Are they? Do you now where they are heading in Thailand?

Well i arrived in Cambodia kinda in one piece after a journey from hell!!!!.....Journey was supposed to take 12 hours from Bangkok but ended up being 22 hours. Booked VIP bus tickets and all was relatively fine up until the border.. ( bit cramped, full bus, tried to get ripped off for our visa by some little restaurant we conveniently stopped off at just before the border who offered to process our visa for 30 dollars. the actual visa at the border costs 20dollars but i stuck to my guns and saved my money paying 20 instead of 30 ) . Things started to fall apart once over the border.We were left on the cambodia side for over 2 hours waiting for the bus to pick us up in the searing heat. Once on the bus(and a few stops around several bus stations in the town for no reason?!?! ) we then realised that cambodia doesn't have any roads as such to the main towns.....just large craters in fields (thats what it felt like) so with the bus doing no more than 5km/hour the 85 mile journey was to take 7 hours on the bumpiest dirt tracks i have ever witnessed. the bus was being tossed and turned, scraped and falling apart in the huge craters on the dirt track. just when we thought it couldn't get any worse, it did!!! there was a problem with one of the bridges so at 10pm we were hauled off the bus, got our heavy backpacks and made the walk to the next bus over the dodgy bridge. we passed the bridge within a few minutes of being on foot and there was a few holes in it that no way a bus could go over, we thought 'oh' and 'ah' at this, taking pictures. we were then confused as to why we were still walking in the middle of nowhere with no transport in sight ....walking some 4km later at 10.30pm (backpacks n all) we come across the actual bridge that had a problem. basically it had collapsed under the weight of a lorry which was still overturned half on the bridge and half in the river. much to our horror we then discovered that we were to walk across this bridge to get to our other bus!!!! it was on its side and mostly in water. bit of a mission in just miniture torch light, some in tears, but we all did it much to everyones relief (it was dodgy as f*#k to say the least!). thinking it couldn't get any worse we were then informed that our transport for 24 people was the back of a toyota ute!!!!! with luggage! for 4 hours! they tried cramming us all in but it just wasnt working and not safe at all. after 1 hour deliberating what we were going to do another ute turned up and would take 1/2 of us for 70 us $. bit of a rip off but we had no other option other than to have all 24on one and then risk being killed by falling off with all those craters. it was then another 6 hours cramped in this tiny vehicle (11 of us) before we reached siem reap. never been in so much pain and discomfort in all my life. those 'roads' were lethal enough as it was on the bus without 11 (originally 24) people clinging to the back of a small toyota ute. got some pics and will pist them of my website soon. these words simple cannot describe how torturous this journey was. felt like it would never end but thankfully it did at 4am caked in mud, dust and god knows what else.

An éxperience' to say the least....or at least an endurance test.

Yeah the weather is mad here at the moment. Still got the summer flowers in bloom and mowing the lawn.... whats that all about ??!!! Did you know Pete & Charley C are heading out to Thailand for NYE ?

...oh and what the hell is going on witht he UK climate. is it really almost November and 21 degrees in london?!?!?!??! Or has the BBC website been consistently getting it wrong??
xxxx

Blocko!!!! how's it going! yeah i'm slightly concerned about it. although i'm not sure he knows about lady-boys! hehe Si, yeah not so sure now. was thinking about it, depends on money. think new year in thailand will be amazing ( but also expensive) unfortunately it;s all about the money and i've had to buy a new camera which is a bit of a drain on my budget ....:( so still don''t have a clue when i'll be home. trying to leave it as late as possible. ;)

Heard you reckon you might be back before the New Year... reckon it's cos you want to come to the works Xmas party !! ;O) Seriously though it looks like your havin a mental time, even if the weather has been crap over the past few weeks.Cambodia should be good, even if does look similiar to the previous to countries..... oh and Tim will be okay because they have Ladyboys there too !!!
Have good'un and keep in touch ! :O)

Looks like you guys are having a great time mate, however, im slightl concerned about Tims seemingly growing apetite for the lady boys!

Take it easy mate.

Blocko.

Hello Ed, Glad you received the card ok! I hear my wimp of a sister has hot footed it into a posh hotel?!?! I knew she couldn't hack roughing it! The weather here is rain, rain, rain at the moment. But the leaves are falling off the trees so it looks very pretty, in an autumnal way. Your photo's look amazing. I'm still very envious! Keep having fun. Love Menna xxxx

Jimmy choo?? more like von dutch or diesel. the weather right now is a joke. it has rained non stop since my mate has come out (about 10 days) tan is faiding rapidly. poor ro. going snorkelling with sharks tomorrow. didn't think we were supposed to do that....but i guess this is thailand afterall....pay the right dollar etc etc.....

missing the A34!!! ;O)

Yeah of course, Dad's lodger (tall Swdeish blonde) will be gone by then!!
What's the shops like? Can you get any cheap Jimmy Choo shoes? I've always wanted a pair?

Guess what,didn't get to work till 10, this morning, lovely jubbly A34, 13 miles tailback? WTFATA..........
Ho hum,

"hi ho, hi ho it's off to work we go. The A34 is such a bore, hi ho, hi ho, hi ho ,hi ho"
Hmmm... mad as ever
Bet you miss that?
Phone soon!
mum xxxxxx

...by the way mum, thats cool about the portsmouth run. how was your time. i will definitely ring you guys soon. how much is the losdger paying youa nd is it okay to come stay with you for a bit when i come back ???? ;O)

xxx

hey everyone! great to hear from you all. it's been a while! That's pretty cool about jim obrian living near bangkok. i'm in ko tao rright now after arriving from ko phangan for the full party
(which i might add was THE best party i have been to in a long time) and from ko samui a few days before that. My mate Rowan is out right now for 10 days. we lkeave ko tao in a few days and head for bangkok. my visa runs out on the 29th october which means i wont have time to hook up with Jim this time round. having said that, after my visit to cambodia, vietnam and laos, i am planning on coming back in to thailand in december until the new year and will be visiting bangkok twice in that time so it's a possibility then. i'm going to ring you mum and dad very soon simnce its been a few months. just to catch up etc. so papa if you want to leave the numbner with them and i'll get it when i call you. anyway must go and recover some more. the red bull and thai whiskey buckets are LETHAL! love to all
xxxx

Hello from Papa!! Edward Son just to continue were your dad left off my best friend Jim O'Brien who really is your uncle stays about 80 miles from Bangkok he is home on holiday just now. Ive met up with him a few times and will meet him again some time this week. He insists if you are still there when he gets back home on the 27th of October to contact him his phone number i will leave for you later. you should phone him and he will pick you up to go visit his wife and daughter. i cannot remember the name of the town he lives in. Continue to have a great time son! i will give you more detailed information and i insist this is a 'MUST' emphasis on the MUST!!! goodbye for now watch this page for tel No love you lots god bless from your ever loving papa! x