This is a big step for me (Heather). John is a keen, strong cyclist and I am, well..... not. I love going for short bike rides in beautiful areas on flat land for about an hour max. The idea of a week-long cycling trip in a hot, humid country is pretty scary to be honest. Anyway, I've committed to it so we can only see how it goes.
We began our trip with a week in Western Australia to spend Christmas with my brother and his family. Our kids and my parents came too so it was a great - and rare - family get-together. We hired some cabins in a caravan park in Margaret River, a popular tourist destination in wine country. We had a ball visiting wineries and beaches and just hanging out together. We all got to know our nieces a bit better and everyone had a blast. It really was a special time.
My brother's family brought lots of Christmas goodies with them and we managed to have a very Christmassy Christmas even though we were a long way from home.
John and I hired a bike each so we could keep fit for the Cambodian ride. On day one, we were riding along a footpath side by side. I was talking to John and not watching where I was going and ran into a rubbish bin that was put out for collection! I did a huge crash into the footpath and came out worse for wear.
No stitches were needed but a week later, I'm still tending the wounds carefully. I'm keen to not have a problem with infection in SE Asia!
We had some lovely rides along coastlines and through beautiful bush.
We said a very sad farewell to everyone and headed to Cambodia. We had a three-hour stopover in Bangkok Airport and spent most of the time searching unsuccessfully for baus, Chinese pork buns. We ended up sharing a Tom Yum Soup. The flavour was wonderful but the chilli was OMGTHATSSOHOT! I was hungry but couldn't eat more than a few spoonfuls. My eyes were watering and my lips were burning. I was so disappointed!
The flights were fine and we arrived in Phnom Penh late on a Saturday night. The streets weren't too chaotic but the driving was crazy. So far, the people have been fantastic. They're so kind and helpful. We have one day to ourselves and we've spent it exploring and resting. Its quite hot and humid so writing up this blog post is the perfect way to fill in a hot afternoon!
The view from our room is great - we look out over the Royal Palace, the museum and the river.
On Sunday afternoon and evening, the streets filled with people walking, chatting and catching up with friends. It reminded me very much of Mexico in that way.
We went past a temple just as people were releasing sparrows from a cage. This lot below were obviously next. We can only guess that this is some sort of offering. Catching birds then releasing them doesn't really seem an appropriate way to seek blessings though.
We had a fantastic meal beside the river. John brought along his own Bega stubbie holder and enjoyed checking out the Angkor beer.
Mum, we thought of you when we had the best vegetable rice paper rolls ever!
There were heaps of stands selling food along the streets. Most of it looked delicious. One stand however, was totally different to the others - it was the creepy-crawly stand! Look closely at these fried goodies - they're tarantulas!
The same stand sold fried crickets, cicadas, frogs and even larvae. I must add, it was all beautifully presented!
The riverfront is the place to go to do aerobics in the evenings. This aerobics instructor was the worst I've ever seen! He's the unenthusiastic guy on the left.
There were people everywhere just relaxing and young monks strolled around too.
The next day was the start of our bike ride! We rarely go on tours so this was a whole new experience for us. With some trepidation we headed to the meeting point. There are 6 of us, Doug - an American guy, Ellen - a Kiwi girl, Beth and Carlos - an American/Panamanian couple and us. Our leader is a lovely local guy, nicknamed USB cos they're his initials. We spent a while getting bikes organised then we were off - straight onto a busy road. Negotiating roundabouts was interesting but it was definitely easier with a local in the lead who seems to know when to slip into the stream of traffic.
Our first fun part was crossing the river on a ferry. We somehow managed to get half of us on one ferry and half on another but it was all ok. It was chaos getting on and off them though.
The other side of the river was much quieter than in the city and we spent an hour or so pedalling along a flat road past a non-stop array of houses. We then had a much-welcomed break at a temple complex.
We rested and refuelled and headed off again, through more of the same sort of territory. I found it almost impossible to take photos along the way. Our guide, USB, got this great photo though of monks collecting alms along the way. Basically, people give food to anyone studying to be a monk. Most men spend at least a week being a monk in their lifetimes.
All along, people called out "hellooo" and waved. Kids gave us high fives as we whizzed past. We had been told we had to cross a bridge towards the end of our ride and, at about the 28km mark, the bridge loomed huge in front of us. Getting up that loooong slope to the top was a challenge at the end of our ride when it was 32 degrees.
We finished our ride when we finally pulled into a public square area in a Cham area. The Chams are a muslim group and they were fascinated by us. We rode 31 kms - a record for me! To be honest, I was pretty rapt that I actually made it through day 1!
Do you think I look hot (temperature-wise only!)? Those yellow towels are ice-cold and so appreciated!
These ladies were selling food by the side of the road and were very welcoming.
Lookin' gorgeous with a beetroot-red face, sweaty helmet head and bandages from last week's fall!
The kids were so cute.
Looking back along the last stretch of road we cycled along. It wasn't particularly attractive.
We had a shower and changed clothes then headed out again to check out some sights nearby. On the way we passed this gorgeous flower which only lasts for a day.
First stop was the Royal Palace. It was beautiful. One interesting fact was that there is a stunning room built just for ceremonial dancing but it's no longer used because it doesn't have aircon!
The building below is nicknamed the Silver Pagoda because the floor is covered in thousands of silver tiles. There was also a buddha statue about 70 cms high that was made out of one emerald. I didn't know it was possible to get emeralds that large! Sadly, we weren't allowed to take photos in there.
We've been so busy ever since we started the bike trip that this is all I've had time to write up! Hopefully I'll be back again soon.
Hooroo.
Heather and John
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