An Epic Tale of Tummies and Transport

Mel woke in the middle of the night, completed overheating and suffering from d and v so she spent the night alternating between the shower and the toilet. Thankfully in Laos these were in the same room so it is very easy to have both simultanously.

This of course came at the time when we had 30 hours of bus journey to complete over the next few days.

Step 1 - get a bus with a toilet

This would have made the journey slightly better but the twisty mountain roads and a door that did not shut meant that more people saw mel and the "toilet" (bucket) than she would have liked!

Step 2 - AFter the disaster of the last bus we changed plan to take imodium, eat boiled rice and drink pepsi (as the guide book recommended!)

So with all the bacteria bunged inside we headed on to the next bus. We had debated about getting the overnight train but decided that we should save 20p and we also get movies on the bus. After we settled in to our front row seats our driver announced that he was the driver and he said no videos on his bus.

Half way between Laos and Bangkok, as the clock struck midnight our bus ground to a halt. It was now the bus that was overheating. mel diagnosed the problem as the radiator (most people will know that Mel is an expert in The AA, radiators and exhausts). Following a similar technique as earlier the driver washed the engine with water to cool it and started filling the radiator. We had to flag down buses to collect water from them as we didnt have any. Two hours later and with a "this will never work" from mel we drove off and got some sleep in the huge space we had at the front of the bus.

We awoke at 7am to another beautiful day in Thailand and found we were still on the motorway. In fact we were stationary on the hard shoulder after the bus had vomited oil all over the road.

After 9 hours another bus arrived and later we arrived in bangkok. mel's stomach was not happy.

step 3 - contact emergancy nurse (mel's Mum) who said to starve.

The next day we headed off into town to get our Vietnamese visas and also popped in to see a pharmacist and try and explain to a thai person the problem. Eventually we were able to get charcoal tablets and antibiotics for 2 quid! Bargain! And were told to eat "soft food" not sure what this is.

step 4 - eat charcoal and get sandwiches from mcdonalds where Mel can see the food is prepared and they all wear gloves. Feeling much safer and much better!

Finally been on 2 more tours - both times the bus has broken down!

Love from the country which needs The AA more than Mel,

Mel and stu x

So what have we actually done in Bangkok - well we visited the royal palace, the weekend market which was enormous (and we got totally absolutely lost in it!) and have chilled on Khoa San Road