Adventures in South East Asia

[John RTW]

Thanks Ash,

We're a little bit behind but trying to play catch up, trouble is we've also been socialising a lot with a dozen or so RTW riders that we keep bumping into, in this little old place called S E Asia.

More to come soon.

 

[John RTW]

Dinosaurs and Festivals

11th to 18th Feb

The following morning we hit the road, bound for the small town of Savannakhet. What should have been a smooth 130km ride was marred when a young girl of about 15 on a scooter, after looking right at us, and misjudging our speed (70kmph on a big highway) pulled out right in front of us. Fortunately, the ABS kicked in, giving John the ability to swerve around her. Had we been on the old Bullet, or any bike without ABS, we were in no doubt that we would have killed her. This was John’s first experience of ABS braking on a bike and we were both so grateful that it saved the day.

Arriving in Savannakhet it didn’t take long to find out that the place wasn’t too big and there wasn’t a lot to do here. We had come here to obtain new tourist visas for Thailand. They are free of charge until the end of March, so we thought we’d get the freebies while still available.

Savannakhet has its fair share of old French colonial architecture​

The day after we arrived was Kelly’s birthday, the big 3-0, and the best we could find to celebrate the milestone was a trip to the local dinosaur museum. Unfortunately it was shut on the weekend, so poor old Kelly had to make do with a birthday cake and dinner at a swanky French restaurant.

Notice the two Koalas I had specially made​

We were getting bored and keen to hit the road again, and calculated that we would still have time to get the Thai visas in Cambodia, so decided not hang around here after all. We’d read reports that it can take 3 working days, and we couldn’t face staying here that long! On the morning of our departure, we did visit the Dinosaur Museum, not sure what to expect initially as the power was out when we arrived! When the lights did eventually turn on, we found a quaint little room housing a few bones. Nothing spectacular, but dinosaur buffs would probably enjoy it…

The foot of a Tangvayosaurus Hoffeti (very big dinosaur)

This 17 year old German Shepherd has complete hind limb paralysis, apparently as a result of a road trauma. His owners try to care for him as best they can, but he was emaciated, fly blown (maggots) around his genitals, and in obvious discomfort. In the western world, his quality of life would be deemed to be poor, and euthanasia would be recommended. Buddhism condones 'killing', so euthanasia isn't an option in this case.​

It had rained overnight, quite heavily, and leaving Savannakhet we put the liners on under our jackets for protection against the cold chill. It was quite refreshing as normally we ride in the scorching heat. As we got further south, we were glad to remove the liners as it got much warmer and we’d started to sweat profusely in the jackets. We were headed south for Champasak, site of the UNESCO World Heritage listed site of Wat Phu Champasak. It turned out that there was an annual 3 day festival, due to start a couple of days after our arrival.

After the turn off from the main highway 13 after Pakse, we were surprised to come to a ferry terminal – Champasak was on the other side of the Mekong. We got there in great time and were the last onto the vehicle ferry. The charge was 20,000 kip – but later found out they had charged us double, we hadn’t even thought to query it. We were wiser the next time coming back as no one likes to be ripped off.

Went with the car ferry as it seemed a little more sturdier​

Across the river, the first guest house we looked at turned out to be pretty nice, right alongside the Mekong. The only snag was that the tariff was going to rise by 50% over the 3 day festival. We gathered that this would probably happen everywhere, as the small village was swamped with tourists (mainly Lao) and decided to stay here anyway. It was a lovely place to relax, but we realised we had made an error in judgement… and had run out of cash! We had been led to believe that there was no ATM in town, so John rode back to Pakse to get more money out. At the festival, we found a mobile ATM operating out of a minivan, oops.

Sticky Rice seller on the ferry​

The Wat was located about 15km from our guest house, and hearing that things would be kicking off at 1500, we set off at 1430. The road was very busy, with scooters, buses, songtheuws and tractors all packed with people heading in. After parking the bike amongst hundreds of scooters, we walked in, and were amazed at the number of people, just everywhere! There was a parade ground that most people were standing on the edge of, waiting for some kind of ceremony to start. We had a wander through the markets that had been set up, and hadn’t even sighted the Wat yet. Eventually a big parade started, with a marching band, followed by groups of people from all the provinces of Laos, showcasing their local specialities (such as Durian, warriors, temples, etc). Most participants looked extremely bored. The parade ended with some elephants, then we went to see the Wat. As we approached it, we decided not to bother today! There were literally thousands of people clambering all over it, so we decided to try to return when it was a little quieter.

