Yodia Heritage Hotel Phitsanulok

We set off from Ayutthaya mid morning with the intention to head by train for Lopburi, another small town a little further north. Whilst waiting for our train we met a fellow English traveller called Annemarie who was also making her way to Lopburi. The train arrived a little late, as we had started to expect, but we were soon on our way. However, unlike our journey to Ayutthaya from Bangkok, this train was jam packed and we struggled to physically get on board ...

... cookie who takes yet another bad body dose and takes it on the chin and adds it to her collection. Fair play babe! We are leaving sharpish tomorrow morning jumping on an empty train up to Lamphan, hopefully now missing the rush to Chang Mai. Here is a more touristy town with supposedly better food and this time elephants. Good luck is what we'll take from you people. Cheers and tune in for our next episode of 'The two epic tradlers'.

... and the direction usually end up leading me nowhere near where I am intending to go. But, at least they try....I love all the little food stalls and the sanitation levels of food production. My hostel is in a little alley in Chinatown and I get to see how they prepare all the food. Most of the food is just prepared out on the sidewalks, meat just sitting out, etc. There are no kitchens or sinks, just plastic tables and a bucket of water ...

... the answer now, "We charge more for the convenience of getting there faster". Faster we didn't need. Not only had we checked the time of the bus with the information desk at the bus station but after being given the wrong information in Phrae we also checked the ticket counter which said above it "Loei", they both wrote down for us eight thirty but we were worried for a moment when we went to the same ticket counter and were redirected to another but sure enough she had a card up saying eight thirty.

... Finished off with a pastry from a local bakery. Rhonda--I had a Thai iced tea in the afternoon and it was wonderful. Despite the idyllic setting, it was a hard day. The hard day typical of travelling. You know, where you can't seem to get ANYONE to understand what it is you want. I have something negative arising in me, and I think I might ask to sit the next course instead of serving. This might ...

... stop!" variety. We started asking around for help, but the name was ************ounce, and turns out- what fun! - they have a short form for the city and just do not know the formal name. As in, "Toronto? I don't know...maybe you mean TO?" Anywho, after much confusion and major Thai Stare, I (via craning my neck out the doorway) finally decide we're at our stop. And THEN an authority man strolls on in, checks ...

... We found a nice place for dinner on the river, I had chicken with cashew nuts for a less-than-eye-watering 80p while Katie had two whole fish with ginger for a rather bourgeouis GBP 1.20, which is still less than US $3! <br><br>The beer over here is also dirt cheap, so two large bottles of Chang will generally set you back about 160 Bahts, or ...

... then it's exploring ancient historical ruins on a motorbike at 40 km an hour.... the place we're staying at is great and cheap and we've found a nice little resturant that we go to for three squares a day.... costing us less than $10 a day for food and it's great.... Ok we'll i'll leave it here, but today we're going to some of the local museams and maybe a market too... Everyday this trip is getting better..... Love you all.... Take care, Cam

... Praya River. We enjoyed seeing the sights during a 3-hour tour by longtail boat, which stopped at several different wats so we could get out and explore on foot. The Thais primarily practice Vippasyana Buddhism, mixed with Hinduism and animism, so it's interesting to observe the different temples and customs. We've seen a number of people using divination sticks, which they shake in a can until one drops out. The homes along the river, built above the high water level on posts ...

... that later). Most of the food has been pretty tasty, and a lot of it VERY tasty. Unexpectedly, this applies to both the native food and incarnations of western cooking. I've been served much worse plates of spaghetti bolognaise in France than I have in Vietnam. As far as table service goes, there is an interesting approach to serving food at many of the places we have been here in South East Asia. Instead of bringing a meal out in order (appetizer, main course ...