I woke up early and cut up half of the papaya to eat along with a banana and I also took 3 bananas to give to the monks if I was there for the alms giving ceremony. I went downstairs and the front door was locked. The woman at the end in the bed was awake but the man next to the door was asleep with the TV on. I found the key though so opened up and walked out. I went to the church first which wasn't really worth visiting but it was on the way, then I got to the Buddhist temple and monastery but nothing was happening there (I've checked and the alms cermony is at 5.30am) . There were a couple of large temple like buildings and in front they were renovating some land either for an arch or for a modern building. I crossed the river and walked along to the end where there was a temple and a viewpoint. The sun was low in the sky and a bit orange but soon went higher and the temple when I got there was quite small and 4 people had taken a tuk tuk there. I walked back to the bridge, crossed and went past the temple to the bus station but none of the offices were open yet. I carried on to a viewpoint which was shut but I just stood nearby on the river and it wasn't a great view anyway. I headed back into town and bought a few mini doughnuts and got to the larger temple near to my guesthouse. There were a few new looking buildings and one old not used building and there was a ceremony going on and 2 people outside preparing food for when they finish. I got back before 7.30, had a shower and realised how dirty the room was. I packed up, went downstairs and paid and it was 50,000 and not 5,000. Then I left my suitcase there, ate the rest of the papaya and walked to the bus station near to the market where I got dropped off the day before. I found a songsaw going to Champasak so I got on but had to wait at least 30 minutes while they squeezed more goods and people on and we could go. I had a bag of mangos between my legs, there were other bags of food all over and there was even a motorbike at the back. Opposite me was a young Japanese guy who was going to the 4,000 islands after Champasak but his English was not good enough for a good conversation and I don't speak Japanese. We arrived about 10.30 at a guesthouse people seemed to think I should go to but I wasn't staying there but I did ask the man there how much bikes were to rent and he said 10 or 20 and I'd read it was 5 so I stayed on the songsaw. We wet past a place with loads of bikes and stopped but they didn't want me to get off and then we came to the guesthouse for the Japanese guy so I got off. Bikes there were 15,000 so I walked around to find cheaper and visited a couple of temples. Eventually I made my way back to the place I'd seen where the bikes were 10 for the day. I tried to get it a bit cheaper but paid and managed at least to get some wifi there. I went to the main road and headed along it stopping at a couple of occasional temples and then took the road round to the river and along before it turned towards wat pho. There were some food places and it was about 11.30 so I was tempted but I wasn't really hungry yet. I got to the place and had to leave my bike and buy the 50k ticket. I walked in and made my way to the museum so I would have an idea of what I was looking at. There was quite a lot of information not all interesting and then there was a room with sculptures and such where I was not allowed to take photos. I left and was walking along when a golf cart went past and then a second one came and offered me a lift as they had space and it was free with the ticket, I'd misread or imagined a charge somewhere. They dropped us off near to a path with small lingues on both sides, they were small columns a bit higher than my waist and the path led to the main ruins. The ruins looked decent although they had been put back together and they still had stones on the floor around it grouped by similarity, a bit like when you do a jigsaw and put all the sky together. I walked around and then saw people taking steps up so I went up and it was pretty hot by now being the middle of the day but I made it up and the views down were good. I walked around at the top to the area where they collected spring water, the elephant imprint in the rock and the main small temple which was partly in ruins. The views down where what held people there but I had seen it all so I went back down. At the bottom I wandered around the 2 ruins and you could walk through them. Then I decided to go to the nong shri????? Temple which was 1.2km away. I walked there in the heat with no shade and drank some water as its so dry here my body needed more as I think normally I absorb some from breathing air or maybe I lose less moisture but here I was losing a lot and thirsty a lot. The temple was largely a ruin but had a plaque with a story of how a king had come here and killed a monster to save a princess???? I walked back and there were no people around anymore so I walked back to the main area in between 2 lakes and I did see a buggy on the other side which would have been a little quicker. I got back on my bike and rode back stopping at a couple of temples and a sitting statue that was supposed to be 18th century but was painted so looked a bit silly. The food people had mostly finished for the day as it was gone 2pm but I found a place. I asked if the fried food was banana and it was so I declined as I still had 3 bananas in my bag and had eaten 3 already today and a man cannot live on bananas alone. There was a tourist information office which I probably could have done with visiting earlier and they had some information boards but nobody around so when I returned the bike I asked the guy there when the next songsaw to Pakse was and he said the last one left at 11am but I could try hitchhiking. I didn't really have much choice although worst case I could just stay in Champasak and the place had a room for 50,000 kip. I got to the main road and as I was almost out of water I bought a bottle from a shop and stood on the road trying to flag down vehicles. Most ignored me but trucks signalled that they'd seen me and after a while a small truck not in great condition stopped. He wasn't going to Pakse and I couldn't work out his destination but it was in the right direction and I'd checked it out and the whole distance was 6.5 hours so worst case I could walk there or back to Champasak from wherever I ended up. He attempted to talk to me but that didn't get far so we sat in silence. I thought of what some people might do, play music or something but I decided just to be quiet and we made our way and went through a toll booth where he had to pay 15k or more. He dropped me off fairly close to town just a bit further along from where I was the day before to see the Buddha on the hill so I was happy to walk and it was only 4pm so even with the 50 minute walk I was ahead of plan. I gave him 20k for his trouble which made transport 50k for the day which is how much it is to rent a motorbike which would have been a better idea. Still I got more exercise and when I walked past s petrol station I used the toilet and noticed the people working there playing badminton. I walked vack across the bridge and went to a supermarket where I got a large pack of biscuits and a juice. I walked through town to the bus station and got a ticket for a 8.30 bus, thrre were a few options and I was hoping mine would not be full. I went back and went to see 2 monuments I'd missed before which were minor things and were fenced in for some reason but there was a whole one end and I climbed the fence at the other. I got water and went to the guesthouse. I really had been drinking lots more water. I got my suitcase which wasn't rolling quite so well snd went to the internet place for an hour before going to the market near the bus station and finding a place for food. I had a noodle soup which was ok and I liked the lettuce but not the mint. I went to the bus station which was busy and I waited before I could board the bus and my bunk was just me so I sat there reading while all the other buses left and I wondered if someone would take the bunk seat next to me but we eventually moved 15 or 20 minutes late and after a bit I settled down and got to sleep. I was woken in the middle of a dream around midnight and I was being asked to move which I didn't understand until I saw a girl and I thought they were a couple and wanted the bed together so I moved over to the other bunk as a guy there had got off but it turned out to be just one girl taking the bunk. Anyway I went to sleep eventually next to the guy who was quite good in not taking up room. I woke up around 2am and he was getting off so I got the whole bed again to myself and managed to sleep again.
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