Day 401 - Kuala Lumpur

Kuala Lumpur....wow! After a few nights camping in the bush and stopping at little villages it comes as a bit of a culture shock. It makes Penang feel like a little backwater. There are people here, lots of people.


Heading south from Jeli came as a bit of a surprise, I expected it to be hilly and tough going, but in reality it was flatish and a bit of a doddle really. I stopped for some iced tea and the sweat starting pouring. I looked back to where I had come from and it seemed I was being chased by a big black cloud, oh dear, time to make a move before it catches me. I was on a hiding to nothing really, before too long there where thick black clouds all around me. It started to rain, but there was nowhere to hide, I had to keep going. I was let off somewhat lightly as it soon stopped raining, but there was thunder and lightening all around, it was only a matter of time before I took a full on hit. Then I was cycling on very wet roads, I seemed to be timing it just right and missing the lot, but I decided not to push my luck and camp out in it, so I made my way to Dabong. When I got there I was surprised how small the place was and apparently nowhere to stay, so instead I did what comes naturally to cyclists in times of adversity, I found a cafe and had something to eat. It started to rain, again I had timed it to perfection. When it eased I reluctantly got back on the bike and stood there trying to decided what to do, I should have done that before I went out into the rain, but never mind. I was asked by a motorcyclist where I was going and I said I was going to look for somewhere to stay and a brief phonecall later I was following him to a guest house, though in reality it wasn't, but at least I had a bit of a dive to spend the night in, a big dive mind you, 3 rooms of dive, I was spoilt for choice.


The following morning was full of murk, but at least dry. I had to back track 6km and a waterfall I passed yesterday had disappeared into cloud. As the day progressed the weather got better and the roads hillier. For some reason I didn't seem to be going well, progress was slow with a lack of power. At Gua Musang I stopped for more food, that'll solve the problem. I had a relaxed break as there was not so far to go, but once I was on the move again things just seemed to be worse. I suspect my speed was ok, but it felt laboured, just hard work and not rewarding at all. I plodded on slowly then had a series of little stops as I looked for food and water for the evening. Now it's been a long time since I lowered the tone of this blog by telling you about my natural bodily functions, so it's only right that I should tell you this because it has a mildly interesting ending. Having stopped a few times as I had said I spotted a public loo. I had been needing to go for a poo for some time so this seemed the ideal opportunity, so I stopped yet again. Having been to the loo and feeling much better, I was washing my hands when the urge hit me again, but I had run out of loo paper so had to dash to the bike for more and make a quick return. So after two visits I am about to set off....wait a minute, not yet! Another dash to the loo and by the end of the third time I must have lost an alarming amount of weight, and that reminds me of other story, but later. So at last I set off again, and here's the interesting bit, I felt really good, I was riding with ease, in fact I felt so good I didn't want to stop, it was as though my body had been using all its energy in clearing out the system and once its job was done normal service could be resumed. Normally by the end of the day I am tiring, but today I felt great. It was a good job too as every time I saw a path or track leading away from the road I could see a house, I couldn't camp there. Eventually I was heading through limestone cliffs and found a track, so I went down it. I passed through a rough ford, surely that meant nobody else would be down here. Wrong! I was still looking for the best place to camp when I came across a man with a gun over his shoulder. I don't mind men with guns that are visible, it's the ones with concealed guns that are the problem and you can't tell who they are anyway. He came over to me and agressively said "Yes" in a questioning manner. In a friendly voice I said "Hello" and carried on. Hmm, I am not quite sure why I have told you that, it was hardly the most exciting conversation in the world! So I found a nice spot and put the tent up and blow me, 10 minutes later a JCB came past and 100m further on I could see tree disappearing before my eyes. Is nothing sacred? A few minutes later a truck arrived, then left full of earth and the process was repeated until the JCB left at 8pm when it got dark.


