One of the major goals of this trip, for both Tori and myself, has been to explore the many, many ruins of the Khmer Empire.  In Vietnam there are none, but in Laos it is another story.  Thus from Savannakhet we moved south to Pakse, our operating base for a trip to the ruins of Wat Pho Champasak, one of the outlying ruins of the old empire.  It is set onto a hillside facing towards the east, presumably to take advantage of the sunrise.  The ruins are in a state of mild deterioration from the original, naturally, but it is still possible to gain a clear idea of what the complex was like.

Compared to other Khmer temples, it is quite different in its layout and function.  Most are built on a flat plain and were a center for cities or other active uses.  This one seemed far more passive and ceremonial, and I could scarcely imagine much in the way of life around it.  Even now there is only the tiny town of Champasak all accessible via a unique river ferry made of three floating hulls tied together and covered with a wooden platform.  The temple is set at the top of the hill, proceeded by a series of staircases and some ancillary buildings at the main entrance.  The view is impressive and the tourist traffic is relatively light, leading to a nice experience.

That same day, after our return from Champasak, we set out for Thailand as our intermediate point between Lao and some of the remoter areas of Cambodia. We had hoped to catch a bus direct to Ubon Ratchatani, a Thai city a few hours from the border.  These plans were tossed into disarray with the bus being sold outs.  Undeterred, we found our way to a share taxi.  The share taxi is a car packed until full and then driven off.  In this case, a minivan to maximize passenger numbers.  We made the border, though not without a light tragedy.  There are a great many stray dogs, one of which our driver clipped along the highway.  The dog limped off the road, laying down, looking after us dolefully.  Guess it’s a little of a shock to our Western sensibilities about pets.  At any rate we made the border with time to spare.

On the Thai side, we were running into trouble.  There is no town, only a trade market with nothing in the way of accommodations.  We arrived early evening, with the sun beginning to descend.  There were no buses.  There was a taxi offering a ride for 1000 Baht, about 70 dollars.  I laughed at them and moved on.  While trying to talk our way onto a bus of a school trip (note, I don’t speak a lick of Thai), Tori was asked if we needed a ride by a kind-hearted woman and her husband.  We happily accepted, trusting in our good karma being rewarded and were off to Ubon.  I learned alot about the inner dynamics of the Thai rice industry and its relation to China during the ride, as the Thai fellow behind the wheel spoke good English and was enjoyable to speak to.  He left us in downtown Ubon and in short order we’d found a cheap hotel and street food to sate my ongoing hunger.

Morning broke as is wont to do and we took a saengthaw (which function as the local bus) down to the train station.  There, for a dollar, we bought our seats and were off for the quick 3 hour ride to Surin, our next stop.  The train was an older model, but comfortable and with the windows down it was quite pleasant and a good way to view the Thai landscape.  Tori said she saw a pair of elephants but I cannot corroborate this.

On the trains are peddlers selling all variety of food, drinks, and trinkets.  They are unobtrusive and generally speaking quite friendly.  A big favorite are the aromatic chicken legs, which Tori was eying for a time.  I told her that I, as a good brother, would happily buy her one.  If she ate 3 of the fried crickets that were also sold.  She accepted this challenge, even when I upped the number to 5 and insisted she choose the bigger, more succulent crickets.  After eating the crickets (which weren’t anything untasty) there were, naturally, no more chicken leg sellers to be found.

In Surin, we transferred to a minibus bound for the Cambodian border while our driver made time like a bat out of hell.  We made the border quickly and crossed over into Cambodia at Chong Jom, a dusty isolated little place.  Our hopes for a hitched ride to Anlong Veng, some 2 hours away on bumpy earthen roads, were dashed in short order and we settled for a taxi that I was none to pleased with.  Anlong Veng, the town, however more than made up for it all.