The aim - get to Cambodia in one piece!
To get to Cambodia one must take a train from Bangkok to Aranyaprathet, a Tuk Tuk (A motor bike with a carriage for people) to Poipet. From Poipet one must walk through the Border. From the Border get a Bus to the Central Bus station, then a Minivan to Siem Reap. At Siem Reap you can then take another Tuk Tuk to the hotel/hostel/B&B.

There are two trains a day one leaving Bangkok. One at 05:55 and one at 13:05. If you are crossing the border the same day then it is better to get the early train as this gives you a little more time to get through the Border as sometimes this can take a while and the Border is open 07:00 to 20:00 only.

I woke up at 2am after falling asleep at 21:00, I couldn't sleep so after a while i checked in with the UK world online and listened to the news.

The was a lot of rain and it was very very humid. I have never experienced such weather. Being both wet and hot at the same time. The air felt thick, it was 98% humidity in the city so it was definitely a smart move to pay extra for Air Con.

The air is filled with the smells of Bangkok, so much so you can taste them.

Just after 5am I carry my luggage down the 5 flights of stars to reception. I had barely taken 5 stapes out of the hotel and I was sweating. It was so hot, all my clothes were sticking to me.

The train station was viewable from my hostel, so only took 5 mins to walk. Even at this time of the morning there were a large number of cars, tuk tuks and other vehicles on the road. I weved my way through to the train station. It was still dark but there were a lot of people around. I could decipher the entrance of the train station and after pulling at a few barred doors I realised that they were the exit doors. '# oops

Found my way to the entrance and bout my ticket for 48Thai Baht.

I was beyond hot and I felt like I was melting! I think it is at this point that my make up ran down my face. I wasnt really wearing any. A tiny bit of mascara but that didn't matter... i had big Panda eyes!! Although no one told me, it wasnt until I checked in to the B&B at 5pm did I realise that I had Panda eyes, I was mortified - no wonder people were laughing at me. I would laugh at me too!

The station is very well signed posted so went to platform 6 to Board the Train. I wasn't 100% if it was the correct train so waited a minute for a thai gentlemen to come along who was getting on the train. He didnt speak english but nodded for Aranyaprathet and helped me put my case on the train.

There was a large gap between the Station floor and the train and 3 small steps to get onto the carriage. Inside there was a small cubicle which was the toilet and then each carriage had several booths. To the left there were benches/seat which sat 3 people and immediately opposite there were another three which faced you. On the right hand side it was the same but they were two seaters.

As I boarded the train there were some locals selling food. Local food. Im not to sure what most of it was, I could tell that one of the options was a hot dog type sausage which some of the skin off to make a pattern, there were some other fried items but im not sure what.

They walked up an down the carriages selling the food. Some had drinks to.

I took a 2 seater as I case was very large and took up all the leg room. I read that this train gets very busy as it takes children to school and workers to work and as it is 3rd class it is affordable.

There was only a small amount of padding on the seats but it was comfortable enough to start with. Towards the end of the journey however it did become uncomfortable as the journey took 6 hours.

At times the coach got very busy. At one point the whole coach was full with some people standing up. As there are so many stations the people would come and go quickly usually.

At one point one of the ladies selling food came and sat next to me. She then fell asleep and nearly feel off the chair (yes I laughed a little inside)

The Railway Police were wearing uniform which reminded me of a police officer. They had badges and hats.

I watched the world go by as we went from the CIty of Bangkok to the ruralness of the country through to Poipet. I saw large city buildings filtrated with small older traditional thai housing and the poor houses along side the train line. These houses were made of tin roofing and wood.

In these areas the smell of dumps (we did pass a few) was intense. The families were alos cooking things or burning them. There was a strong smell of melting plastic!

Further along the view turned to marsh/swamp land where there were people looking for (what I guess) fish/insects? And their homes (the ones that had proper homes) were on stilts.metal toilet seat over a whole in the bottom of the train. The cubicle wasn't clean of germs but it was clean as in washed down clean. When I washed my hands I realized that the pipe where the water flows through to the outside was leading to a hole in the floor. The water just sprayed under the train. I then turned and looked at the toilet and realised that the tunnel from the toilet did to just lead to the outside so when someone used the toilet it also sprayed out the side. I hope no one uses the bathroom when there is a walker close by (as there were often a few) as they would have been in for a shock.

I decided not to drink much on this trip as I wasnt sure when I would have access to some form of toilet. just before we arrived at Aranyaprathet I used the bathroom facilities on the train. I was pleasantly surprised. There was a small hand basin and

At Aranyaprathet station there were a number of Tuk Tuks waiting to take you to Poipet. There were friendly and were on the look out for westeners!

At first the tuk tuk was lovely. It was nice to have the fresh air streaming through the carriage and be out of the train, however this didn't last long as we hit the road. The road is very polluted and dusty and this took my breath away. At times you couldn't inhale at all.

At the Border I was taken to Immigration. Here I was told to be sure not to buy a bus ticket as there are so many scams and there is a free bus to the station. Also this allows you to have some freedom to chose the method of transport after the border.

At the immigration office I just filled in a immigration form and went on my way. It took about 10 mins to walk to the next border station and again in the heat I was very uncomfortable.

Here I had my passport stamped and I walked to the visa office.....about 5-10 mins

The border is really badly sign posted but luckily people around knew that and would point in the right direction. Along the way there were so many people wanting you to buy things - this was really irritating!!

Whilst walking to the Visa office I bumped into another traveler. Dragos. Dragos is from Romania and has been traveling for the last 2.5weeks and will be in Cambodia for 3 days.

The Visa staff check out visas and took our finger prints. Again all the staff were in uniforms which looked almost militant.

Outside there was a swarm of men who wanted you to get on various buses. at first I was very reluctant as I had heard that you are able to get a minivan further down the road.

I now realize that you need to get a bus to the bus station from which you can get a minivan.

We got on the free bus to the train station. Here you are able to buy tickets for a minivan, bus or taxi. As Dragos had already bought his ticket he needed to wait for a certain bus to come. As there was a minivan with a spare seat I bought a ticket for 400Thai Baht and jumped on this one. The minivan journey was 2 hours. Not the most comfortable as I had the seat that isnt actually a set in the middle of the bus to the right (so people can get out) but it was ok.

The scenery was very much the same being lots of wetland, houses on stilts and people in water. I did notice however that the people were often not wearing any shoes or waterproof clothing.

We arrived at Siem Reap and I got on a Tuk Tuk. He took me to the hostel and asked me for a tip. I was totally unsure about pricing at this stage and hadnt sorted my money so gave him $5. Now I realise that this is way too much! Í need to be careful now as I will get hangers (people who hang around you for tips and work)

I got to the B&B which looked quite nice. I was greeted with a cold damp towel and a banana smoothie. I didnt drink the smoothie as didn't know what was in it and particularly didn't like that there was ice.

They had no recollection of my booking - even though we had emailed over the last couple days but that is ok as they had a room.

It is $13 per night here. My room is good with two single beds. There is a fridge and tv that doesnt work and a bathroom. The bathroom is a wetroom so you can shower just standing by the sink.

One of the B&B staff took me on a tuk tuk to get a sim card for my phone. I have text a couple people but not heard anything back so I don't know if it has gone? but this number was only temporary anyway as I forgot to take my passport so I have to go back and buy another.

Later on I went to the restaurant at the B&B and had some dinner. I had steamed rice and fried vegetables. I think this is going to be my staple for the next 3 months.