Hi Fodorites,
I've only posted a few times before, but I've done more than my share of lurking and gleaning others' wisdom, so here's my Trip Report in return. I'm at work, so I'll do a little at a time and post as I go.
3 weeks ago,my partner and I did a 7-day bicycle tour with Spiceroads from Bangkok to Angkor. We had 2 1/2 days in Bangkok before the trip to spend on our own. It was our first time in Asia -- we live in Philadelphia -- but now we can't wait to go back. I'll report chronologically.
We flew Thai nonstop JFK-BKK. We figured it would take a little over 2 hours to drive from Philadelphia to JFK and the flight leaves at 11:35, but we'd had some snow the night before so left the house around 6:00. Well, the roads were terrible, accidents on the NJTurnpike, Staten Island Expressway, Belt Parkway. When it was 9:30 and we were sitting still in traffic I called Thai Airways, pleading with them not to give our seats away. I told them we were just around the corner. We had purchased Premium Economy seats in August and had been looking forward to spreading out for the 17 hour flight. Finally made it to JFK, ran into the terminal, checked our bags at about 10:00. On our way to the gate, someone from the airline ran up to us and said "I just wanted to tell you that you've been upgraded to Business Class!" Well, that made up for the hellacious ride that morning. I guess it pays to call and let them know when you're running late! The flight was fabulous, as noted on this board before. Food, seats, service -- just slightly nicer than USAirways, our usual airline.

So we arrived in Bangkok at 4:30 PM. We had a reservation at the Arun Residence. We'd read so many good things about it here and on other boards. We had booked the top floor room with the private balcony overlooking the river. We had the hotel send a driver to pick us up, because we didn't know how foggy we'd be after the long flight, and might not want to negotiate taxi fares in a strange language. Also, we weren't heading to a major hotel, so we were afraid no one would know how to find it. This was an extravagance we've never indulged in, but I think it was about $30 or so. Our driver was there waiting. The ride into the city seemed like any ride into any big city, until we got off the highway. The driver explained he was taking a non-standard route to avoid something. Anyway we suddenly were in the midst of Chinatown and then in an area where hundreds of vendors were setting up their carts on the side of the roads. It was so crowded and noisy. Really exciting! And then, there we were at the hotel. It's a tiny place at the end of a tiny alley. I'm glad we had a driver! The hotel and the room were fabulous, except for the water temperature in the shower. But the view from the balcony was wonderful. Directly across from Wat Arun. Boats going back and forth all day and night. Loved being right there out on the balcony, rather than upstairs in a highrise somewhere. The hotel serves breakfast, chosen the night before from a menu. Since we had plans for a tour guide to pick us up before breakfast hours 2 mornings, the hotel brought up large bowls of yogurt, cereal, and fruit the night before and placed them in our mini-fridge.

Only 3 weeks after your trip, im sure andy will not give you any penalty!

Look forward to the rest of your report. It will be different from most of the other reports, with the long bike ride!

We had arranged for a guide to pick us up the next morning and take us to the Floating Market, Bridge on the River Kwai, Tiger Sanctuary, and Elephant Camp. Everything I read here pointed toward using Tong, but Tong never answered our emails. Once, she answered an email 4 months later. Meanwhile, I had developed a very friendly correspondance with Celine and made arrangements to spend the day with one of her guides. Poppy picked us up promptly at 7:00. She had a driver and a huge air-conditioned van. First stop: Floating Market. Along the way, Poppy spoke to us about life in Thailand. She's never been outside of the country, but her English was beautiful. The Market was like a fantasy come true for me: Being chauffeured around in a boat sampling wonderful food and fruit from passing boats. Such wonderful smells and noises. People standing in the river, shaving or washing their dishes. Finally feeling like I'd left the U.S. Spent a few minutes at the Allied Cemetery, then on to the Bridge. Looked so much smaller in the movie! Enjoyed a wonderful lunch along the river at a large restaurant that I would dismiss as a tourist trap in the States! On to the tigers! I'm not prepared to weigh in on the drugged/not drugged debate, but I will say it wasn't anywhere near as exciting as I had hoped. I pictured walking amidst herds of tigers, all under the spell of Buddhist Monks, while they purred and rubbed up against me. Instead I was led by the hand from one sleeping animal to the next, crouching down for photos. Well, they do give out free bottles of water while you wait in line. The Elephant camp came next. Really enjoyed being up so high, swaying back and forth on the animal. Our driver jumped off the elephant and took pictures of us while the animal followed him. Our friends went the next day and had a massage by a baby elephant! Sorry we missed out, but enjoyed it nonetheless. Highlight of the day was definitely the Floating Market!