More murk the following morning, either that or the JCB had demolished the limestone cliffs while I had been asleep. I set off and ready for an early breakfast, but there was nothing, typical! I stopped at the first place I found and had rice and something washed down with milk tea. The tea here is great, normal tea with condensed milk added that sits at the bottom of the glass, so I can never resist a spoonful of the milk dragged up from the bottom, delicious. When I am home I hate sweet tea and coffee, but my body seems to want it now and I love the stuff. I stopped off in Kuala Lipis a nice little town with some colourful old colonial buildings. I used an internet cafe but the power went off 5 minutes after I had arrived, though thankfully they could still serve hot sweet tea in the cafes. I carried on a bit further to Benta, an easy flat ride after the hills of the morning. The weather looked bad again and I was undecided what to do, so I popped into the police station and asked if they knew of a homestay. A quick phonecall later and he had found a place, a small room with a television that showed just one channel that proudly stated it could only be viewed in Malaysia, I am not surprised, nobody else would want it. Later I changed my mind on that one though as they show the Euro semi final between Germany and Turkey, so I was sorry to see that Germany won 2-1.


The following day was surprisingly easy through Raub to Bentong, where I stopped in a cafe. They were showing the Germany v Turkey again, so I didn't take much interest, until Turkey scored with 3 minutes to go to make it 2-2. How can that be? It was 2-1 last night! Had I been dreaming? Basically yes, because Germany scored another with seconds to go, the excitement last night was just too much I must have fallen asleep. I then had to cut through the mountains towards Kuala Lumpur, the easiest way was the expressway, to I joined that for a few kilometres to Bukit Tanggi, another cafe, more food, isn't life wonderful. But once again through the mountians it was hard to find anywhere to pitch a tent, so I followed the road through the village and by heck it was steep. People called out "Where are you going?", but I failed to answer as I was using all my effort and breath on keeping moving fast enough so that I didn't topple over, if I could have answered I probably would have said "I don't know". I felt I was on the road to nowhere but having put so much effort in to get up a very steep hill I was reluctant to go back down again and make it a wasted effort. It paid off as there was a turning signpost KL, still going up by nice and gently now. There was still nowhere to camp, lots of spots right next to the road, but it was impossible to get further back as it was just steep hillside and alot of rock. I just had to keep going, slowly and upwards. I ended up a service area and nearby were some buildings with a nice patch of grass, but security wouldn't let me stop there. A little further on more buildings and more security, but this time they let me put my tent up. Once the tent was up I sat and did a Sudoku puzzle I had stolen from the paper in the cafe, the paper had stolen it from the Daily Telegraph. Soon it started to rain lightly so I sat on a chair in the car port area and continued the puzzle. I have to say I am useless at the things, I always manage to get stuck and very frustrated with them, it ended in the bin. Then the heavens opened. It just tipped down for a couple of hours and areas at the bottom of slopes were flooded. I was offered a room inside so I made the most of it, though I think it was where the cats normally sleep judging by the noise they made outside and they continued efforts to force the window open that I had shut.


By morning everything remaining in the tent was perfectly dry, but it was a reminder not to pitch the tent anywhere that water can collect, because it collect very fast and you would soon be flooded out. I had breakfast in the services, good food the same as everywhere else and at the same price too, not like service areas in rip off Britian where they serve poor food at restaurant prices. I was surprised to find that I was just a short climb from the top of the little pass. I took the back road despite being told the motorway was best. The road was a delight, though there were a number of small landslides from the nights rain, some blocking half of the road. The mountain road continued down until I was just 14km from KL. Getting to the centre was easy as the Petronas Towers stood head and shoulders above everything else and I just aimed for them. When they were built the were the tallest buildings in the world, but now they are just the tallest twin buildings. I found a guest house that suited my pocket, though not a place to fall in love with. It very much reminds me of cabins on a ship, little corridors and lots of doors and rooms with no windows, but its home for a few days.


