Dear family and friends!

We left Siem Reap in Cambodia with Angkor Wat in a smaller bus with the theme music of Titanic. This might sound very calm and romantic but if you consider translating the text into cambodian, put a male singer with a harsh voice, put the volume on max with broken speakers in a hot and bumpy bus you have the setting for our departure. We had bought tickets for a air-conditioned bus which obviously meant they conditioned the air with fans and some open windows. We heard that the road to the Thai border would be very bad filled with pot holes, but with a fairly calm driver the trip wasn't too bad even if the road was a constant dirt road and working site. They actually are working on the whole stretch of some 5h to the border at the same time. The rumour says some airline company bribe the government to stall the completion.

The local germs from the food finally as expected hit us. Being sick at the same time add another dimension to our relationship. We can ensure they have plenty of toilets at the more posh shopping malls in Bangkok. In Bangkok you really have the opportunity to spend your money. At the local markets with all kind of souvenirs, fruits and food you can spend your small pennies and at the futuristic enormous shopping malls with all famous brands you can spend your big dollars, often even expensive for us. We got conned as many other tourists to one of the Thai silk tailors, by some really good stories and "trust worthy" locals. We didn't get the best of deals but ok, but we're very satisfied with two suits and four shirts for Emil and one suit and two blouses for Hanna.

Bangkok is a huge city which make all bigger cities along our way to insignificant, size-wise anyway. Bangkok can offer anything you want, you need and what you don't need. Thailand is cleaner, richer and more organized than both Vietnam and Cambodia. Bangkok offers the whole range though from poor to rich, dirty to extremely clean. We have seen buddhas in all forms. We have seen the 40 m long reclining Buddha, the 5,5 tons of solid gold sitting Buddha and many more, but we missed the standing one.

We now pray our stomachs will cope for our trip south to the paradise islands on the east coast.

Love Hanna and Emil