Thailand: Chang Mai

I flew back into Bangkok before taking the very first night bus I could find up to Chang Mai. The city itself proved to be a charming mixture of modern city, ancient temples, bustling night markets and happening night spots, all surrounded by the spectacular nature imaginable.

After arriving early into the very heart of the city, I took my first day there as a chance to relax and recuperate before doing some light sight seeing. Even this proved to unearth a whole treasure trove of wonders, as I past (and then got tempted into) glowing golden temple, after glowing golden temple.

The best was saved for the next day however, as I took a shared taxi up to the hill top temple of Doi Suthep. This complex sat like a jewel overlooking the city of Chang Mai; a rich tapestry of brightly coloured statues, shining buddhas, intricately inlayed doors and walls and in the very centre a spire covered in purest gold. It was a wonderful way to spend my afternoon.

The sun was setting as I arrived back in the city and I decided to join one of my companions in exploring the night markets of Chang Mai. We browsed the market, examined glowing laterns, past rows sequined bags and purses and sampled the wonderful street food on display, before flopping down on the ground to eat. Afterwards I parted ways with my companion and had a rather delightful evening after deciding to pull up a pew with another fellow traveller.

The next day I decided it was time to do something fun, so I decided zip lining was the way forward. As I got picked up we drove through the beautifully pristine forest through which the zip lines had been build. And after a sharp ascent through several flights of steps, I was soon flying through the trees at a rather exhilarating rate of knots. Having slid, tandemed, supermaned and just plain bombed down a zig zag of intercrossing wires, I finally found myself absailing my way down to the forest floor. We topped all this excitement off with an amazing lunch and a walk up to a nearby waterfall.

By the time I arrived back in Chang Mai, I was ready for the return trip back to Bangkok and my final flight home.

Phu Quoc island

After three weeks volunteering and a few days of non stop traveling I felt the time had come to take a well deserved break. Rather then taking another flight, I decided to take a sleeper bus instead and was rewarded with passing through the incredibly scenic Mekong Delta (more on that later).

This being about my fourth desert island I decided that relaxing was the way forward and I spent much of my days there idly chilling at the hostel or on the beach, with the occasional swim or spectacular sunset to round out my day.

The food on the island was surprising good, with some truly excellent fresh seafood. The highlight came when the hostel I was staying at put on a great late night BBQ which included freshly cooked squid, some massive prawns and freshly cooked fish. What with all this, great company and a band made up of two rather free spirited gentlemen strumming away on their guitars I really enjoyed my rather brief stay on the island.

Cambodia: Battamberg

Battamberg turned out to be a nice enough town in and of itself but what really made the place special was the incredibly beautiful temple nearby. I spent my first day there exploring the town, enjoying the food at the local gecko bar and hiring a bicycle to mozy around the surrounding countryside.

While navigating pleasant countryside lanes I came across a group a group of Cambodians that were chilling out, drinking and enjoying snacks and although we couldn't understand a word of what the other party was saying we were able to actually have a rather enjoyable afternoon.

I cycled back and took a tuk tuk to the town's spectacular local temples. They were set high on a nearby hill and as I climbed the many steps up to the top I got to enjoy a spectacular view over the town and the surrounding plains. Hoping down the steps I walked over to my main reason for visiting the site, for as the sun began to set a cavern high in the cliff face began to release a swarm of bats.

What started as a trickle soon became a flood as  thousands of winged bodies took to the evening skies. I watched them until the sun began to slip below the horizon, then I took the waiting tuk tuk back to town. As night fell I hung out and drank in a local bar as I enjoyed the company of my fellow backpackers. 

Ankor Wat and Siem Reap

The temples of Ankor Wat were as impressive as I had hoped for. Magnificent ruins that were a testament to both the highest ideals of man and more solemnly the power of time to wash everything away.

It was for me a strange place mixture of inspiring, peaceful, sad and deep spirituality, oh and also massively stress. Did I mention the crowds? Holy heck if the Cambodian government want anything to be left of the ruins by the end of the next hundred years they really need to sort out some sort of crowd control (and yes i'm well aware of the irony of me visiting it and saying that).

