airport pick-up

For all of my airport security complaining I really do love to travel. And it's not just the sights, smells and sounds, the charming smiles and unexpected pleasures. For me it's also about the actual travel. The miles passed and the act of passing them. London suburbs whipping past train windows, the lulling hum of wheels on the autobahn, the endless dunes of the Sahara crawling slowly beneath a plane. I really just like to be on the move. And it really doesn't matter if it's cars, trucks, trains, planes, boats, buses, bicycles, motorcycles, hovercrafts or helicopters, they're all great (though helicopters definitely get extra cool points).

Today I flew into Phnom Pehn from Kuala Lumpur. I chose the 2 hour flight over the 2 day bus ride (but to be fair, I did take the bus last time). I've been beginning to worry that this trip may be turning me into a bit of a wimp (what with my decadent flight from Malaysia), so I was starting to feel bad that I had someone coming to meet me at the airport instead of just grabbing a taxi out to meet them when my ride appeared... on his moped.

And with his brother on the back.

But seeing this as an opportunity to show how I'm game for anything, we pile my bags on and the three of us climb on to this little scooter and race off ('race' being a relative term). I really wish I had have stopped to take a picture of the three of us and all of my clothes and gear for a 9 month trip around the world loaded onto what's basically a bicycle with a blender motor strapped to it weaving our way through Phnom Penh traffic. And I probably would have taken a picture too, if I hadn't been too busy humming the Dead Kennedys.