Bangkok II - Thailand
6/1/05
This was our last day in Bangkok. We went to the National Museum and on the way we got to try something weird. They call it ice cream sandwich but I would call it cold dog, since it is a hot dog bread sliced and filled with lots of ice cream.
The National Museum was very interesting; we watched a short very well-done movie about Thailand's history.
From the Museum we went to check the city's recreation place, the Lumphini Park. Although it was so hot that you could fry an egg on the sidewalk, we were very very surprised to see so many bodybuilders exercising hard under the killing sun. While we could barely walk, they were lifting weights.
Next to the park is the Night Bazar which was obviously closed.
From there we went to Patpong, the Place Pigalle of Bangkok. I was really curious to see the ping pong show but at end we did not go.
From there to Chinatown was a long walk but also a good way to see the non touristy neighborhoods. When we were approaching Chinatown we crossed a neighborhood that is probably the destination of all stolen cars in Bangkok. There were hundreds and hundreds of shops disassembling engines of all kinds on the sidewalk, there were piles and piles of car parts and alike.
From Chinatown we took a bus back to Khao San Rd.
6/2/05
Our time in Thailand was over. Nepal and Thailand are two favorite countries so far. Actually we loved the South of Thailand where people were so friendly and welcoming whereas Bangkok is full of hasslers. We left at 7 A.M. on a bus heading to Siem Reap, Cambodia.
We knew from other travellers and from some blog on the Internet that the trip from Bangkok to Siem Reap wasn't going to be easy because on the Cambodian side the road was quite bad. Also, we bought the trip from one of the tour agencies in Khao San Rd and it is well known that they play many tricks on tourists to make money, selling the bus ticket initially very cheap. But the ticket was so cheap (200 Baht - 1 US$=40 Baht) that we decided to take it anyway.
The first half of the journey was easy with no surprises. We were first brought to a restaurant close to the border but far from everything else. There the food is overpriced and also a 'helpful' guy came to help with the Cambodian visa, also an overpriced service.
Prepared, we had food with us and we had made our visas back in Malaysia, so we were not that profitable for them.
From the restaurant, where we had to wait for more then 1:30 hour, we were all put on the back of a truck that took us to the border. At the border we had no surprises, we walked across, into Cambodia, where a couple of motorbikes were waiting for us. We were brought to a kind of cafe and waited a bit more until everyone was done. Then they offered us to change money on an unfair rate, which we did not do either. From here we were split into two other mini-bus, much worse then the aircon bus used in Thailand.
Once we got to the road we understood why a nice bus can't travel here. There is no pavement, just a dirt path full of pot holes.
After 2 hours of shaking, we stopped for dinner, also overpriced, but we still had some fruits and we didn't have to touch cash again. Instead of going to the restaurant we walked around.
Cambodia is much poorer than its neighbors. From the two first hours of ride we could see from the window the basic houses in which they live. Most of the houses have a small open tank of water next to it; since there is no water supply they have to manage themselves.
What you see below is a gas station. There are no pumps; they keep the petrol in disposable soda bottles. There are many station like this in Cambodia.
When it got dark we noticed that many houses had blue and green lamps around the house, like the long fluorescent ones, and we found out later that it is used to attract and catch crickets and other bugs for eating. The green light is used to attract snakes, another delicacy.
Arriving in Siem Reap, we had another shock. It was such a contrast with the countryside we just crossed. Everything looked nice, luxury hotels were all over, the streets were paved and well illuminated. Unfortunately those places aren't for Cambodians, there are all waiting for the tourists.
The driver stopped lots of time on the way and made us wait on the way to make sure we arrive late in Town exactly as told by other travellers. Then, they tell you that the streets are very dangerous to walk around at night and bring you to a hotel where they get a good commission for each guest that stays there.
Well, we checked the room, why not? And it was cheap and clean, so we stayed right there. It was around 10 PM by then.
This was our last day in Bangkok. We went to the National Museum and on the way we got to try something weird. They call it ice cream sandwich but I would call it cold dog, since it is a hot dog bread sliced and filled with lots of ice cream.
The National Museum was very interesting; we watched a short very well-done movie about Thailand's history.
From the Museum we went to check the city's recreation place, the Lumphini Park. Although it was so hot that you could fry an egg on the sidewalk, we were very very surprised to see so many bodybuilders exercising hard under the killing sun. While we could barely walk, they were lifting weights.
Next to the park is the Night Bazar which was obviously closed.
From there we went to Patpong, the Place Pigalle of Bangkok. I was really curious to see the ping pong show but at end we did not go.
From there to Chinatown was a long walk but also a good way to see the non touristy neighborhoods. When we were approaching Chinatown we crossed a neighborhood that is probably the destination of all stolen cars in Bangkok. There were hundreds and hundreds of shops disassembling engines of all kinds on the sidewalk, there were piles and piles of car parts and alike.
From Chinatown we took a bus back to Khao San Rd.
6/2/05
Our time in Thailand was over. Nepal and Thailand are two favorite countries so far. Actually we loved the South of Thailand where people were so friendly and welcoming whereas Bangkok is full of hasslers. We left at 7 A.M. on a bus heading to Siem Reap, Cambodia.
We knew from other travellers and from some blog on the Internet that the trip from Bangkok to Siem Reap wasn't going to be easy because on the Cambodian side the road was quite bad. Also, we bought the trip from one of the tour agencies in Khao San Rd and it is well known that they play many tricks on tourists to make money, selling the bus ticket initially very cheap. But the ticket was so cheap (200 Baht - 1 US$=40 Baht) that we decided to take it anyway.
The first half of the journey was easy with no surprises. We were first brought to a restaurant close to the border but far from everything else. There the food is overpriced and also a 'helpful' guy came to help with the Cambodian visa, also an overpriced service.
Prepared, we had food with us and we had made our visas back in Malaysia, so we were not that profitable for them.
From the restaurant, where we had to wait for more then 1:30 hour, we were all put on the back of a truck that took us to the border. At the border we had no surprises, we walked across, into Cambodia, where a couple of motorbikes were waiting for us. We were brought to a kind of cafe and waited a bit more until everyone was done. Then they offered us to change money on an unfair rate, which we did not do either. From here we were split into two other mini-bus, much worse then the aircon bus used in Thailand.
Once we got to the road we understood why a nice bus can't travel here. There is no pavement, just a dirt path full of pot holes.
After 2 hours of shaking, we stopped for dinner, also overpriced, but we still had some fruits and we didn't have to touch cash again. Instead of going to the restaurant we walked around.
Cambodia is much poorer than its neighbors. From the two first hours of ride we could see from the window the basic houses in which they live. Most of the houses have a small open tank of water next to it; since there is no water supply they have to manage themselves.
What you see below is a gas station. There are no pumps; they keep the petrol in disposable soda bottles. There are many station like this in Cambodia.
When it got dark we noticed that many houses had blue and green lamps around the house, like the long fluorescent ones, and we found out later that it is used to attract and catch crickets and other bugs for eating. The green light is used to attract snakes, another delicacy.
Arriving in Siem Reap, we had another shock. It was such a contrast with the countryside we just crossed. Everything looked nice, luxury hotels were all over, the streets were paved and well illuminated. Unfortunately those places aren't for Cambodians, there are all waiting for the tourists.
The driver stopped lots of time on the way and made us wait on the way to make sure we arrive late in Town exactly as told by other travellers. Then, they tell you that the streets are very dangerous to walk around at night and bring you to a hotel where they get a good commission for each guest that stays there.
Well, we checked the room, why not? And it was cheap and clean, so we stayed right there. It was around 10 PM by then.
posted by Adriano and Angie | 6:00 AM
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