Apr 232013
For the third and final day of my Angkor ticket, I again set out by bike. Only this time, unlike day #1, I didn’t go granny-style. I rented a proper high-end mountain bike – complete with gears, shocks, and disc breaks. The goal wasn’t just to sightsee; today would be a day of full-output exercise under the blazing Cambodian sun, covering as much ground and burning as many calories as my legs would allow.
By the time I collapsed on my bed at about 7pm I’d ridden 80km in all – plus the hiking, scrambling, climbing, and photographing in between. For as exhausting as it was, it might have been my favorite day of them all.
- I started off by heading to the Roluos Group – a cluste...
- Although the first temple (Lo Lei) was only so-so, it d...
- While stopping for a quick map-check on the way out, a ...
- (One thing you can’t help but notice about Cambodia in ...
- The next temple I visited was Preah Ko, where (accordin...
- And sure enough: another temple, another group of cute ...
- The next stop, Bakong, is the biggest in the Roluos gro...
- Surrounded by a massive moat, it did have a pretty inte...
- There was even a functioning monastery on the island wi...
- By now I’d covered pretty much every “main temple” with...
- I started riding to the absolute smallest, most isolate...
- I LOVED it. Just getting there was an adventure, riding...
- …discovering rundown, cobweb-laden ruins without a hint...
- There were no hawkers and no Chinese tour groups – just...
- In fact, after reaching the first such “tiny temple” – ...
- I spent the rest of the day riding and exploring totall...
- What I found was a true taste of Rural Cambodia. The k...
- During my ride I saw my first buffalo up close…
- …I snaked through countless small villages…
- …And encountered more curious children than I can recal...
- Like this little guy, who when he saw me ride by, jumpe...
- Some people scoff at how much I rely on technology whil...
- I can get myself as lost as I want, stray as far from t...
- And as it turned out, my at-random routing worked out a...
- So after a quick stop at a tourist cafe to recharge my ...
- This time I made it. Finally. Unfortunately it was a ...
- Sorry, feet. Now you can rest.
Note: These posts are behind realtime; the above took place in March, 2012.
Now that is a proper mountain bike, very proper considering you were in Cambodia! I would shred that baby!
Incredible day. I really wish I could experience this. You have guts straying that far from civilization, what if you ran into some rebels?
LOL @ the kid with his hands in his pants. The kids are all really cute and it is amazing how “civilized” they are, with sharing and their desire for learning and human interaction. They are setting an example for youth in many other “civilized” parts of the world.
Technology has changed the way I travel, too, and I also consider GPS absolutely vital now. I am no longer a lost tourist asking for directions or relying on others to transport me when I visit new cities. I can immediately navigate like a local and it is amazing to never feel lost.
I am kind of amazed that some of the palm trees in Cambodia look identical to Florida palms.
>>Incredible day. I really wish I could experience this.
You can! If you want to, why couldn’t you? š
>>what if you ran into some rebels?
I’ve never heard of issues with rebels in Cambodia… š
>>can immediately navigate like a local and it is amazing to never feel lost.
Absolutely. When my iPhone got stolen on my first day in Vietnam – and I had to travel the whole country without one – it really emphasized just how crippling it is not to have it. All that extra time spent fumbling with maps or digging through guidebooks or trying to figure out why things don’t match up…
Wow! That is some serious biking. I am surprised because I never really considered you to be a cyclist. That shot of your legs / feet is awesome, and explains things very well š
…You never considered me to be a cyclist?? š What would you call riding from Kyoto to Tokushima, or the 260km ride around Biwako, or riding halfway across Denmark, or the fact that I get a bike virtually everywhere I stay for more than a couple of weeks (& use them for tourism anytime it’s even remotely possible to do so :P)
I know that you bike around the city or while on vacation, but I haven’t seen you ever go out and just bike for exercise
I don’t think the sole purpose of one’s cycling has to be exercise to be called a “cyclist” tho š For example, riding around Biwako…I could’ve gone by train if I just wanted to *see* it. Or taken a bus/plane to Roskilde. Obviously I do it by bike…because I like the cycling š
>>By the time I collapsed on my bed at about 7pm Iād ridden 80km in all ā plus the hiking, scrambling, climbing, and photographing in between. For as exhausting as it was, it might have been my favorite day of them all.
That’s what I’m talking about
š
amazing pics and great story. Very much enjoyed. thanks for sharing with all of us š
Woo hoo! Didn’t know you were a reader too š
Great story about the selfless kids! š
thinking of staying my whole visa span in a rural community in Cambodia when i head to Phnom Penh this wednesday
Cool…that should be interesting! š
since you’ve been on the countryside, any suggestion on where is it best? also looking at staying with a family or perhaps an available traditional wooden house, no matter how siimple it is, and stay there for the span of my visa (or perhaps even longer by coming back after a visa run).
Sorry, not really; I only stayed in proper hotels in the cities, and ventured out by bike/foot. Although I love exploring far & wide, I’m much pickier about where I actually stay for the sake of being able to program comfortably.