Thailand Part Deux!

Thailand Part Deux!

I have a confession to make….I’ve been doing absolutely nuffin for the most part on my return to the Land of a Thousand Smiles (that really should be ‘roadworks’ not ‘smiles’.) I hibernated in a small motel about a K from the beach in Sattahip which is predominantly a military base for Thailand. I arrived in time for the Loi Krathong – the Thai Lantern Festival – quite an assault on the senses but magical to be part of it. You can buy a lantern or a small floating flower boutique with a candle which is then lit and sent out to sea- I did the latter. There was also a feast of food opportunities and Thai boxing. As I approached the boxing ring there was a familiar red Corcaigh GAA shirt on a young lad, so I said hi….turns out he’s from Ballincollig…where I lived for many years 🤣.

I was able to rent a moped so drove to the beach, went swimming, went to the open markets and popped in to Pattaya to try find some US Dollars for Cambodia visa on arrival…..not so easy as it turns out.

I also immersed myself in my reading and listening to Gabor Mate – he’s a feckin legend!

Trauma isn’t what happened to us, it’s what happens inside of us as as result of what happened to us

On Saturday I kitted up for the first time in a week and threw my leg over Bob to realise that those pains in my hip/leg….were still very much present 🥲. I eased in to the riding with an opening day of 70k, then a 90, and then a 110, before the final push to the border of only 60k. The winds were very unfavourable and at times the rain was pretty full on but overall it was a straight forward ‘transfer’ to the Cambodia border. Bobs tipping away quietly – probably just so happy he’s not back in France! On Sunday for the first time I met two groups of cyclists – one group at a coffee shop who treated me to breakfast, and another large group I jumped on to – I got a ‘free’ ride for nearly 20k but it was too fast and I was starting to cramp in the 35 degree day. So, uncharacteristically for me, I simply pulled off and twiddled my way to my next stop.
I stayed at a Warm Shower host on Tuesday night – she put me in a small Thai house all to myself, which was a real experience to live right in the community…all except the dogs which barked all night! I got to go to small Thai eateries snd really savour the true Thai lifestyle, which was wonderful.
On Wednesday I set off for the border not really knowing what to expect. It was, actually, very easy….except I had to get me and Bob upstairs to the passport control which was hilarious fun, with border guards helping lift Bob over turnstiles and up escalators and down stairs….they haven’t really thought that through!

Well….talk about borders magically transforming a place across a line – Boom….within 10 seconds of getting to Cambodia you bloody well knew you were…in Cambodia. The roads were atrocious, the traffic beyond comprehension, the noise deafening and the poverty right in your face. Poipet, where I crossed, is quite simply a nightmare! I got on the road after catching my breath – and within 60k nearly got obliterated on the road on three occasions. There was no hard shoulder, and traffic simply did whatever it bloody well liked. The danger isn’t from behind – it’s what’s coming at you from in front. At one point a lorry was overtaking a motorbike coming toward me….and in turn the lorry was being overtaken by a car…all on my side of the road….whilst I was being overtaken from behind. I shate myself! It happens over and over – quite simply, madness. All you can do is get off the road as these guys ain’t stopping for you, or anyone! Or anything. After two days of this I figured out that the rule is this -“I’m going to overtake even tho I know there’s no room..,it’s you who has to take evasive action, not me..,.I’m coming through, it’s up to you if you hit me or not!” That’s it.

I have been riding for 6 straight days now, and by Thursday night I’d had enough and was suffering from heat exposure as I pulled in to Siem Reap, the town adjacent to Ankhor Wat, one of the 7 wonders of the world. So I have booked myself in to a cheap hotel for a few days to recover. To be honest, I’m ‘over’ Cambodia-it simply is too dangerous. The heat is oppressive and the wind has me doing 14/15kph so, it’s miserable! I’ll head to the Vietnamese border as soon as I’ve applied for my visa 😊.