Travelduo is correct. This is a prompt report and no penalty accrues. We are patient to a point.

Can't wait to read the bike part of the trip. I bike all the time and would love to do a trek in Asia. Beth would not, so no go for me.

I went to college in Philadelphia a few hundred years ago. I really liked living in the city. I'm an ex-Quaker.

I'll just continue posting when I can.
The day with Poppy wore us out, but we made plans to meet up with 2 friends just arriving from the US who were also coming on our bike trip. We met at our hotel, then set out to have dinner at Chotechitr. We'd all read good things about it and knew just what to order. Had a map in hand, found a tuk-tuk to take us there for like 50 Baht. Unfortunately when we got there, we found a sign on the door saying they were closed for a month!! So, along with the Floating Market, another reason to return to Bangkok. Went around the corner where there was loads of street food happening. Didn't really know where to eat, until one shopkeeper said the magic words: "Pad Thai." We all knew what that was. Sat down on plastic stools, right there on the sidewalk, while his little daughter set the table for us. The food was delicious. Loved the dried shrimp. So much more flavor than regular old sauteed shrimp. A little crunchy too. Dinner was done and we realized we didn't know the address of our hotel, and didn't know how to walk back, and no one recognized the name when I wrote it down. Luckily there was a TV crew filming nearby, and the chef asked them to help us. One person was proficient in English and flagged down a tuk-tuk and instructed him on where to go. What a relief! We're pretty seasoned travelers, but we'd never been somewhere with such a language barrier. One of us speaks French, the other Spanish, so up to then, it's always been easy to speak to the locals, or meet them halfway when it comes to language. This was a whole different story. We got back to the hotel. I took an Ambien, got a good night's sleep, and spent the next day seeing Wat Pho, the Grand Palace, JTH. Rode the skytrain, took the water bus, ate street food two more times (decided I need to have dried shrimp in everything I eat.). Loved walking around Bangkok. Definitely a place to come back to again. Everyone knows about the tourist stops in Bangkok, so I'll start posting about the Bike trip next time.

This sounds seriously energetic! Thanks for the mention of the Arun Residence, it sounds interesting.

Next morning, our guide from Spiceroads picked us up at the Arun Residence. Waiting in the van were the other 6 people in the group: our 2 friends from the US, 2 others from the US, and 2 from Australia. We drove about 3 hours into Chantaburi province. It was beautiful. Lots of hills and cows, yet still plenty of pictures of the King around. We stopped at a mangrove farm, got on our bikes and started riding. No ceremony, no introduction, no safety lecture. Very different from the 10 other bike trips we've taken, all with US companies. Anyway, the roads were nice and smooth, not too much traffic. The terrain we rode had lots of small hills and many views of some body of water. Passed lots of shrimp farms, but we were told that most of these farms were defunct. Too many farms and not enough customers. We did stop at one woman's home/shrimp farm and were told that she just sold lots of shrimp and pocketed $100,000 - a lot of money, especially in Thailand. Staying on the left required constant mental reminding, but we all made it to our stopping point without trouble.

Our guide took us through a fabulous market where he chatted with the vendors who offered us delicious fruit, curries, and a delicious dessert called a dosa. Similar to the Indian dosa, but bigger and filled with condensed milk, raisins, then seared on a griddle and sprinkled with sugar and black sesame seeds. Delish! Got our first look at people chopping the heads off live fish. The market was crowded with shoppers, motorbikes carrying 4 members of a family. Saw a man driving the motorbike with his wife seated behind him, nursing a baby while riding down the road.

Dinner was in Chantaburi town. No-frills place filled with locals. We sat at a big table and they just brought out bowl after bowl of food and Singha beers. We recognized Som Tom, Tom Yum, Pad Thai -- all delicious. Also had a few fish dishes. I loved the Thai eggplants found in lots of the dishes. Small, shaped like a kiwi, but firm and sweet. We've had them sliced thin in the US, but these were used sliced in half. They go well with spicy green curry. After dinner, our exhausted group piled back into the van and spent the next few hours silently snoozing on our way to the Soi Dao Golf Resort where we slept very soundly.

Great report, please keep it coming!

<i>&quot;decided I needed dried shrimp in everything I eat&quot;</i> LOL! That was truly funny!

reading with interest....

How far were you cycling each day? We love cycling and did a trip last summer along the Danube for 8 days. This sounds very adventurous.