A big turn out for the annual Wat Phu Festival

The litter elsewhere in the festival grounds made this look more like a landfill site​

This part of the ruins was fenced off, making picture taking a lot easier​

We had paid 5000k to park, and were a bit surprised to be asked for another 5000k as we left – after watching the locals, it seemed it wasn’t a scam, but we thought it odd to have to pay an entry and an exit fee!

We didn’t bother going in on the second day, but went early on the third day to witness the alms giving ceremony. The road leading up to the Wat was lined with hundreds of locals, each with big piles of offerings for the monks. The monks slowly filed past, accepting sticky rice, sweets, cakes and kip from the devoted Festival goers. Each monk had a helper, who carried a large hessian sack to store the loot – and there was a lot of it! We saw most monks every so often slip a wad of cash into a pocket in their robes, they did very well out if it we think!

After the alms giving was over, we went for a walk up to the Wat. The ruins were quite pretty, but we were horrified, and wondered what UNESCO would think if they had seen the state of it, and the grounds housing it! There was litter everywhere.

Plenty of cash is donated

Cannot confirm or deny that one of these monks has slipped a few quid into his own pocket​

We returned later in the evening, as we had been told 4000 lanterns were to be lit. We assumed they were the prayer lanterns that are released into the sky, which would have been quite a spectacle, but it turned out to be oil lanterns lit around the temple site. Not quite what we had hoped for, but still quite eye catching. We were going to go back for a walk through the ruins, but were asked for an admission fee this time (while 1000s of locals streamed in at no cost). We, along with other foreign tourists, decided against it – the place was a real mess and not worth the admission fee. In hindsight it would have been better to visit while the festival wasn’t on, but it was certainly an interesting place, and we met many friendly Lao people from all over the country, and even a few who had emigrated to the US, and had returned as a sort of pilgrimage, and that made the visit worth it.

Not quite the lanterns we were expecting​

 

[John RTW]

Laos, all done

Start of feb 19 – 26

From Champasak, we detoured a little to head north to the Bolaven Plateau. It was a scenic ride, climbing in altitude, through banana and coffee plantations. We stopped in the small village of Tad Lo for the night, and once unpacked, went for a ride to further explore the local area. There are quite a few waterfalls and the first one we visited, the Tad Soung Waterfall, was accessed through a small village, and then down a very steep path. As it is the dry season, there was only a trickle of water – in the wet it is the largest waterfall in the area. On the way back we stopped at the Tad Lo falls, which were more impressive. When we got back to the bike, we found it surrounded by the local villagers, kids and adults alike. John offered to take some of the boys for a ride. Initially reluctant, a couple of youngsters braved a ride, and then he had them all queuing up! As they were only small, they easily squeezed 3 on behind him. The look of joy on their faces was just priceless.

On route a lady selling the foul smelling fruit durian, having had a taste it didn't seem too bad

Only a trickle, shame I haven't got the shot to give it some scale

A posher form of motorcycle taxi in Asia​

Back at the guesthouse, our friends John and Jane had arrived. They are travelling 2 up on a Tenere, and we met at the HU meeting back in Chiang Mai in January. It was great to see them again, and we will be spending the next few days travelling together down towards Cambodia.

Some of the smaller falls at the bottom in Tad Lo​

We enjoyed Tad Lo so much we opted to stay another day, and take a day trip out to see more of the Bolaven Plateau. We rode through more banana and coffee plantations, and past large piles of coffee beans drying in the sun, to Sekong. It was a great ride. We’d read that the local UXO office was worth a visit. It took a while to find but unfortunately was a bit of a let down. From Sekong, we’d intended to ride a loop back to Tad Lo, however on speaking to someone who’d attempted to ride it yesterday, we decided against it. It was a construction site, and combined with the recent rains, was more of a mud run. In Champasak we’d met an experienced dirt biker who had attempted it from the other end, and had also given up. 2-up on our heavy beast isn’t too much fun in the off road, so we were more than happy to turn around and ride back the way we came. We stopped off at a small coffee plantation and were shown the process from picking the beans, to drying them, removing the husks (?) and bagging them up. Kelly the coffee drinker was loving the rich smell of fresh coffee beans, but poor John can’t stand coffee!

