Chapter 16: Life in Colour (Ban Bo Piat, Laos to Singapore)
The stunning jungle and karst peaks of Laos which made for such joyful cycling after a tough ride across ChinaA young monk overlooking the burning of incense in Angkor Wat, CambodiaAngkor Wat’s faces of BayonElana wandering through some of the more well hidden ruins in the jungleElana by the electric scooter we spent three days driving around the ancient temple complex of Angkor WatThe impressive facade of Preah Khan TempleOne of the impressive gateways of Ta Som TempleOne of the main roads through Angkor Way passing through an ancient gatewayThe picture perfect scene I had been dreaming of all across China finally coming to fruition on Koh Rong Sanloem. Absolute bliss.Our charming wooden bungalow right on the beach of this tropical island paradiseElana’s reaction after seeing the bill we had racked up after two days of eating, drinking and sleeping in this island paradise!Elana reluctantly walking towards the boat that would take us away from this idyllic beach-side resortElana tackling a sketchy, narrow bridge in one of the caves near KampotElana climbing the stairs of a huge abandoned casino near Kampot, a relic of the French colonial eraThe magnificent view out to sea from the roof of the casino, sitting at 1,080m above sea level atop Bokor HillChao Por Lak Muang Shrine in the centre of Khon Kaen, ThailandLooking up at the nine levels of the golden Wat Nong Wang Temple in Khon KaenThe huge, golden stupa of Shwedagon Pagoda in the centre of Yangon, MyanmarObserving Buddhist prayers at the striking Buddha in Yangon’s Nga Htat Gyi PagodaSurveying the plains of Bagan, with just a handful of the region’s 2,000+ temples in shotThe great bunch of backpackers I spent two days with exploring the many temples of BaganThe sun rising above the low-lying mist of the plains of BaganClara, one of the backpackers admiring the exceptional view as hot-air balloons began to rise into the sky with the sunThe sun and hot air balloons rising above the temples and the mist of Bagan. This truly was a spectacular part of the world.The reward for waking at 5am, biking to an abandoned temple in the dark, and climbing to its peak with other likeminded backpackersThe impressive murals and carvings which were commonplace through Bagan’s ancient templesThe unique method of rowing on Myanmar’s Inle Lake which involves fishermen wrapping a leg around their oar. I’d like to say this was authentic, but the area has become so heavily touristed that they now actually pose for passing tourist boats!Modern life continuing amongst more ancient Buddhist ruins on the shore of Inle LakeThese ruins had not been restored in the same fashion as Bagan, making for some interesting buried statues in their crumbling hallsBlissful cycling along the beaches and palm trees of Thailand’s eastern coastLying back on the roof of a small boat as it heads out to the tropical island of Ko Yao NoiLooking out to some karst islands off the shore of Ko Yao NoiThe beaches of Tonsai and Railay near Krabi, Thailand. I took a few days off in this rock-climbing paradise.Climbing through the jungle of Thale Ban National Park towards the Malaysian borderThe quiet roads across the marshes of eastern MalaysiaMonsoon rains and a massive thunderstorm racing towards me near Taipeng, MalaysiaTrying out the newest look in cycling fashionEnjoying a Sizzling Yee Mee with a thick iced coffee. The food in Malaysia (and Thailand) had blown me awayAn example of the endless palm plantations stretching into the horizon in every direction in this region of MalaysiaA very happy and surprised man to have somehow made it all the way to Singapore!A parting shot with two cycle touring legends in Singapore, Andy Peat and SK (who helped me hugely by sourcing a bike box and tools to dismantle my bicycle for my flight to Borneo)
Irregular Adventures 