So Malaysia has been good so far, a sort of Muslim Thailand. The people are very friendly and more English is spoken here than any other country I have passed through on this trip. On my way into KL I stopped to look at the map, then a lorry wanted to park where I was, no horn or abuse like at home, the driver stopped, got out and asked where I wanted to go, gave me directions and parked once I had moved on.

I guess alot of money goes into education in Malaysia. As I came through the hills I would round a corner to see a massive prison like structure, which always turned out to be a school, usually far bigger than the village waranted. But there was pride in the schools with well maintained gardens, and I sensed there was competition between the schools of the area.

I mentioned my weight earlier. Whilst in the guest house in Penang they had some scales so I weighed myself for the first time since I left, I was 9st 4lbs, that can't be right. I found another set and had already put on 11lbs and weighed 10st 1lb. I would guess I am around 10st 7lbs, about 2 stone lighter than when I left, though if I keep eating like this when I return I will reach 15st pretty quickly.


So I will be in KL a few days. I have quite a few odd jobs that need to be done, but I will tell you about those in the next post, I bet you can't wait!

Day 397 - Jeli

Clement and I have been pretty relaxed Penang, ok, more like totally relaxed. The first night we were here we went for a beer, not something I do that often when traveling alone, but we were both tired and pretty much lost track of what we were trying to do and arrived back at the guest house without having had a beer. The 2nd night was more successful, somewhat too successful and every night there after has pretty much taken the same course and all this after my initial reluctance to go out. We generally head out at 10pm, have something to eat, head for a bar, stay there until it closes, then head for a cafe that shows the Euro 2008 matches on a big screen which start at 2:45, where we are joined by Parsi a German. Yesterday we got back to the guest house at 5am and my first thought was "Gosh, we are back early tonight!". Having had another late night we still managed to get out on the bike a cycle around the very hilly island. The west side is much more rural and the road through the hills were a delight. The local fruit Durian was growing everywhere, Clement loves the stuff, but he was somewhat dismayed that they were always out of reach, most of the them very high up in the tall trees. Some of the north coast was also fantastic, with really nice deserted beaches but we were soon back in the built up area.

After yet another late night it was time to move on, not that we went far, due to a late start, a ferry crossing and our paths splitting as Clement was heading back to Thailand and I was taking the long route to Kuala Lumpur. We only covered about 30k, then turned off the main road into a palm plantation and camped there for out final night together. The two weeks together has gone so quickly, it's been good fun and Clement has been a good companion to ride with, I did my best to persuade him to continue south. We talked about everything, even about our lives and emotions, the sort of subjects men don't normally talk about, though as Clement doesn't like football we had to talk about something. Whilst we were in Penang France got knocked out of Euro 2008 and every time somebody asked where he was from he was all too quickly reminded. Thankfully England didn't even get there.

The following day we rode for the last few k together into Sugai Petani, where we had breakfast and just 200m further on we split up, though I am sure we will one day meet again, but who knows where? Once on my own again the kilometers slipped easily by as my mind was deep in thought. I had covered another 50k and hardly noticed it but decided to stop at the next cafe, but the road then climbed up through the mountains and I didn't see another cafe for a further 40km, though thankfully I still felt good, though I was now on a road not marked on my map and with no distance signs so I had no idea how far I had to go. So that was 90km without a break, probably the longest unbroken stretch of the entire trip. I found a restuarant at Gerik just as it started to rain, good timing. I bought a bit extra and continued a little further before again pulling off the road into another palm plantation for the night.