Some of the unexploded ordnance at the bomb disposal compound

Coffee beans prior to de-husking spread out on the owners forecourt​

The following day we set off with Jane and John, bound for the 4000 Islands in the far south of the country. Following route 13, it was a bit of a boring ride, but once we arrived at the gateway town to the islands, things got more interesting.

We’d been pre-warned about the ‘boat mafia’, and as instructed bypassed the official ticket booth to deal directly with the boat drivers. We had a good deal organised at 20,000k/bike (£1.75), when 2 young American guys on mopeds pushed ahead of us. They didn’t care what they paid, as they were hosts of a TV show, with all expenses paid. Not only did they take the ferry we’d organised, we also lost our bargaining power, and ended up paying 3.5x as much, the boys were not impressed. Loading the ferry (actually 2 canoes with a platform and an outboard motor) was entertaining for the girls - Tenere John went first, carefully up onto the ramp, then BMW John gave a little too much revs and almost rode over and into the water on the other side. We’d just set off when the motor spluttered and conked out - great. On arrival at Don Det, we were a little alarmed at the ramp to get up onto the island. The bikes came off the ferry, into a little sandy beach, with a steep incline and a pallet ramp at the top. It looked a bit treacherous for a heavy bike fully loaded! In the end it wasn’t so bad, and the 2 bikes made it up without too much drama.

The ferry mafia had beaten us, with sunset on the way it was time to get going

John, Jayne and Kelly

The steep angle of the run up doesn't look too bad on the pic, a small local bike had no problems, a big bike at night made it a little more interesting​

We spent a few days relaxing on Don Det, the most notable part was a long boat ride out to see the endangered Irrawaddy dolphin. Unfortunately they were miles away, but it was reassuring to see they actually do still exist. On the boat trip back to the island, our captain decided to take a short cut. All of a sudden the boat hit a rock, which caused a major tilt to the starboard (left), and we very nearly capsized! The water wasn’t cold, and it wouldn’t have been a disaster if we’d gotten wet, but we were very concerned that all of our camera gear would be ruined. Thanks to good team work, and the captain jumping in to push us off the rock, we made it back unscathed, phew.

On the way back from dolphin spotting we passed this herd of buffalo settling in the dust for the night​

On leaving Don Det, we had similar issues with the ferry, those Americans stole out boat, for the second time! Once we were back on the mainland, we found the route back to the road had turned into a muddy, sandy construction zone. There’s never a dull moment here. The 2 Johns constructed a safe path through and soon enough we were on our way to the Cambodian border.

Sand, mud and gravel, mmm lovely​

The border crossing didn’t take too long, but there were a few annoyances. Lao customs was great, the carnets were stamped out immediately. We were asked for 10,000 kip for an exit stamp out of Laos, obviously not an official fee. We demanded a receipt, but the official wasn’t interested, and in the end we made a big deal of putting the money in the passports and taking lots of pics. Don’t trust this man! It wasn’t a lot of money, but on principle, we don’t like to pay bribes.

Not a lot of money, but the principle of giving a high ranking government employee a donation/fee is not on​

Next we passed over to the Cambodian side. First up was a temperature check, that’ll be $1 thanks. We asked for a receipt, and funnily enough, were provided with one. In immigration, we each paid $25 for our visas, which we were pretty certain included a couple of dollars worth of bribes. Surprisingly, the carnets were stamped at no charge. Finally, we needed an entry stamp into Cambodia. They wanted $2 each for this, but we haggled it down to $1. With all of that done, we were free to ride into Cambodia.

 

[John RTW]

A quick correction. The lady in the top pic has Jackfruit in it, the durian was elsewhere on her stall.

 

[Mr K]

A quick correction. The lady in the top pic has Jackfruit in it, the durian was elsewhere on her stall.

Obviously

Enjoying the report.

 

[John RTW]

Cambodia

25th Feb to 5th Mar 11

Riding into Cambodia from Laos, there was an immediate noticeable difference. The main highway was in good shape, the fields were large, fertile and well organised, and the people seemed even friendlier than the Lao. This was mainly due to the fact that more Cambodians learn English, and aren’t shy about coming up and saying hello. We had learnt a small amount of the Lao language out of necessity, but in Cambodia, we found that the people were really eager to speak in English, to improve their skills.

