5-12 July – Bangkok, Thailand

We managed to leave Cambodia without any hassle. The customs officers were sleeping, so they did not even bother to check our special car documents (which we had fought quite hard to get when entering Cambodia). However, to our surprise, the Thai Customs insisted on a special Car Import Fee because it was weekend. They really could not know that they were asking the wrong people. If we had traveled this far without paying any ’special fee’, we would not do it now.

We reached Mega-Bangkok through a maze of elevated highways and miraculously reached the tourist district around Khao San Road without too much trouble. We found a hotel and safe parking on Soi Rambuttri. Time to prepare for our return to Sweden.

We spent a lovely week in Bangkok. But true to our promise to our children, we did not visit even one temple... We arranged the car shipment through a very nice and professional agent – Transpeed.
We went to the markets, indulged in excellent street food and relaxed in the hotel pool.
We squeezed the whole family into tuk-tuks, much to the surprise of the drivers. ’One, two, three, four children! Are they all yours?’
We experienced how brave our children were in a close encounter with a python!
We tried to prepare mentally for the trip back to Sweden. It can be a challenge to return after a long journey. But once you know that you are going home, you also start looking forward to it. The difficult phase comes when you have settled in back home and you start to live a life full of everyday routines. This will be a challenge.
We have driven 60,000 km through 37 countries. We have had the pleasure of spending almost one and a half year together, 24 hours a day, in the most exciting and challenging environments. We have enjoyed the freedom and feel extremely privileged and happy. This has been the journey of a lifetime! And who knows, perhaps we get a chance in the future to do something similar again. Once a vagabond – always a vagabond!