Hi everybody,
So like Jared said, we headed up from the islands back to Bangkok as we are now making our way to Cambodia, specifically Siem Reap.
We couldn't get a bus for Siem Reap for 48 hours, so we secured that ticket, found a hostel and had a bit of a power nap after our overnight train trip. It wasn't really a big deal we were 'stuck' in Bangkok because there was still lots left for us to do there. Here's some of the pics of what we got up to with our 2 days in Bangkok:
Wat Arun, also known as the Temple of Dawn. It was at one point the royal seat of power and housed the Emerald Buddha, until that was all moved across the river to the Royal Palace (remember that other blog a while ago?). The temple is decorated with broken porcelain, something that was once plentiful as it was used in Chinese ships for ballasts.
Wat Arun in the back, one of the many pics of the king in the foreground.
The next morning I went to a cooking class. Jared actually did not choose to partake. He's silly because it was AMAZING food. The dishes we cooked (pics in this order) were Pad Thai, Papaya Salad with Spring Rolls, Massaman Curry, Mango Sticky Rice:
Yes those were all my individual dishes!! And yes I ate all that food in about 3 hours! Jared was grossed out but I wore my food baby with pride that day. Here are some more random shots of that most wonderful experience:
That afternoon we went to Wat Pho, most famous for the enormous Reclining Buddha housed inside. Use the people in the pics to see how huge this Buddha is!
Final stop of the day: Chinatown
It really got bumping after dark, but there was still an endless labyrinth of stalls in little side streets to explore at any time. Dried nuts, tea, mushrooms, random junk (most of it plastic), sea creatures (yes I saw fricking sea cucumbers), vegetables, dried fruit, whatever! And then repeats of everything over and over. I was sad to see so many restaurants for Shark Fin Soup. Dear China, if you're reading this please stop eating Shark Fin Soup, mmmk? Sharks have no place on land.
So by this point, we've walked a LOT. What's the remedy? Foot massages for 120 baht (just under $5). Let's go! On a hilarious side note Jared's masseuse accidentally slipped off while bending his leg and whacked him in the nuts. I'm sure there's a joke there about Thai massages with not so happy endings but I'll leave it to you.
After that we sat and people watched from a rooftop bar on Khao San Rd, never a dull moment.
The next day we took the bus from Bangkok to Siem Reap. It is kind of a weird system because you have to get out of the bus, get stamped out of Thailand, walk to Cambodia customs, get a tourist visa (pay the advertised price plus his bribe) then get in another line to get that visa stamped as you 'enter Cambodia.' There are really no signs marking any of this process after you get stamped out of Thailand, Jared and I walked right past everything the first time! And there's lots of scammers out there trying to make a buck, offering you Cambodian visas on the Thai side, where they basically just overcharge you then run to the same office you were supposed to go to and get your visa for you. And if you're not careful you can take a bus to the border that doesn't go any further and then you have to bugger around to find onward transport. The way we did it (Jared's idea) was very good though because it was basically idiot proof. If you got back to the bus on the Cambodian side without your visa they sent you back until it was right, waited for everyone and then off to Siem Riep-home of Angkor Wat and its complex of temples. Which, if you're wondering, will be the subject of the next blog. Bye for now!
Walking into Cambodia
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