From mid-November 2015 to early April 2016 we cycled a loop around South East Asia, starting in Bangkok and heading north, and ending by travelling west through Cambodia and back into Thailand. Our route looks a bit like a turtle sticking its tongue out (this was only slightly on purpose). Thailand Time spent in…
Thursday 7th April Miles on a train: probably about 120 Miles cycled: 15 After an unexpected day off on the 6th (I caught whatever Eric had – it was the final revenge of the cucumber slice) we were on our way. Would we be able to get our tandem onto the train from Sakeo…
Friday 1st April Miles: 73 Today the landscape was amazing. … April Fools! Ho! Ho! As much as I have loved Cambodia, it’s scenery is nothing to write home about, unless you are complaining… which I kind of am. Sorry, Cambodia. We left at a late-ish 8AM from our guesthouse in Siem Reap, because…
Monday 28th March – Thursday 31st March Miles over two days: 52 Angkor Wat is a collection of temples that make up the largest religious complex in the world, and it represents the pinnacle of the ancient Khmer civilisation. It is so important to Cambodian people that it is featured on their flag. You might…
Friday 25th March Miles: 51 Five months ago, we sat in the living room of my parents’ house and planned our South East Asian route. From Bangkok, we decided that we would head north first, to make the most of the cool season, and to challenge ourselves with mountains before we got too lazy.…
Tuesday 22nd – Thursday 24th March If you are a white male, you get a lot of attention in Phnom Penh. The phrase “Tuk-tuk sir?” followed Eric everywhere. Everywhere! When I went out without Eric, I got approached perhaps 10% of the times he did. Maybe my tanned skin hides me, or maybe it’s…
The last two day’s journey have been pretty normal (ie boring) so to liven things up I will be relating them… IN RHYME. Enjoy! Sunday 20th March Miles: 61 At six I slithered out of bed And shoved my helmet on my head, Feeling tiny pangs of dread For…
Thursday 17th – Saturday 19th March Miles over two days: 45 Just fifteen miles west of Kep was our next two-day stop, Kampot. After an uneventful journey we checked in to Captain Chim’s Guesthouse. We liked this place, it offered free drinking water, free laundry and good, cheap meals. Captain Chim himself is a rather…
Tuesday 15th and Wednesday 16th March Sorry about the title. Kep is a beautiful, sleepy beach resort with a tiny little beach. The sand on this beach is imported from nearby Kampot, and has to be dragged up the beach every single morning to prevent it from washing away. This is what actual Kep…
Monday 14th March Miles: 30 First of all, this border was as easy as you like. No queue, no hassle, no corruption. (Time of crossing: March 2016.) From Ha Tien it’s just four miles to the border. A member of staff pointed us to the office. We went in, got our visa…
Cycling from Ho Chi Minh City to the Ha Tien/Kep Cambodian border Wednesday 9th March Miles: 36 Our first job of the day was to pick up our bike from Saigon Bicycle Shop, where we’d had a few new parts fitted. One thing we would be leaving the city without was our popular, comedy-value…
6th – 9th March In Vietnam they build things with concrete. Concrete, concrete, concrete. There’s a lot of good things to say about this material… but one word that does not usually spring to mind is “beautiful”. This is why my expectation was that Ho Chi Minh City was going to be a hot, infinite…
Saturday 5th March Miles cycled: 10 (including 8.5 miles of being lost) We knew that the traffic coming into Ho Chi Minh City was going to be nuts, so Eric came up with the bright idea of taking the hydrofoil that runs between Vung Tau and Ho Chi Minh. Waiting by the dock. We…
Thursday 3rd & Friday 4th March We had a day and a half to explore Vung Tau – the beach resort nearest to Ho Chi Minh City. The largest and most popular beach is called Back Beach, and we started off there. The verdict was: not that great as tropical beaches go. It was…
Cycling from Quy Nhon to Ho Chi Minh City: part three Saturday 27th February Rest day The wind howled all night long, battering the windows and doors, and sending unknown objects rattling across the courtyard. The rain had now disappeared from the weather forecast, but we decided that huge gusts of wind on cliff-side roads…
captain of the back seat 