Yesterday was a tough, the road just seemed to go on up forever. There were one or two long descents, but they just whizzed by and I was once again climbing. I learned my lesson from the previous day and stopped at every cafe just in case, had at least a drink, filled the water bottles and a water bag, just what I need for a long climb, a bit of extra weight. Added to the climbing I wasn't going particularly well either and to make things even worse during the night I had been bitten on the backside by something with big teeth, hard enough to wake me up, but now it was really causing me a problem, it wasn't just uncomfortable, it was painful and no matter how I sat it hurt. My backside was screaming at me to stop and I screamed back "ok, ok, as soon as I find a suitable place", but by their definition mountains tend to be hilly, so there were very few places flat enough to even pitch a tent on. I then saw a little old wooden bridge going over the roadside gully and the overgrown track had one little spot big enough to camp on. Unfortunately there were leeches about and they seem to like my feet more than the mossies did, though I preferred the mosquitos for a change. Down at the bottom of the track was a crystal clear river, the perfect place for a skinny dip shower, just wonderful and it felt or so good to be clean again. Nights camping in the wild/bush/jungle are just great, each night has different sounds, there is not a moments peace from the life going on outside, but it is a joy to listen to. I passed a number of monkeys through the mountains, but thankfully my spot was free of them.

After I packed up this morning and walked back to the road, I had to once again take off my sandals and de-leech my feet, how on earth do they latch on so quickly. The road to Jeli was pretty much downhill and after a nights rest and a bit of Savlon, my bitten backside seems to be back to normal. So here I am in Jeli, what a great name. I always love the name of places when you can eat them, talking of which I am feeling hungry. It's only just gone midday, so I am not stopping here for the night, I shall carry on for a few hours yet and then find another place to camp in the bush. Guest houses seem to be few and far between around here, but I am really enjoying being back to basics again. Once the tent is up and I have washed, the sound of the stove heating up that first brew if coffee is just bliss.


I don't seem to be able to upload photos at this cafe, but attached is a piece that appeared in the Malay Mail last Friday, it's mainly about blogging, but it may be of interest.

Day 391 - Georgetown, Penang

After a lateish night we woke up late in Kangar, to make things worse we both felt pretty lazy and getting anywhere fast didn't seem to be an option and to make things even worse to started to rain, hard. We lay on our beds and started to nod off, until a pipe poured water onto the corrougated roof outside of our room, it was deafening. I was all for staying put and reading a book, but Clement was all for getting out of the place as it was a cramped dive, a good enough reason to move on. When I say cramped, I mean to the extent that if there had just been 2 people in the room you would have had to manouver your way around each other, but we also had 14 bags and 2 bikes in there, we are talking cramped. So once the rain eased we were off. It wasn't long before we could tell it was the right decision as the sun started to shine and we saw blue sky for the first time in a few days. We weren't going far, about 50k, so we just ambled along on little lanes next to the main road, sometimes ending where a bridge over a river had collapsed resulting in us doing U turns. We met a Malaysian cyclist, David, who had just started a journey to the Beijing Olympics. He owned a cyclists guest house which we will probably stop in and recommended a place for us on Penang Island. As planned we stopped the night in Alor Setar, a place of dual identity, sometimes called Alor Star, both on road signs and signs in the town. There wasn't much there, but our room was oh so much better than the one we had just left. We were both glad to have moved on and we talked about why we had felt so lazy in the morning. We decided is was because of pushing to the Thai border with a deadline, no chance or choice to stop, so once we were across the border we could relax, the first day that we at least had the choice to be able to stop.


We were up earlier the following day. We knew we were heading south but had no idea how far we would go, on which road, or where we were aiming for in the evening. We used the main road to get out of town then stopped for breakfast after about 10k. By the time we eventually got going again it was midday, then we saw a signpost to Butterworth where the ferry to Penang goes from, it said it was 83k, yet we had expected it to be much further. It seems I am once again the proud owner of a very inaccurate map as it distances indicated on the map are much further. We had intended to take two days to get there but decided to reach there by the evening so went for a main road bash. The ferry terminal was signposted along the motorway, so not being sure if we were allowed to cycle on it, we did anyway, passing through the toll area without any problems. I was amazed to find the ferry ran every 20 minutes and was packed, despite there being a bridge a little further south which apparently we couldn't cycle over. We soon found ourselves a cheap guest house to call home for a while.


