I woke up at 8:30am. Wow, what a sleep in. I must have needed it, so I decided to have an easy day today. The town of Kampong Thom wasn’t far away. That still leaves me with two simple days to Siem Reap where I’ll have another rest day.
And there’s a nice hotel with a pool in Kampong Thom. That was motivation enough to get going. I stopped up the road at the aptly named Excellent Coffee, noting that it’s not called Excellent Service for a very good reason. It took ages but was worth the wait in the end. I felt sorry for the Barista. He was the only one on duty and was really busy.
Then it was off through the bustling Saturday morning traffic. It seemed heavier than yesterday, but it’s quite well behaved, and really, this is easy cycling. It was fairly warm but dead flat and not far. However, by the time I got to Kampong Thom, I was ready for some lunch and some aircon.
I’d pre-booked the hotel, and it was very nice indeed, with a restaurant attached. That was perfect for this lazy cyclist. As I’ve mentioned, I think I’m in need of a break as I don’t seem to have the adventurous attitude anymore. I’m still enjoying it though – hope that makes sense.
Lunch was a very nice vegie fried rice and then it was nap time.
I had a walk around the markets and central Kampong Thom and there’s not a great deal there. That’s fair enough too – the tourist sites are all out of town.
Back to the hotel for a swim. The pool here is very good. It’s big for a hotel pool and it was deserted. I stayed there until the sun was setting then retired to my room with a can of Vattanak Dragon, a dark beer from the Phnom Penh based brewery. Quite nice.
I felt pretty good after today. It puts me about half way to Siem Reap and I’m gradually shaking the effects of the cold that has plagued me since HCMC.