About 60km from the border, we pulled into Stung Treng for a cool drink. We got fuel and were served by a friendly woman in a matching pyjama set, which seems to be the national costume here. We rode on to Kratie, another town on the Mekong, and stopped for the night.

The following day we had an interesting walk through the local market, enthralled with the method of purchasing ice. It is stored as a big block in an esky, and small blocks are sawn off to order. They are carried off in the heat of the day in a plastic bag. Later, we rode to the small village of Kampi, in a bid to get a better look at the Irrawaddy dolphin. They are quite unique in appearance, and have a snub nose rather than the traditional bottlenose. The boats were better organised here, and off we set, just before sunset. There were plenty of dolphins about, seeming to play with the boats. We got up much closer than previously, and to top it off enjoyed a lovely sunset over the Mekong.

I think a big bucket of Baileys would be the next purchase

Good timing for sunset​

The ride to Kampong Cham was an interesting one, and allowed us to get used to the Cambodian style of driving. There seem to be an awful lot of shiny new Lexus 4WDs here, and they own the road. We hit lots of road works today, where the road was reduced to one lane with big piles of gravel either side and the Lexus’s and buses just wouldn’t budge an inch to let us through. It makes for interesting riding. Compared to Laos, where there just wasn’t much traffic on the roads, this requires a lot more active concentration. In Kompong Cham, we found accommodation, then went for a walk around town. We found an incredible bamboo bridge, which is constructed by hand every year in the dry season, and washes away in the wet, and decided that if pick up trucks could cross it, so could we.

Getting across was a challenge, as keeping your line was impossible, and we had to negotiate around bicycles, mopeds, 4WDs and horse carts. All good fun.

Not as easy as you would think​

Later, we walked through a temple complex, complete with its own crematorium. There were numerous young monks present, and several approached us for help with their English lessons. They were learning quite advanced skills, and we were most impressed with their keeness to learn and improve their lot in life. We were then led to a small enclosure within the complex housing what we later found out to be an Asian Bear Cat named Aussie. Aussie lives in a small makeshift cage that doubled as a storage area for the monastery's junk. We were provided with some Longan (similar to lychees) and instructed to peel them and feed them to him through the fence, which he clearly enjoyed. We felt so sorry for this magnificent creature being held in such awful conditions, and would have left the complex on a low, until a local English teacher stopped us on the way out. His philosophy on life was really positive and he was so hopeful for his country's future, we couldn't help but feel inspired.

On the way into Phnom Penh, we stopped for a drink in Skuon, known for its deep fried spiders. John was the only one of us game to eat one, and thought it wasn’t bad, a little sweet having been marinated in honey, with a fishy/bacon like taste. He preferred the deep fried frogs we tried in Kampong Cham!

Spider snackette, this one's days are numbered. Not a bad taste but preferred the frogs​

We arrived in Phnom Penh grateful for the recommendation of a good place to stay by fellow bikers, Lisa and Simon, who had arrived a few days before us. John and Jane stayed here too, so poor Kelly was completely outnumbered by Brits for the next few days.

We really enjoyed Phnom Penh. Just around the corner was a stall where we had fresh sugar cane juice made, just like we used to enjoy in India. At 25c a cup, you can’t go wrong! After visiting the Royal Palace, we headed to S21 to learn more about Cambodia’s recent history, and Pol Pot’s Khmer Rouge regime. S21 was a former high school that was used as a prison during that time, and is now a museum which depicts in graphic detail the horrific atrocities that occurred there. Next, a trip to Choueng Ek, also known as the Killing Fields this completed the story. Most prisoners ended up being executed here. Today, it is a quiet, peaceful place.

The story behind the pictures cannot be explained in great detail, a search on the history of Cambodia or Pol Pot will reveal a sorrowful past, the scariest thing is that this was happening not so long back.

All prisoners were photographed (notice the youngsters)​

The school, classrooms were converted into torture rooms and prison cells​

Torture room with a pic of the last person found murdered on the bed

People were hung upside down with their heads submerged in the pots full of human waste

The Choueng Ek Memorial

Many skulls and other bones are housed in the temple

The shallow graves, bones/teeth can still be seen on the surface, even near the footpaths you tread​

The skulls of babies and young children were bashed against the tree to save bullets​

We spent the next few days exploring the local area around our guesthouse, and socialising, before deciding it was time to hit the road again.

l-r, Kelly, Jane , Marijn, Lisa, Simon, Els, John, John​

 

[richie]

I like Johns Idea of RTW two years ago I met him in Chennai, he's made it to south east asia since.... Is there a world record for the longest way round.... Pun intended....