So all this is a clear indication that I am taking my received messages seriously. Rather than pushing on impulsively I have gone across to an island where I intend to stop for a few days, and so far I am really enjoying it. To add to that I have already changed my planned route down to Kuala Lumpur. The west coast seems to be far too busy, densely populated flat and boring, so I am going to cross the mountains and head down the interior, which will hopefully be much quieter and more scenic.


So far Malaysia seems pretty similar to Thailand, but subtley different. As already stated the roads are much busier, but gone are all the new Toyota pickups that the Thais love so much to be replaced by far more makes of car which are much older. I read in the paper today that it is one of the most expensive places in the world to buy a car, hence the older cars. Fuel prices are cheap, though recently the government withdrew its subsidy on fuel, so it went up 40% overnight. People here are very friendly and as some people pass us they call out "Welcome to Malaysia". Malaysia is almost entirely muslim, but it feels very different to any other muslim country I have been in. Women wear the veil but it seems much more relaxed as men can talk to women without any problem. It also a very lush and green land, whereas other muslim countries have been arid and brown, it makes it feel quite different. Food here is also eaten with the fingers, not my ideal way to eat, especially with a runny sauce. They also have 3 pin sockets here, the first I have seen since I left home and a bit of a bugger when my hot water heater is only two pin, I really miss my coffee. Clement has shown me a away around the problem by sticking my penknife into the top hole then pushing the socket into the bottom holes, works a treat. I am not convinced it is entirely safe, so if I manage to electrocute myself I would like to leave my underpants to The Farting Monk in Palain.


Our first day in Georgetown was the lazy day we didn't have in Kangar. I enjoyed doing not alot. I didn't have breakfast until 3pm, then dinner at 10pm. Clement is leading me astray as we spent the night in a bar. I was somewhat dismayed to see a sign saying "English Pub", if I had seen it earlier I wouldn't have gone in. But they did serve Kilkenny, so we ordered 2 pints and were surprised to receive 3. Apparently it was happy hour so 3 pints for the price of 2, great. "How much!!!" Compared with UK prices it was sad hour with 3 pints for the price of 4. After that we stuck to Tiger and normal UK prices, still very steep for a stingy git like me. A well dressed man collapsed, was lifted and propped against the bar with a stool wedging him in to stop him falling, he must have had his bill for Kilkenny too! It was a pub of loud music and sports on the tele. We sat by the window, not that there was a window and soon I had a woman eyeing me up and beckoning for me to come over, I declined the offer. At 2:45am Euro 2008 started on the TV, Turkey v Czech Republic, one advantage of being in a crap pub. At 3am it went off as the pub was closing. Soon we were the last people in there other than the guy still passed out and wedged against the bar. I guessed he was the owner, I was wrong, he was only the manager. We walked down the road and found a 24hr cafe with a big screen showing the football where we joined a German. As we sat and watched the woman who had been eyeing me up arrived, but the German said she was a ladyboy, a bloke dressed as a woman basically, or an ex bloke. See I told you it was a good job that my message from the book wasn't that I fell in love as I can't even tell the differences between the sexes here! We watched the end of the match, the first of Euro 2008 I have seen, and well worth watching as the Czechs were 2-0 up with 15 minutes to go and lost 3-2 with two goals in the last 2 minutes. We arrived back at the guest house at 5am. I normally get up at 6am, I decided to have a lie in.


The next day turned into another lazy day, so no surprise there. Another 2 cyclists arrived, Coen and Dienne from the Netherlands so we joined them from brunch in Little India with a mound of rice and various curries served on a banana leaf and eaten with the fingers. They have come up from Singapore, so we were able exchange information and tips of our routes and experiences.


I suspect I will be in Georgetown another day or two before heading inland, where Clement and I will once again go our seperate ways.

