The coach journey started off slowly as the driver and crew waited for at least half an hour for more passengers to board and all the while with the bus stationery it meant that the air conditioning wasn't working either and it was starting to get awfully hot inside, especially as I was wearing long sleeves and jeans with this being the only way I can ever fit everything into my rucksack.
I had expected the English speaking coach ticket salesman to board as well, but he finally waved us off and we were gone, around 2pm and without me knowing exactly what time we would be arriving in Phnom Penh.
The coach went past village after village and each of them looked poorer that the one before, yet whenever we came across a temple they were always prefectly constructed and probably cost more to build and maintain that the entire rest of the village put together. In this fact they shared a lot with Thailand and yet out here in the sticks there were no tourists, as the towns were too small to be on any map and too recent to be considered historical, so why they bother all for their faith when their families and children are starving and risking catching disease on a daily basis is beyond me.
The coach stopped twice on the route and the restaurants nearby were the very dirty greasy spoon variety and as I had left in a rush I had not bought any good food for the trip so eventually hunger drover me to join them for some rice and undefined meat. This turned out to be a mistake as not only was it cold but it disagreed with me internally as I was to find out tomorrow afternoon.
My friend called me once on the road to ask for a time and location for my arrival, but as noone else on the coach spoke any English I was unable to give her any, but I kept her up to date periodically with text messages saying when I passed any major landmarks.
Dusk came and still we were on the road, which did not bode well, as I had hoped to get back during daylight but ni the end it was 8pm when we finally stopped and unloaded. The station was a darkand unwelcoming place and so I ventrued back towards the main road where I then called my friend for a pickup and ride back to the guest house where she works.
I really think that I should have looked before I sat down, as soon I had red ants crawling all over my shoes and jeans, biting me and looking down I only then realised I must have been literally on top of an entrace to an underground nest. Shaking them off in the light of the nearby shop front was no easy task but thankfully I was not bite any more and then my friend arrived offering a ride and a familiar face.
The guest house where she worked was not too far away and although the did not have internet or wifi, which was a pain for me, they did at least have a warm, comfortable and clean room which was all that I could ask for at such short notice.
Once we arrived I stopped long enough only for me to drop off my rucksack and have a quick shower before we were off to a restaurant which she strongly recommended as a great place to eat. We then made arrangements to meet up the following lunchtime, after her half day work as a receptionist and then she got the tuk tuk driver to drop her off before taking me back to the guest house.
I was a little tired but thought that I had enough energy left to just try and see what the local area had in the terms of bars and clubs, however without a map I did not feel confortable going too far and after walking up and down the main road for ten minutes without seing anything open worth a second glance I gave up and went back to catch a good nights sleep before the morning.
No comments:
Post a Comment