The cycling varied from day to day. Usually around 20-30 miles daily, with one crazy 50+ day in Cambodia. I'll get to that soon! While the distances were fairly short, the condition of the roads and the bikes made for some tough stretches.
I'll post some more later!

Next morning we awoke to find we were staying at a very large nondescript 2 floor complex overlooking a golf course. Breakfast was served on a patio overlooking lots of trees and mist-covered mountains. Very pretty. Ate quickly, then got on our bikes. Today we would be crossing the border into Cambodia, at the Prum crossing. We rode a total of about 25 miles on fairly smooth roads. Before reaching the actual border we passed through 2 checkpoints. Both were staffed with 2 very friendly giggly soldiers in uniform. Finally arrived at the border immigration station. Surprised to find out that our guide and driver from Thailand would not be crossing with us; Cambodian law requires licensed Cambodians as guides and drivers. Oh, and we would be leaving our bikes behind. Our new guide would meet us on the other side. So we 8 bikers carried our luggage and folded ourselves into a serpentine line at the passport check office. Went through smoothly. Our new guide was waiting on the other side, collected our luggage and had us walk a short distance to the immigration station. Immediately we noticed some differences between Cambodia and Thailand. The roads were barely paved. Lots of red dust, not many trees. We spent about an hour at the immigration office buying visas for entry into Cambodia. The border personnel were as nice as could be. Everyone was smiling!

Finally moved along to our new bikes. Our bikes in Thailand were clean shiny mountain bikes with 21 gears. The new bikes were somewhat dirty mountain bikes. One man's bike had no brake cable. Someone complained that only some gears worked. No worry. Our new guide switched a few cables and everyone was happy. And off we rode. Now, I'm a road biker at home. I'm used to smooth paved roads. But there I was on a fat-tired mountain bike with very bouncy shocks; it made me feel like I was working twice as hard as I was used to. But in the end I was glad I had the bike I had. The roads were the worst I had ever ridden; even worse than the roads in Costa Rica (for those who have driven or ridden them)! The short stretches of packed down gravel were fabulous -- perfect for a mountain bike. But most of the way was spent bouncing in and out of ruts, cracks, and potholes filled with red sand or gravel. Some spots seemed almost paved; maybe they had once been paved, but they were now a cracked mess. Climbing hills was hard because it was impossible to gather any momentum. My bottom suffered the most, and I wondered how long my wrists could take the pounding before Carpal Tunnel Syndrome set in. I tried to remember if adults could be victims of Shaken Baby Syndrome. And the red dust couldn't be avoided. We rode through clouds of it every time a motorcycle or truck went by. Later found out there were masks available. We all stuck it out and were rewarded at the end with the arrival at our next overnight point: the Bamboo Restaurant and Guest House in Pailin City.

The Bamboo Guest House was an adorable property consisting of 2 facing rows of adjoined rooms, and a large open-air restaurant under cover of trees. As promised by Spiceroads, our room had Air Conditioning and a shower. The shower was a detachable hose on the bathroom wall in one corner. No shower stall or curtain here. Didn't matter to us. Just moved the towels and toiletries out of the bathroom and sprayed away. The water was lukewarm, but after a long day in the hot hot dusty countryside, the lukewarm water felt great.

We all met after the showers and took a van ride to the town's market. Very different from the market we had visited in Thailand. This one was much dirtier and more crowded, and while the Thai market was packed with delicious treats, this one had nothing even slightly appetizing to offer. Unless you consider skinned frogs that were still moving appetizing. But through it all, the people all smiled at us and said hello. Bought a few pairs of bicycle size socks for 75 cents each. We had read before that Cambodians trade with US Dollars, so we had brought a stash of ones. Came in handy the rest of the trip.

Back to the Guest House for dinner. Again, bowls of food kept appearing. And bottles of Angkor beer too. The food was delicious, decidedly less spicy than the Thai food, but very tasty. Everyone's favorite dish was Lok Lak -- a dish of stir fried marinated beef with crispy beans, sliced onions and tomatoes on the side. Topped with french fries!! Fantastic. After dinner, to bed. There was a loud wedding celebration going on down the road -- day 2 of 3-- but that didn't keep us awake. The bed had a very hard mattress, which most of us appreciated. Found all the mattresses on this trip were very firm, even in these not-so-posh places -- wouldn't expect that in the US.

Tomorrow: our epic 50+ miles to Battambang!

very enjoyable....

This is getting lots of points for originality. Thanks for the exciting reporting.

As one who has done a lot of cycling both on and off road, I really appreciate your report. Keep it coming...

