Earning Our Traveling Stripes

Trip Start Oct 12, 2005

Trip End Mar 31, 2006

Loading Map

Map your own trip!

Map Options

Show trip route

Hide lines

Where I stayed

queens hill lodge

(Bangkok hotels)

Flag of Thailand Bangkok, Thailand
Tuesday, December 6, 2005

In our last entry, we mentioned we weren't too fond of Sihanoukville. Well, we've decided we actually hate it. More hard core travelers might argue that with time we may have come to at least appreciate certain aspects of this Cambodian beach town, that is a cross between Coney Island (circa 1980) and the Wild West, but I kind of doubt it! The place we stayed (Queens Hill Lodge) was okay for the price but pretty far from the town. After publishing our last entry we took a quick walk on the beach and then tried to arrange a motorbike taxi home. We had been duly warned about the difficulty of dealing with the motorbike taxi drivers (motodops) but I don't think either of us could have imagined that our driver would agree on a price then strand us on the beach about a mile from the hotel in a thunder and lightening storm!!! His excuse: his motorbike got stuck in the sand. Big question: Why would you try to drive your motorbike on the beach, you idiot! Other big question: Why didn't we direct him away from the beach and back on the road before he got "stuck"? Anyway, we paid the guy off b/c we had also heard that arguing with these guys gets you nothing but a potential punch in the nose

01 Ferry

. Then, we walked very quickly down the beach and watched a huge thunderstorm move our way. We didn't make it back to the hotel before getting drenched but we were pleased that no lightening struck us as we crossed a little metal bridge to get to the hotel.

Needless to say we were anxious to get out of Sihanoukville (also called Snooky) the next morning. We boarded our minibus (a tricked out minivan that accommodates twelve Western tourists plus one or two Cambodians you mysteriously pick up on the way) at 7:00 am, we started our journey along a dirt road to the Thai border. The road was fairly smooth by Cambodian standards but peppered with ferry crossings (four in all before we hit Thailand) which required the van to be driven onto a jerry-rigged floating platform and floated across rivers. The first few were actually quite fun but by the fourth crossing at noon, we were over it. We reached the Thai border at around 1:00 pm and literally walked with our backpacks through the Cambodian departure check point and the Thai entry point. Did I mention it was pouring rain? Thank god for our pack covers but I'm afraid we were drenched upon entering Thailand.

We boarded another minibus right on the other side of the border to go to Trat and pick up a bus to Bangkok

02 Loading the Ferry

. Packed with a bunch of wet backpackers, the minibus smelled quite ripe but we dried out a little by the time we hit Trat (one hour after crossing the border). After a series of calls from Trat to Bangkok to get a hotel reservation (not as easy as we thought since today is the King's Birthday), we boarded a 4:00 pm Bangkok- bound bus. The bus ride was actually quite comfortable and we marveled at the cleanliness of not only the bus but also our surroundings in Thailand. We couldn't help but laugh because a month and a half ago when we left Bangkok we thought it was dirty and gross. It's amazing how a month and a half of travel in Vietnam and especially Cambodia can really change your perspective on things. At around 9:45 pm we arrived in Bangkok and headed for our hotel. When we arrived they informed us that they actually didn't have a room for us after all. After almost fifteen hours of travel, this was the last thing we wanted to hear. However, the hotel was kind enough to help us locate another room nearby. It ain't The Ritz by a long shot but we both slept like stones. We should only be here for a night or two more as we're planning to head north to Chiang Mai.

Upon waking up this morning we were both relieved that we weren't going anywhere today but a little proud that we had completed our first overland border crossing without too much hassle. Although there were definitely a few moments in the past few days that left us longing for the conveniences and familiarity of home, we are thankful that our good days outnumber the more challenging ones!