Early start today but not as early as planned because Kate had an interrupted sleep overnight with the noisiest air-con in the whole wide world and only found out in the morning it was actually the bathroom fan which could have been easily turned off with a flick of a switch... Duh. Breakfast of omelet and toast at the hotel restaurant and on the road for 9.00am, reaching the Cambodia/Thai border at Poipet at midday. The overland border visa was quite easy once we finally found out which building issued them. Kate asked a western girl for help but was rebuffed in an incredibly rude manner. A fifteen day overland visa is free for UK nationals, giving us to the 15th December to exit the country but our flight is booked for the 10th anyway. We only had cycle 5km to the nearest town to find the most treasured shop ever; the SEVEN ELEVEN!!!! These shops sell everything we could possibly dream of and Kate has missed them desperately since leaving Thailand last June – We grab a drink and a yoghurt before carrying on to our final destination of Watthana Nakhon. Returning to cycling on the left hand side of the road after nearly five months of right hand drive comes with a few hiccups but no major accidents or near misses to report. The Thais (as usual) are friendly, but this is a major tourist route and it shows – no outward signs of shouting from houses.
Kilometers: 79
Total Kilometers: 7823
Day 243: Watthana Nakhon to Bangkok
Today's plan is to ride through to Pratchatakham where we will then get the train through to Bangkok from there then ride the rest of the way to Khao San Road. This plan gives an extra day in Bangkok and also means we don't have to hang around Pratchatakham tomorrow waiting for the train. The day starts with a hunt for a ATM that will let us withdraw money, we seem to remember having trouble with ATM's the last time we were in Thailand and can't for the life of us remember the name of the yellow bank that was the most reliable for international cards. We get down to our last 200baht ($6) before we spot the one that loves us. Today is scorching hot again and we take several drink breaks along the way but foolishly we do not stop for any food, thinking that we will get some before boarding the train. However, when we reach the train station in Pratchatakham we don't have time to get any before the train comes. It's been 7hrs and 105km since we ate a raisin bun and a yoghurt each. The train journey is long and slow and towards the end we are so very very hungry that we reckon others can hear the rumble of our stomachs over the noise of the train. We reach Bangkok at 9.00pm, it's dark and we're ravenous. Kate bets that she can get us to Kao San Road without looking at the map and fails miserably. We finally get to our destination after at 9.30pm and head straight to the local Subway sandwich shop. Two foot long BMT's have never been eaten so fast. Bangkok appears far busier then when we were here last and pretty soon we found that most guest houses are full. It's the King's birthday on Saturday which is why it's packed. An eleven day celebration has begun, with fireworks lighting up the sky at night.
We start to panic a little bit – we're getting strange looks of westerners as we peddle round the back streets looking for accommodation. We're stressed, tired, badly in need of a shower and end up returning to the place we stayed at last time. To our amazement the old lady remembers us and that was enough to secure the room for the night.
Kilometers: 114
Total Kilometers: 7937
Day 244 - 250: Bangkok (rest day)
We find out that Tyrant Bill is heading towards Bangkok and will be here on Friday. We arrange to meet at the soup stand at 6pm. Seth has been following our footsteps since north Vietnam and will get here on Saturday. We spend the first morning looking for alternative accommodation and don't find any to suit our needs so we decide to stay put on Soi Rambhuttri. On Friday, Kate is ushered towards a bearded man using the internet by the old lady in the reception. Kate does not recognise the hairy man in question and refuses to follow her. It takes Kate a full two minutes to realise the bushy fella is no other that Tyrant Bill and it's a joyous occasion to be reunited with one of our cycling buddies after we parted ways in June. Seth arrives as planned on Saturday and we all head out for dinner and drinks, which turns into a mammoth beer fest and doesn't end well for both of us or our bedroom floor.
Sunday is spent recovering and Monday is spent in Lumphini Park.
Sadly, Tyrant Bill leaves us on Tuesday, heading via train for northern Thailand and China (he sent his bike to New Zealand in August) and Seth makes plans to travel to Laos tomorrow before returning to Chengdu. On Wednesday, with bicycles packed into their boxes and surplus clothes thrown away, we wait for the taxi to arrive to take us to the airport. We bid farewell to Seth, with promises made that he will visit us in the UK in 2010.
Our trip ends today, 9th December 2009, with 7937 km cycled through eight countries in as many months. It's a day of mixed feelings for us; excitement that we will see our family and friends again after such a long time apart, but extreme sadness that our cycling tour has come to an end. We have had such an amazing time, visited beautiful countries – some of which have such sad histories that it's hard to fathom the kindness and optimism of the local population. We've seen the best and worse of human nature, including our own. We are indebted to the people that have helped us along the way, from the moped drivers that personally took the time to show us guesthouses to those that refused to take payment for food, despite their own financial hardships. We end the trip with increased self confidence, humility and the feeling of amazing accomplishment. Cycle touring is an incredible people to people experience and comes highly recommended by the both of us. To those of you who have given us encouragement and support along the way, we thank you, and hope that our journey inspires you to get out there, meet some of the most amazing people in the world and see some inspirational scenery. To those of you in the UK and over 18 years of age, we can't wait to see you on the 8th January 2010 for the “coming home” celebrations.
Lots of love and best wishes, Kate and Lee Lee xxxxxxx
