I'm over in Cambodia, taking it easy and recuperating (doctors orders, if only they knew!)
Last weekend, we (boss, self, one extra) took a road trip to introduce me to some family I've not met.
As my international driving permit has expired, I had to take a slightly safer option and rent from Europcar. Initial offerings on the phone were uninspiring Fabia, Hyundai Accent (albeit 4wd?) and some brand spanking Chinese SUVesque something. Slightly more expensive than I'd have liked.
As fortune would have it, when I arrived to pick up the weekends jalopy, a small fleet of slightly older, but much more appealing quattro models was available.
I've no idea of the age, but we ended up with an A4 2.0t s-line Avant. In silver.
To date, I've not been much interested in the 4 cylinder offerings, but it was great.
The 6 hour drive was largely uneventful, save for some torrential rain in places, being wet season here, (which made it a 6 1/2 hour drive), and a sudden lack of road for several miles (dug up, in prep for grading, but otherwise a sequence of pot holes best navigated not at 120+Kmh. Ah....!)
I have to say, the 6 speed box was great. I was pleasantly surprised to find they had a manual box.
And off we went. Crossing the Mekong twice en-route out of Phnom Penh, north on some fairly decent highway once away from town, then East and North east, heading to Mondulkiri.
I have always loved the scenery of Southeast Asia, since I was young. As we got away from Phnom Penh a little later than planned, the last part of the journey ended in utter darkness, adding to the surprise of the unmade road.
Imagine going from this-
To this, in darkness, as you cross the rise
Journeys end being the provincial capital, Sen Monorom. For dinner with her family, lots of beer, catch up with an another friend.
I speak next to nil Khmer, but the international language of men (grunts, shrugs, and beer)sufficed.
Day two had a family outing into the local wilderness, to a local spot with some pleasant waterfalls, and later up to one of the higher points in the region.
Some 2 thousand feet elevation. Doesn't seem much until the 33° heat, high humidity kick in to rob the top end of a good amount of power.
That and a slightly overloaded car. We decided that eleven up in an A4 was a tad too much, so sis-in-law and hubby grabbed a bike
It was silver when we started off. The local soil is very red. Boss being more photogenic, she gets a photo op
The only car wash available...
Doesn't really show so much, but 15seconds unloading bags results in yours truly being drenched.
Still didn't shift the red soil...
Hang on, more to come
(Pictures will appear here shortly)