was enjoyed, before we were whisked off to his friend's bar where the party of the night was taking place. Oh yes. Surreal is perhaps what some people would call it. Picture your/a local boozer. I mean the locals. The hardcore locals. Basic demographics being male, 50 years+, balding, tattoos and, well, a substantial gut. Captured your imagination? Sprinkle in several tiny, skinny, Thai ladies (yip, these are the chappies' ladies/wives), Thai karaoke (a very happy Klo) and more whisky. Bloody mental. Thank goodness I was hammered, as it all seemed highly amusing at the time. And it was. But slowly, as the next couple of days progressed (which we mainly spent sleeping post-Thailand mayhem), it dawned on us that we were in fact the only Caucasian, females of the age of early-twenties in the entire bloody place and that everyone else fitted the description as above. The sex capital of Thailand. I felt slowly that my heart and soul were corroding with simply being there. Honestly, it was fine. I sound dramatic, but we felt drained by the time we left. But. One thing can definitely be said. Having a Sunday roast was the happiest I think I have felt in ages. A carvery and LOADS of fresh veggies...and don't forget the gravy!! AND THEN, we munched our way through an enormous apple crumble and custard. Bare in mind that two of the guys who were eating with us couldn't finish their main meal! WE ARE PIE MUNCHERS!! And we went fishing too! That was fun fun fun! Klo and I caught a BIG FISH (10 Kilos apparently) all by ourselves!
Next stop - Cambodia. People had mentioned that the journey to Siem Reap in Cambodia from Thailand was hell. Didn't feel like that to me as we cruised in our nice bus from Bangkok to the border...but then we got to the border. And it is called rainy season for a reason. SOAKED and wearing white linen trousers. Erroneous behaviour. At least I had my pink anorak (yep, I looked well fit). And then, once finally into Cambodia, in Poipot, we realised we were going to have to get a car to drive us to Siem Reap. 5 hours away. So in we popped with a couple of lovely chappies - Markus from Germany and Christoph from Switzerland - into a car that had a nice big crack down the wind screen, the front right tyre kept going flat, and not a lot of suspension. At least there was a good stereo. Shame there was no road to speak of. A river of mud as the rain lashed down ensured continual stops for the driver to give the headlamps a nice rinse off. But we arrived eventually. Just about.
Siem Reap is cool! And the Cambodian people are just lovely. They are so very sweet and friendly. Hmm. Cambodia appears to be somewhat different to the ol' Pattaya. Buzzing to be back on the backpackers trail, the first day we managed to potter around a market and buy some stupid trousers and a dress that has been described as; a poncho; a choir boy; interesting; pyjamas; ok for Cambodia but not for home...and so forth. I still wore it out that night....sporting my new hair cut - CAMBODIA STYLE! hehehe. $2 for a trim. Brilliant. I spit in your face, Toni & Guy. Mwahahahahahaha. So, with our new European buddies, we indulged in a spot of vino, before stepping out to the imaginatively named 'pub street' and basically, got a bit drunken. But I tried to get home with my friend...and we got lost...the tuktuk driver dropped us in the middle of no-where...so we had to stay in another guesthouse until the next day!! hahahaha. God I felt rough. But the reason people go to Siem Reap, is simply because it is the gateway to the monumental, Temples of Angkor. As the Lonely Planet articulately depicts, 'Angkor Wat is more than just an astounding architectural feat; it is the national symbol...it is a sumptuous blend of towers and sky, a magnificent spellbinding shrine to Vishnu with its captivating image replicated in the reflective lake below.' Sounds pretty impressive, eh? And there were lots of temples situated in the area around the main focal point, including the setting for Tomb Raider! After a good 5 hours tinkering about, it was definitely time for a brew!! And then a bottle of vino. Again. So what if we had to get up a 5.45am to catch our bus on time....yeah, feeling a little less than hot right now after 3 hours sleep and 9 hours of travelling. For we have made our way from West Cambodia to Central Cambodia. Kratie is in fact where we are. And we are trying to not eat chocolate and be good. Better get another brew down me then...
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