March 24

This will be the last issue for this blog. My father is sick and I am heading back to Canada as quick as I can. Thanks for watching and particularly for commenting. Tim

March 23 Tbong Khmum to Kampong Cham

After yesterday’s pain and suffering I had an easy ride today. 30km to Kampong Cham and there is even a bridge across the Mekong river. I started late, rode easy and arrived early. I stopped at a Buddhist temple for an hour and I was still at my destination by noon. After a shower and a leisurely lunch I went to the Internet café to upload my blog. It’s slow, but it works. In the area of Kampong Cham is the ruins of an eleventh century temple (Nicor Wat). I asked, at my guesthouse, where it was but he couldn’t understand me. When I came back downstairs with my camera and tripod a tuk-tuk driver was waiting. I think the guesthouse owner smelled an opportunity. For only $5 I had a lift to the site and a good dose of information too. Nicor Wat was built in the eleventh century, but unfortunately in 1922 a Buddhist temple was built right in the middle of the ruins. Total desecration! It is now the centre for Buddhist learning for Cambodian and a community of Buddhist building has formed around the ruins. They are colourful.

March 22 Svay Rieng to Tbong Khmum

Today was a tough day. I started at 7 AM and I had planned to bike about 50km. The plan changed when the pavement ended and the villages shrank. I ended up doing 110km on dirt roads, some in very bad shape. I finished the day tired, sunburned and very very dirty.
I’m travelling light carrying only 1 litre of water. In Asia, no matter how rural you travel, it seems like every house is selling something. I bought water along the way and I ate a pineapple, ice cream sandwich (4 scoops in a bun), watermelon, spare ribs (I think), and noodle soup during the ride. I also had 1 sip of firewater - so bad it belongs in a gas tank.
Along the way I amused the locals by wearing my bike shorts, almost hit a cow, watched the villagers drain a pond so they could catch the fish and scared the water buffalo. I saw more of rural Cambodian than I bargained for.
Other observations: Young Cambodians speak excellent English, Cambodians are very friendly – 9 out of 10 children say hello and my smile muscles are sore, hot food is hard to find at midday. And my rear end is very very sore.

March 21 Go Dau to Svay Rieng Cambodia

I was up and on my way by 6:20 this morning and I crossed the Cambodian border at 9 AM. I don’t know what it is, but even though there were 50 people waiting they processed me right away. Can biking shorts really have that much effect on officials? So at 9:30 I was in Cambodia and it was hot. I stopped after half an hour at a small roadside café that had nobody in it. I ordered 2 waters and within 5 minutes there were 20 plus old ladies and young children sitting in a circle around me. When one old lady came up and touched me I got out my camera and took some pictures. It seemed to amuse them greatly when I showed them the results. I am going to change my lunch hour. By 11:30 I was hungry and I hit a town with lots of restaurants, but no cooks. Finally one lady boiled me up an instant noodle soup. It seems that the Cambodians eat lunch early and sleep from 11:30 to 22:30. I found a hotel and then went for a ride around the area. A rainstorm came up and I took shelter in a small Buddhist shrine. Then another family showed up (3 people) and them 2 more motorbikes pulled over. On the 3 motorbikes there were 10 people, not a bad average. The shrine we were in was strange. There was a Buddha, but on both sides of the Buddha there were boxes of human skulls. Judging from the mural behind the Buddha the shrine was commemorating the massacre of Khmer Rouge victims.