Day 387 - Kangar (Malaysia)

One of the hazards of staying in budget accommodation is that it is not uncommon to share your room with unwanted visitors such as cockroaches, occaisionally, geckos frequently, but I find them facinating, and ants, all too often. The evening I was in Phangnga I returned to my room with a tub of icecream only to find ants all over the bed. Even the thought of them crawling all over my body is not conducive to a good nights sleep, so I made it all too plainly clear to them that they were not welcome, but I suspected they wouldn't take the hint. Too help eleviate the problem I put the empty icecream tub on the floor at the end of the bed in the hope that they would find that more attractive. When I woke in the morning it seemed that my plan had been successful as there were plenty of ants in it, but sadly so too was the young gecko that I watched the previous evening scurrying around the walls, it was dead, stuck fast in the solidified remains of the icecream. I felt slightly saddened by the fact that I had unwittingly brought it's short life to an end, but I managed to cheer myself up with the thought "What a way to go!" It could never happen to me though, I am sure I could always eat my way out of such a problem, unless it was chocolate icecream of course, then I would suffer the fate as the poor little gecko.


The manager of the hotel tried to persuade me to stay another night by offering me the room free if I went on a day trip on a boat to some of the islands with a couple of other tourists. Being as I had no intention of the trip and it was 8 times the price of the room I didn't consider it was a good deal. So I carried on to Krabi, on a roller coaster road through wonderful tree covered sandstone cliffs. Having kept in email contact with Clement I checked into the same guest house as he was staying, Joelle having returned to France after a 6 week tour. It's ironic really as I had expected to wait a couple of days in Krabi for Clement, yet due to the consequences of the book he had lent me, he ended up waiting 3 days for me. It was like wandering around town with a local, he knew all the places to eat, and the people running them. We called in at the market to buy some fruit and the guy there asked if I was his father.....bloody cheak! I don't know if it is due to the weight loss, but I do look older and I still look in the mirror and think "is that really possible to look like that, I don't feel that old".


This post wouldn't be complete if I didn't write a bit more about the book I read, The Alchemist. Having finished I was still left in doubt as to what was going on here. The underlying story and theme was about reaching out and searching for you dreams, to listen to you heart and look out of omens on the way. Well I am still in search of my dream, but in reality I am 'living the dream', I am also listening to my heart, as best as I know anyway, and I wouldn't know how to spot an omen if I ran it over with both wheels. But did I really need to 'held' in Patong and forced to read a book that told me to basically continue with what I was doing, that just didn't make sense to me. I decided I had to read the book again, I was desperate to anyway, I needed to know and try and understand what this was all about. So that's what I did, I started reading it again, and once again I was amazed I what I was reading, though this time because it was not about me at all. Sure I could see there were aspects that could be applied to me, but what on earth was I thinking. In fact I found this read through very bland, I had none of the emotions of the previous time, but I was still convinced there was something in there that I had missed. I was struggling to find it though and the only realistic thing was that the shepherd fell in love with a woman but was told to continue to search for his dream. Was I about to fall in love, I don't think so. I certainly wasn't looking to and had no desire for such a thing at this stage. Then, when I was about half way through the book I started to read a paragraph and immediately it shouted out "ME, ME, ME". Now you may remember from the previous post that I said I was about to encounter the most difficult part of the journey so far, but what I didn't tell you, apart from one or two people by phone and email, was my solution to the problem. I had decided that I would not deviate to any attractions, but take the shortest and quickest route, not stopping other than for a rest when needed one, and to get to Australia and Sydney as fast as possible. I then slowly read the following paragraph: "Meanwhile, the boy thought about his treasure. The closer he got to the realization of his dream, the more difficult things became. It seemed as if what the old king had called 'beginner's luck' were no longer functioning. In his persuit of the dream, he was being constantly subjected to tests of his persistence and courage. If he pushed forward impulsively he would fail to see the signs and omens left by God along his path" Shiiiit! Well that seemed to make things pretty clear, delivered in writing with a poke in the ribs at the appropriate time, the only thing that was missing was a signature. I knew this was why I had been forced to read the book and I knew if I didn't want to I didn't need to read any more of it. The message had to be clear otherwise I would have been falling in love with every beautiful woman I passed, and there is no shortage of them. Whilst I sat in the cafe though, I did continue, though just a few pages further on I began to feel ill, and soon very ill. I knew I was in a bit of trouble, I quickly paid and left. In the 200m back to the guest house I was sick 3 times, somewhat embarrasing. This incidently had no connection with the book, just bad timing. I told Clement to head out on his own and I was sick again about 90 minutes later, though well enough to read that passage over and over again, I was amazed.