Keep going John, might meet you in the Philippines in about two years time

 

[John RTW]

Hi Richie,

Cheers for that, I'll be doing this global adventure at a slow plod, no need to rush back to grim old blighty, well hopefully not.

Philippines have been ticked off, done that bit while the poor old Bullet was heading back to the UK, wish I was heading back there as I've just done my PADI diving courses, as for two years time I hope to be setting foot in South America somewhere, can't wait.

Malaysia on Monday, another adventure to be had.

 

[John RTW]

Thanks Mr K,

Glad you're enjoying it, thought I better correct myself (attention to detail). I was a little late doing this elsewhere and I got picked up for it.

 

[davidgibson999]

Great report and photos

 

[Norrie]

Great Stuff

Norrie

 

[Ash]

Love this report John and the stunning pictures.
Ride safe

 

[John RTW]

Bugger

Thanks all for your comments,

Just another little mishap to add to the adventure, having just been on one of the least used roads in Malaysia, which was more like a racetrack we hit a smallish pothole at about 110kmph, only to find that the bike instantly had a seat height reduction to about 2ft.

The poor old suspension's been overworked for the last 6 months and now has given up the ghost, so now we're stuck in Kuala Terengganu, Malaysia hoping to get a new unit (YSS shock) asap to get us on the way.

No beer (there is, but it's bloody expensive) but the foods good so no let up on the poor old shock.

 

[mr_magicfingers]

Great report. I went round S21 a few years ago, we hired one of the local guides to tell us the stories. It was one of the most appalling things I've ever heard, and affected me so much that my normal snap happy self couldn't even bring my camera out.

Astonishing the hate and brutality that one person can inflict on another.

 

[John RTW]

Thanks Mr Magicfingers, yep it's really hard to get your head around how people can be so cruel. Our guide was also one of the lucky ones who lived and her stories of how she received her scars were unbelievable.

Hopefully no one will have to endure this sort of treatment ever again, but I doubt it with some of the horror stories coming out of the Congo.

 

[John RTW]

Phnom Penh - Siem Reap

6th to 11th March 2011

We’d really enjoyed Phnom Penh - both the city in general, and spending time with friends, and were a bit reluctant to leave. Next stop: Siem Reap, site of the Angkor temples. An hour into the journey, we found ourselves in a heavy downpour. Fortunately, it was still hot, so once it stopped we soon dried off. We didn’t bother to pull over to seek shelter, just slowed down and on we went. It was an entertaining ride with many ingenious forms of transport spotted, we managed to get shots of a girl crouched in a basket on the back of her partner’s moped, a moped overloaded with an unknown snack and our favourite, pigs being transported by basket.

We arrived in Siem Reap in the evening, and pulled into another recommended guest house. Their bartering skills need a bit of work:

John: “How much for a room?”
Them: “$18”
John: “But our friends paid $13!”
Them: “Ok, how about $11?”
John: “Perfect!”

The next morning, we met Franco, a Swiss biker riding a GS1200 around the world. We shared a tuk tuk for a tour of the temples, but first we had to purchase an entry pass. We rode to the entry booth and were immediately met by an aggressive policeman telling us to leave - no foreign bikes allowed in the complex. We couldn’t get a straight answer as to why, but got our tickets and left. The next morning at the ungodly hour of 5am, we met Franco and the tuk-tuk driver and set off for our first day in the temples. We got into place, hoping for the much sought after sunrise shot over Angkor Wat. In the dark, Kelly unknowingly sat on an ant’s nest, and not long after the stings/bites were settling, the heavens opened and everyone went running for cover. There was no sunrise, just heavy, heavy rain. We felt sorry for the tourists who had only one opportunity to visit - we had 2 more days to get ‘the shot’ if we needed. We bought ponchos and headed into the central part of Angkor Wat in the now light drizzle. Kelly had been here in 2007, and remembered the steep stone steps with no handrails, and the excitement of climbing up, then clambering back down, with little thought to health and safety. Times have changed now though, and there is a very civilised wooden staircase to climb up now.

