Archive for February, 2002
Oh glorious paved road! What an easy day it was today compared to just 2 days ago. Having a paved tarmac made all the difference in the world. No dust, no bumps, no rocks, no sand! It was SO nice.
We left Kompong Thom at 7:30am to get an early start in an attempt to beat the heat. We were doing really good on time and were both feeling pretty good. The traffic still was not bad at all – an occasional truck, car, or motorbike, but NOTHING like Vietnam. Every hour or so we stopped for the usual break of a cold Coke, fresh sugar cane juice, or some fresh fruit from one of the many stands on the road. We stopped for lunch at one of the towns and had some fried veggies and rice, then relaxed there for a bit because we knew we had all day to get there.
Then, later in the day, we were going over a bridge and Peter’s chain broke! This was the first time in over 10 years he told me that this ever happened to him. We looked for the piece that broke off but couldn’t find it. In the meantime we had gathered the usual crowd of curious onlookers and it was HOT in the sun…but luckily Peter knew how to fix it straightaway and after a few minutes we were back on the road again. I am so much more enjoying the cycling here than in Vietnam – the people are so much friendlier and kind and willing to help – a totally different atmosphere. Everyone says hello or smiles or waves as we ride by. It’s great.
When we arrived at Skuon we were hot and tired but happy to be here. Nothing to say about this town at all…kind-of dull and not a nice hotel. This town is known for eating a lot of gigantic spiders and although we looked around, we didn’t see any. We think the spider-eating thing may be affecting the locals – weird place. Happy to be heading to Phnom Phen (big city) tomorrow!
Miles Biked Today: 55.97 (89 km)
Time: 4 hours 40 minutes
Passing by a funeral in the early morning (note: PAVED road!)
Curious onlookers watching the chain fixing show
Just a few minutes later and we are cycling again!
February 28th, 2002
Yesterday was a VERY long, hot, and tiring day. It was over 40C (that’s 105F) and the road was unpaved for the entire day. It was impossible to get any speed with all the loose rock and dust on the road.
We left Kompong Kdey early (7:30am) and did not arrive here in Kompong Thom until sunset nearly at 6pm. We had to take a lot of breaks to just get a rest from the oppresive heat. When we stopped for lunch at the 40 km mark I was feeling nauseous, weak, and exhausted from the heat. The thought of doing another 50 km was daunting. Peter got me motivated to keep going by tempting me with a day off today though and it seemed to work because after a good rest and some food I felt much better. It was also tempting to keep going because we knew if we could get here then the worst of the road conditions would be behind us. Good road (ie paved) is meant to be from here to Phnom Phen – another 165 km. It felt so good to get here last night! We showered all the many layers of dust and dirt off, then ate and slept (well actually not so much sleep for me – I’ve been having problems with the MSG in the food giving me insomnia, but that’s another story).
So today we stayed in Kompong Thom and hired 2 motorbike drivers to take us to some temples about 30 km north of town. There are over 100 temples up that way (in the forest) and it was nice to walk around and enjoy them without the crowds of tourists like at Angkor Wat (we only saw one other tourists there). The afternoon was spent cleaning bike chains, tightening loose screws, etc, etc, preparing the diva for more riding tomorrow. We hope to get in 90 km and with an early start and better road I am hoping for a good day.
Miles Biked: 53.39 (89 km)
Time: 5 hours 49 minutes
The sign for Kompong Thom – what a welcomed site after such a long day!
The sun setting just as we arrived in town
More temple touring on our rest day
February 27th, 2002
Peter and I got up early this morning, had breakfast, paid the guest house bill, sent postcards, bought water, and were on the road at 8:30am. The first 10 miles or so of road was paved but after that we hit the DIRT. Dirt road from Siam Reap to Kompong Thom is the word on the street. I was imagining it to be horrific after hearing people talk about it, with potholes and sand traps everywhere, but it actually wasn’t that bad. I mean it was a bit slow but it was do-able. Mostly just small rocks and bumpy sections.
We were lucky in the morning because there was good cloud cover but eventually the sun broke through and then it was HOT. Several sugar cane juice and Coca-Cola breaks along the way were well-needed and deserved. The scenery was flat and dry with some trees along the way and there were many wooden houses and huts on stilts. The Cambodian people are definitely much friendlier than the Vietnamese, Peter and I both agreed. Also there is almost no traffic on the road so no truck horns or near motorbike collisions to deal with. The guesthouse we found for the night is quiet and clean – so happy to have found a decent place off the beaten track. Tomorrow we hope for an early start (6:30am) and then another 70 km to Kompong Thom.
Miles Biked Today: 37.35 (70 km)
Time: 3 hours 58 minutes
Taking a break from the dust and heat
Peter forging a path through the rocks and sand
Historic bridge at the end of the day – shower soon!
February 25th, 2002
More of the same the past 2 days – visiting temples all day and eating good food at night. There really isn’t anything else to do here anyway. So many temples to see – you could easily spend a week here and still not see it all. The motorbike was a good way to get out to some of the far away temples but I can’t say I enjoy riding on the back of a motorbike with no helmet very much. It’s just the way they do it here but it just doesn’t feel all that safe. The temples have been beautiful. It is so worth it to get up for the sunrise and stay until sunset to see the change in lighting on the various temples.
This afternoon Peter and I will head back to Angkor Wat to see the sunset there and then I think I will officially be templed-out. Tomorrow we hope to start cycling south to Phnom Phen. The road is supposed to be really bad for the first stretch so we really have no idea how long it will take – we are guessing between 3 and 5 days to get to Phnom Phen. There probably won’t be much in the way of internet along the way so the next update will most likely be from Phnom Phen..
A monk in the temple at Bakong
Angkor Wat
Detail on the temples at Banteay Srei
February 24th, 2002
Previous Posts