Pursat-Oudong

Total Distance:149.32km
Total Time:7h40m27s
Average Speed:19.4km/h
Maximum Speed:36.0km/h
Total Distance So Far:3607.08km

The return of the dreaded head-winds! I knew it was bound to happen. The wind was at my back the entire way to Battambang. I guess it's only fair that it be reversed for the journey back. It was a rough ride. I really struggled with it. I was not exactly in the highest of spirits. The original plan was to make it to Oudong, 45km from Phnom Penh, as I had no desire to spend another night in the capital. By the time I hit Kampong Chhnang however, I was tired. The wind had taken everything out of me and I resigned myself to the fact that I would have to stop. I even went as far as to check into a hotel there. Once in my room I layed down on the bed and drank some of the complimentary water they gave me. All of a sudden I was feeling rather refreshed. I packed up my things, went down to reception and told them I had changed my mind. The seemed rather confused, and were very appologetic. I tried to explain that it wasn't there fault, and left feeling a little bad.
I continued down the road to Oudong. I had gotten a second wind and was able to make up a lot of time, arriving just before sun-down. I wasn't even sure that there would be a place to stay there. However I always seem to have good luck when it comes to such things, and I figured worst case scenario I could contine on to Phnom Penh. As it turned out there was a couple of small, reasonably priced guesthouses there. I checked in to one of them. I take back what I said about Pursat. Compared to Oudong, Pursat is a hip, booming motropolis. I decided to make the best of it. I went down to a restaurant and attempted to order some rice and veggies. What I ended up getting was rice porrige with fish. Rice porrige is everywhere in Asia and, I'm a little ashamed to admit, this was my first time trying it. It really just didn't appeal to me. It was surprisingly really tasty! The people at the restaurant seemed to get a pretty big kick out of me, and I spent a good couple of hours there drinking coffee while they sat and starred at me. Sometimes stopping in the little places can be the most fun.