The ride to Battambang!
None of us could imagine what it would be like to ride 50 miles on such difficult roads. The 20-30 we had done yesterday were challenging enough. But we took off early in the morning, we rode hard all day, and when sunset came we were riding into Battambang. The day was long and hot and dusty, but was made brighter by the hundreds of children who ran out of their homes to shout &quot;Hello!&quot; or to slap hands with us as we passed. I don't know how they knew we were coming, but house after house, kids came running out in groups shouting hello (or sometimes &quot;bye-bye&quot.

We stopped to visit our guide's grandmother at her house. We had no way to communicate verbally, but she was very nice to offer us a place to rest and snack for a half hour. Let us use her toilet too!

At the 3/4 point of the ride, we stopped to visit a Buddhist temple on the top of a 600-stair climb. Don't know the name of the temple. Before reaching the top, there's a reclinging Buddha (much smaller than the one at Wat Pho in Bangkok). Amazed by how much trash there was on the stairs and on the ground nearby. At the top was a huge statue of Buddha flanked by 2 groups of 3 kneeling worshipper statues. Wandering about were monks in orange robes, dogs, monkeys. There were several small temples, all with incense burning. Beautiful view from the top, overlooking the flat ground below. Spent about an hour, then climbed back down to start the last quarter of our ride. Have to admit most of us had had our fill of biking that day, and after stopping for so long we weren't thrilled to start up again. But when would I ever again have the opportunity to ride 12 miles in the dusty smoky heat trying to outpace the sunset? I thought that way frequently during the week. Don't complain about anything -- this is a unique experience that most people will never get to enjoy, so shut up and live in the moment! Have a good time and make some great memories.

Our guide told us to continue on the same road we'd been on all day until we reached the &quot;paved road.&quot; He warned us there would be traffic going into Battambang, and it would be safer to let him guide us. It was rapidly getting darker out, but I had to keep my biking goggles on to fight the dust. It was getting harder and harder to see where we were going. I knew how hard it was to distinguish paved from non-paved roads, and with my dark glasses on, I was sure I'd miss it.

I thought I reached a paved road, so I crossed it and stopped. Looked around and was glad to see my friend already there and waiting. We both stopped at the same place, so it must be the right place. Everyone else appeared a few minutes later, and we rode en masse through rush hour traffic into the heart of Battambang. At one point we had to cross a bridge over a river in the heart of the city. There was traffic flowing from 3 directions, merging onto the bridge. Mostly bicycles and motos, but also some trucks, cars and dogs. No traffic lights or stop signs, but everyone just sort of found his own space and proceeded without a problem. I appreciated this orderly flow; at home we have signs everywhere and lanes painted on the road and rules about the right of way, and we still end up with people shouting and honking and trying to cut each other off. So even unprotected on a bicycle in such thick traffic I felt completely comfortable. We reached the Golden Palace Hotel and checked in at the front desk. Then we all took pictures of ourselves covered in brown/red dirt, went upstairs a took showers. This shower was also a detachable hose on the wall on one side of the bathroom, but unlike the last one, it had hot water. Felt good to clean off. Went downstairs to meet for dinner.

Our guide took us to a wonderful local restaurant. Again we all sat down, ordered beers and Cokes. Bowls of food appeared and it was all delicious. Had Lok Lak again, but instead of French Fries on top, it had a fried egg!! That's when the fries vs. egg debate began. To me, they're both delicious and I'd never be able to choose between the two. The Lok Lak came with a delicious sauce made of lemon juice, pepper and salt. Outstanding! Also had fish Amok and sauteed morning glory. All fabulous. Van back to the hotel. Tomorrow was a day off from biking. We'd be taking a boat ride on the Tonle Sep from Battambang to Siem Reap!

I am a pretty fit individual who would love to take a bicycle trip, but this sounds like hell!!! How fit do you have to be?

What a wonderful experience this seems to be. Let me know what my fitness schedule will be like while I gear up for this.

You really don't have to be that fit to do the trip. There are plenty of stops along the way for a breather or a snack. And there's a support van that sweeps back and forth during the ride -- jump in anytime! After doing so many bike trips, some strenuous and some not, it's hard to imagine traveling somewhere without doing some biking. It allows you to see so many things you'd miss zooming by in a car or (heaven forbid!) a bus. You're right in the thick of things, touching people, smelling and hearing everything. Give it a try sometime!

great report...i'll stick with the car...

This report is really good. I love biking. I would love to take this trip. Unfortunately, I woulkd be doing so without the companionship of Beth. Something with which I will not do without. Keep pedaling.