Saturday 30th December
Miles: 22 Climbing: 2605ft
I had two choices today. Either I cycle 115 miles to Siem Reap in 35 degree heat after eating nothing but a bit of rice and pigs intestines for the last 24 hours or I cycle 25 miles to a nice hotel with a swimming pool, air con, western food and cocktails. Hmmm… let me think about that for a minute.
The heat, starvation and dehydration has been catching up on me. Not to mention the fact that I was really ill just a few days ago. So I decide to pamper myself for the day and check into a nice hotel. It still only cost about £20 so it wouldn’t break the bank.
When I arrived I was asked to leave my bike outside but as I was unloading my bags one of the porters stopped me and said I shouldn’t leave such a nice bike outside and he would let me hide it behind the lobby staircase. He was fascinated by my trip and told me that he was a member of the Siem Reap road racing team. It was so good to meet a local who cycled just for fun, rather than for transport.
At reception I was greeted with a cold glass of lemon juice and an ice cold flannel. It was just perfect. I spent the rest of the day making full use of the pool and trying to make up for the lack of food over the past few days. It felt great to be able to blow dry my hair after weeks of helmet hair. This was just what I needed.