I would like to point out here that I am not a religeous person, though I do believe in a God, though I don't know what form he she or it takes. I don't go to church, I pray occasionally, normally when I need something, but my prayers are never answered.


The following day I was well enough to start cycling again, though I noticed that my heart rate was low and got lower as the day went on, so I probably wasn't that well afterall. At lunch we were joined by a woman that that was far to 'in your face' for my liking, though Clement took it in his stride. I am not a lover of being physically fed by anybody, let alone somebody I don't even know. We made our way to a beach to find somewhere to spend the night and hopefully find food and water. All we found was a large shelter with open sides, good enough to spend the night in. We went to the port, but there was nothing there either other than 3 small boats with men loading them. We managed to srounge some water from them, then they invited us to eat. They gave us a drink from what looked like a beer bottle, but it was gin clear and much closer to gin than beer. We made our way back to the shelter. As the sun went down so the mosquitos came out, we weren't going to get much sleep here, so we set up our tent inners inside the shelter to act as mosquito nets, very affective but too hot.


By the following morning I was dead! I can confirm there is life after death, but unfortunately it is damed similar to life before death, for all I knew I might have been dead for years. Having discussed it with Clement I decided it was the batteries in the chest strap of my heart rate monitor that was dead, not me. We stopped for lunch in a town just as the rain started, it continued for about 3 hrs. We stayed in the restaurant until it stopped. See, it's a tough life you know. By nightfall we were just arriving at Palian and found a nice bus shelter to sleep in but continued to see what else was there. We called in at a temple and were offered some space on the balcony where some monk lived. After a welcome shower we ate the food we had bought, along with other bits that they gave us including coffee. We had a social couple of hours before they went to bed.


By the following morning we were both dead! We got very little sleep. If it wasn't the kitten jumping on our tents and making a general nuisance of itself, it was the nosiest monks I have ever heard. Every they did was at full volume whether it was running water for ages, talking very loud on a mobile phone that was on speaker phone, spitting, belching and farting. I never realised monks were allowed to fart, let alone so frequently and with so much volume. We were up very early, there was no point lying there any longer. We both struggled the whole day due to lack of sleep. Once again it rained, so we had a lunchtime sleep in a bus shelter. We had to push on though as our visas ran out the following day and we still had some way to go. To make things worse at the end of the day we came to a town where all 3 maps we had showed the road we needed, but in reality it just didn't exist. When we asked we were told to go to Satun and take a ferry or have a 70k detour. We tried again to find the road but had to give up as light was fading fast. We found a small shelter in the bush (photo), just a platform 3 ft off the ground with a roof, but it was our home for the night. Once again we put one of the tents up as a mossie net, but during the night my feet hung over the edge of the platform.


I reckoned on about 70k minimum to the border today, and that's if things went well. We made our way to a village and asked the way. Good news, they said it was possible, drew us a map and told us it was only 42k. Just 20k later we were at the border, not the one we had expected to be at or had been directed to, but we were there never the less. Once in Malaysia we could relax a little. My SE Asia guidebook told me that Thailand was in the wet season, I could confirm that, but Malaysia was in the dry season. I just hoped the weather knew where the border was. It didn't! An our later we were once again in a bus shelter and watching very wet life go by, but celebrated the successful crossing by eating dried fish. We made it to Kangar in the light rain that followed. Even after a few kilometers the changes are noticable, though I can't tell you them now as I am running out of time, I will save that for another day.

Day 381 - Phangnga

I stayed much longer than expect at Patong, despite the place and Phuket not really being my scene. I was really thankful to have a good room with a balcony and the added luxuries of TV, fridge and hot water.