Sunrise at Angkor Wat: the first morning the heavens opened

Photographer's nightmare, scaffolding and green netting

A long way down​

Once we’d had our fill of Angkor Wat, we found our tuk-tuk driver and headed off for Angkor Thom and its Bayon Temple, with the many stone faces. We all found this temple the most interesting of all the Angkor Temples, and having visited it second, none after compared to it. After a couple of hours, we were knackered (not morning people really!) and went home for the day, prepared for another 5am start to get that morning shot of Angkor Wat.

Bayon Temple

The Bayon Temple known for its many faces

The second attempt at a sunrise shot was more successful, but to be honest, the rest of the temples passed by in a bit of a blur. We’ve seen so many temples on our travels, we really are truly templed out. Thankfully Franco was feeling the same way.* The boys returned in the afternoon for a promised ‘sunset over Angkor Wat’. They scrambled up a hill with hundreds of other tourists, only to see Angkor Wat in the far distance - they were not impressed!

Sunrise over Angkor Wat

Ta Prohm Temple, this bit featured in one of the Tomb Raider films​

Our ticket was valid for 3 days, so on the third day we decided to do something different. We rode our bikes back to the entrance, and visited the tourist police office there. We enquired politely about the possibility of getting the bikes in, to have a picture in front of a temple, explaining we’d ridden a very long way to see them, and having a memento would be so special (blah blah blah!). We were told that we needed permission from the Apsara Authority who run the site, and were given directions to their office. Well do you think we could find the place?! In the end we gave up, and rode out to one final temple, stopping at a Land Mine Museum on the way. It was an interesting place, initially set up to look after landmine victims, but as the years have passed, there are fortunately fewer accidents, and it now takes in orphans and disadvantaged kids, giving them a safe home and education. The founder, Aki Ra, planted thousands of mines in his youth as a young Khmer Rouge soldier. He has since devoted his life to recovering and disabling landmines and other unexploded ordinance throughout the country, and caring for those affected by landmine injuries. He was one of CNN’s inspirational people of the year in 2010, and after hearing his story, we can understand the accolade.

The centre piece is home to just a few bits of ordinance Aki Ra has recovered over the years

A lampshade painted by children, learning about the dangers of mines and UXO​

Riding home, we followed the signs back to Siem Reap, and suddenly found ourselves in front of an Angkor temple! John got the bike in position, and was taking a few snaps of it, as a policeman approached. Fearing we’d be told to leave, I prepared to stall him, so John could get the shots he wanted. To my surprise, he just wanted to look at the bikes, and proudly posed on our bike. Even better, he offered to sell us his police badge for only $30 (“but I can make it cheaper if you need”)!

A happy copper, even if he didn't get to sell us his police badge​

We bid farewell to Franco in the morning. He’d been great company over the past few days, and we have a similar route planned till Bangkok so no doubt we will meet again. We had a day to recover from the temples, then set off for our next destination, Battambang.

Due to the early start it's worth putting two of these sunrise shots up​

 

[Robbo1200ADV]

Great write up!! I love Cambodia ,and go there yearly with Globalenduro.We use XR 250 Baja's which are great.I agree the people are very friendly and its a beautiful place. Its changed so much in a year with Main tarmac roads replacing the red dirt track roads of last year .Its definitley a place to go to now before its changed to much,I could not believe the amount of deforestation you see as you ride through the countryside but I think its one of the best places in the world to ride a bike!!

 

[John RTW]

Thanks Robbo, glad you like the write up and there's still a little more to come from Cambodia. While we were in Kampong Cham (27 Feb) we had a group of off roaders stay at the hotel, I checked for your name but obviously no joy.

We're always a little slow on writing the blog but we hope to catch up soon. One day we might only be a month or two behind as you can probably tell we prefer riding to writing

 

[John RTW]

Battambang and Beyond

12 - 17 March 2011

Siem Reap - Battambang - Kampot - Kep

The ride from Siem Reap to Battambang was only 180km, on good roads, and we made it in no time. We had been warned of crazy traffic between Siem Reap and the Thai border, but didn’t encounter any. We got within 50km of the border, then headed south to the town of Battambang. The guest house we found allowed us to park inside the rather elaborate lobby, in fact the Chinese family who ran it felt honoured to have a “big bike” in their lobby as big bike = big luck. The town was an interesting little place. We visited a deserted Pepsi factory, which had operated until the Khmer Rouge took power in the 70s. The building was quite art deco, the grounds lovingly maintained by the local squatters, and there were still old pepsi bottles in crates inside. Part of the building appeared to have been gutted tho, a shame.

