Day 24 - From Hell to Khon Kaen

Sunday we were quick to get up & out of the hotel for a pleasant breakfast round the corner at Cafe Love for coffee, tea, toast & fruit salad (110BT). Once we realised the town had nothing to visit nearby we checked out & took a 24BT sangthew to the bus station. Our connecting bus was an hour late & so we didn't leave Phitsonaloc till 1pm.
What followed on was the journey from Hell. We got on & Vicky got a seat but I was not so fortunate & had to sit right at the back on the riased platform that served as extra luggage space. This wasn't so bad until the bus filled up & I became pinned right at the back of the shelf surrounded by about 9 Thais with their legs crossed. I had to make a pillow using my towel & some clothes to support my back wedged between the wall & the fire extinguisher! Things only got worse. Apart a brief toilet stop twenty minutes in there were no toilet stops. The bus passed paddyfields, villages & towns. It climbed into the mountains by national parks until...i stalled! Now the first time this happened we found it quite amusing watching out the window as the bus conductor & his friend leapt off the bus yelling & waving their arms whilst placing chocks under the wheels to stop it rolling back down & provide grip to help the climb. Seven times it was annoying. Even more so when you need the loo! As the bus stalled for the nineth time on the next incline another bus pulled alongside & half the passengers were loaded onto it whilst me & Vix made a beeline for the nearby fields to relieve ourselves (much to the amusement of the second busload as they drove by us caught in the act - we didn't care). The rest of the delightful trip thankfully was a little easier especially as there was room to move & we settled down to try to understand a Thai horror-comedy film that was put on to kill the last two hour leg.
We arrived at 9pm in Khon Kaen - we should have been there for 5pm!
Unfortuanately the fun didn't end there. We spent twenty minutes trying to find a way to our chosen guesthouse First Choice. 3 tuk tuk drivers & a collection of uni students were unable t help us so we looked at our trusty Lonely Planet & picked a hotel they had heard of. Twenty minutes in a tuk tuk & our luck turned as we passed First Choice Guesthouse & gt the driver to drop us off there for 50BT.
We were pleased with our choice. The guesthouse was nicely located between the three main roads of the town & apart from a shared bathroom the room was decent with plenty of room & a desk & dresser as well as two single beds. Back downstairs we ate spagetti bolognaise & were treated to a large Chang beer by our generous, friendly host David who proceeded to talk to us about Kohn Kaen, his retiring from England 30 years ago & marrying his Thai wife, about politics, Thailand & Buddism. He also told us about the inaccuracy of our beloved Lonely Planet. He had a visit from a rep of the company awhile ago who only came to take a brief look (a common Lonely Planet technique) & was about to leave till David told him to sit down & do a proper report with a tour by himself. Despite this he guesthouse is still described as an 'up & coming backpackers guesthouse' - slightly inaccurate when David has been running the business for 20 years! Filled out with all this wisdom we retired to bed.