I ended up renting a bicycle for my days in Siem Reap and it turned out to be a rewarding (and exhausting) way to explore the beautiful ruins close by. I wandered through exquisitely sculptured spires, crumbling parapets, nature tore temples and intricately carved faces peering out from the stonework.

By evening I chilled out with friends, enjoyed drinks and relaxed by  the swimming pool of my rather nice hostel. Overall it turned out to be a thoroughly enjoyable place to stay.

Cambodia: Prasat Preah Vihear

After life in the hectic city I decided that a trip into the unknown would be just the thing to get my travel juices flowing. I therefore set my sights on the far flung mountain top temple of Prasat Preah Vihear.

This beautiful ruin is set on a disputed region high on the border of Thailand and getting there proved to be by turns fun, frustrating and and adventure in its own right. At first I thought my journey would be relatively simple, I booked a bus from Phonm Penh directly to Preah Vihear, only to discover that this was the name of another close by town and that I would need to make another journey to get near to the mountain top temple in question.

Still the town I stopped in over night was lovely, with great food and some lovely surrounding countryside. So much so that I decided to stop and relax there for a night. Well rested I head off the next day for a military town right ext to the temple. I took what I felt was a rather overpriced moto up to the temple itself and was soon glad I had made the effort. The temple ruins were large, beautiful, peaceful and relatively quiet (I was the only white person there). The views over the nearby plains were also absolutely stunning. After exploring decaying stone hallways, overgrown wats and pocket marked causeways I found to my delight that large areas of the temple were still being actively used as places of worship, complete with buddhist monks and colourfully wrapped statues.

The best was saved for last however as just underneath an overhang which showed off the view to its best extend I found a shrine complete with people meditating inside. After leaving an offering of incense I joined in and let the serene and intensely spiritual atmosphere of the place drift over me.

I left refreshed and ready for the next leg of my journey, Ankor wat.

Phnom Penh part 2: temples and buddhas

I decided to spend the next day or two exploring the beautiful temples of Phnom Penh. I was not disappointed as everywhere I went there were clouds of sweet smelling incense, beautiful golden statues and lovingly crafted pagodas.

My first stop was a centrally placed Wat located near my hostel. I was greeted with a steep white stone spire, crowds of people praying, singing and making offerings and a mulititude of beautifully crafted gold buddhas. After sitting to absorb the calming atmosphere of the place, I carried on wandering the streets of Phnom Penh.

My next stop was the beautiful royal palace grounds, filled with ornate buildings, michivious Macques and possibly one of the grumpiest guards I've had the pleasure of meeting in all of Asia. The most impressive building was saved for last, The Silver Pagoda more then lived up to its name (the floor tiles are all made of solid silver) and collectively it contained more wealth and diamonds then i'm ever likely to see again in my lifetime.

I finished my evening in Phnom Penh socialising and enjoying the sights of the city, all the while playing games of spot (and avoid) the prositute den.

Overall Phnom Penh proved to be a city filled with wonder, beauty, horror and an extrodinary history that I won't soon forget.

Cambodia: Koh Rong island

After arriving in Cambodia I decided I desperately needed the beach and so after spending one night in Phnom Penh I jumped on the nearest bus and boat heading to Koh Rong Island. I arrived and was immediately greeted with white sand beaches and crystal clear blue waters.

Life on the island was attractively laid back and I spent most days trekking to and then lazing on some of the best beaches I have had the pleasure of experiencing while traveling. At night I would explore the island's many restaurants and clubs.

The Island was also home to some amazing wildlife including monkeys, many kind of fish as well as some snakes. The best though was saved for when I took a late night snorkel tour of the island's luminous plankton. With each wave of my arms it was like swimming through an ocean of glittering stars.

About four nights in I managed to contract a stomach bug that had been going around the island and was pretty much confined to my dorms for the next three days. After I had recovered though I decided it was time to head out to pastures new.

Sadly though this beautiful island is under the threat of serious development, many parts of the island have been brought up by Chinese developers who are planning to extensively develop the island (including building an airport). These types of developments rarely end well for the ecosystems of islands like this and it would be sad to see this island go the same way.