The disused Pepsi factory at Battambang​

We also took a ride out to Phnom Sampeau, a little way out of town. Yes, there were more temples here, but we avoided them, instead enjoying the view at the top of the hill. There were two cannons (a German and a Russian) parked up on the hill, still pointing at an old Khmer Rouge stronghold.* Also here was another ‘killing field’. This one, set in a cave, was a much more crude version compared to what we had seen in Phnom Penh, with a small memorial of skulls in place. We were shown around by two young boys of about 8 years of age, who told us in great detail how the people were killed. They spoke with no emotion, not understanding the seriousness of what had taken place, but enjoying showing the tourists around, and adding to their English repertoire. We bought them each a coke afterwards, which they slyly sold back to the vendor as we left - they will undoubtedly be shrewd businessmen when they grow up!

The Russian Field Gun

Phnom Sampeau Temple

The Killing Cave housing a reclining Buddha

A memorial to those who died here

Many were thrown to their death from the skylight, if lucky they had their throats cut first

Our guides, not as innocent as they seem

A local's house in Battambang with enough speakers to annoy the neighbours​

Leaving Battambang the next morning, we headed south east, aiming for Kampot, 400km away down near the south coast. After following the main highway for the best part of the day, Kelly’s trusty paper map said to stay on the highway, while the GPS suggested another route. After a little discussion we decided to give the alternate route a go, as it appeared to shave some distance off the journey, and also bypass Phnom Penh. We took the suggested turn off, stopped for a quick drink, and continued on. Within 5 minutes, the perfect highway had given way to roadworks, before turning into a broken, dusty, sandy trail. Oops. We slowed the pace and kept going, as the GPS said we’d turn off in 30km - we thought this meant back onto the highway heading south, and that would be the end of the detour. The trail continued, and became what can only be described as a mass of craters which were big enough to swallow the entire bike! We pushed on as the GPS was showing only a few kms to the turn off… when the countdown hit 0km, there was no turn off, it just clicked over and told us to continue and turn in 70km!

It was now 1700, and we were concerned about running out of light - the craters would be deadly in the dark. We knew the main highway was somewhere west of us, so took a small turning through a village and slowly made our way. There were no more craters, just a small trail which passed through small villages and rice fields, quite a beautiful place. At one point we stopped to ask if we were heading in the right direction, and a whole family came out to chat to us via their one English speaking member. A little way down the track, there was motion to our left, followed by a loud squeal, and something darted towards the front wheel. How we didn’t run it over we have no idea. Unfortunately the piglet made contact with John’s boot, and we most probably had our first road kill. Maybe it was knocked unconscious, but we felt it had more likely had an untimely end. We knew we should stop to offer money for it, but were concerned that we didn’t have enough cash on us, and weren’t sure how much would be expected… would we need to pay for the piglet’s worth now, or its potential worth as a boar or sow? We’ve heard about situations just like this, and as there was no one in the immediate vicinity to ask, decided to ride on. We both were a bit upset though, and felt awful at what had happened, thinking of the value of the piglet to its owner.

The road didn't start out too bad​

Our spirits brightened a little when at last, at dusk, we hit the highway, and rode it all the way down to Kampot. We’d ridden 460km, 60km more than anticipated. We’d learnt a lesson… trust the paper map over the technology of the GPS!

We found a guesthouse and enjoyed a well deserved hot shower. Thinking we’d have a quiet night in, we couldn’t even hear the telly for the noise of the wedding celebrations going on just down the road. It turned out it was wedding season, and there were weddings going on everywhere. The festivities included karaoke, which carried on until after 3am, so not much sleep was had.

Wedding venues take up at least half the width of the road

Two basket makers on the way to market​

From Kampot, we rode the short distance to Kep, a seaside village which had its heyday in the 1960s, where it was host to all the high society Cambodia had to offer. Now there’s some amazing crumbling old houses left to ruin. It is also famous for its crab, which we enjoyed one meal. The restaurant was over the sea, and after placing our order, we spotted someone wading out to a basket floating in the water, retrieving a couple of crabs, can’t get much fresher than that.

Such a shame to see beautiful old houses in ruin

Kep famous for it's crab and Kampot for it's black pepper​

The fisherman's wife statue in Kep, now tastefully covered up​

 

[richie]

Brings back memories for me John, nice snaps