But I want to tell you about what I see from my balcony each morning. There is a school just below that I look down on and can see clearly. Each morning at about 8:15 the pupils, up to the age of about 11, assemble in the yard in very neat lines. There are staff there too but they hardly seem needed. A daily set of procedures then starts that includes the national anthem and the raising of the flag. Throughout the behaviour is just perfect. When the proceedings have finished they lead out in single file one row at a time, never directed by staff, each line waiting patiently for the previous one to finish, never breaking ranks. I can even see them in 3 of the classrooms, they have no windows just opened shutters, and again the behaviour is spot on, they sit and pay attention the whole time and I have yet to here a raised voice from a teacher. I bet you can guess where all this is leading to, yes me having a good old moan and getting things off my chest. Firstly, I can't imagine any group of pupils in the UK standing around for so long without complete meyhem breaking out. The little darlings wouldn't be expected to pay attention for so long, besides, it would probably be considered a breach of their human right to stand still in rows. In fairness they would probably just get wet anyway. And what about the national anthem and raising the flag, probably considered xenophobic at home. And whilst I am having a moan about Britain I may as well continue. Various incidents and news items have irritated me whilst I have been away and I am sure when I return the place will take some getting used to again. A few are as follows: When Caroline and I were sick with the same virus, her doctor wouldn't come out to see her, yet third world India had a doctor at my bedside within half an hour. After the 'instant' cash transfer to Yangon took 6 days to arrive I complained. It turned out that the only 2 parties to handle the transfer, the bank and the Foreign Office, had both wasted days rather than minutes. I wrote emails of complaint but the final repsonses I got were to the effect of "I am sorry you are not happy with our service", clearly their standards only reach as high as a very poor service bordering on the downright idle. Then I heard about the opening of Terminal 5 at Heathrow and ensuing chaos when just a week earlier Beijing had opened a complete new airport, one of the largest in the world and people were singing its praises. I know there will be differences in reporting, but unfortunately I can believe them both. Recently I heard of the binge drinking party on the Underground the day before alchohol was to be banned....only in Britain. I could go on. I am also getting fed up of answering the same old questions about Britain, why do we binge drink?, why do our football supporters always cause trouble?, was it right to invade Iraq? etc, etc. Unfortunately all I see is Britain on the decline, a very negative view I know, I wish I could be more positive. Take our drinking problem for example, towns centres are becoming no go areas in the evening and some I have passed through have drunken people in the streets, people throwing up, litter from take aways strewn everywhere, yet every country I have passed through I see people drinking at all times of day, yet they are never drunk or agressive. Whilst with Joelle and Clement in Chumphon a bus load of female tourists arrived at the bar we were at. It was early afternoon and they immediately ordered beers and were noisey, Joelle making the point that they were British. In fact they weren't or at least they weren't speaking English, but that is the perception people have of us when we are abroad. OK, enough, I could go on, but at least I have had a moan and got it off my chest as I said earlier. Feel free to disagree, I would love to be proved wrong and to be shown we are moving forward in the right direction. Oh, and don't get me started on motorists as I am not going to bite. It has to be said though that Britian has the busiest and most congested roads, though you may be pleased to know that they don't have they worst drivers, there is some way to go for that title yet, but they do have the most impatient and agressive drivers, probably due to the congestion. It is a joy to cycle in places where people just carry on calmly despite the stupid things that people constantly do around them. Here in Thailand it's commonplace for motorcycles to head the wrong way on a hard shoulder, but there is no aggression or anger shown towards them, everybody is calm and relaxed, a lesson we could learn. We are the best at hating cyclists though, no doubt about that.


Whilst cycling on Phuket island I have seen other cyclists, probably just hired bikes at a guess, though I can not make contact with them, their whole body language as we approach each other says "leave me alone, I am not even going to acknowledge you". What a shame. Sometimes as I cycle along, my mind wandering and miles away, I hear a call from somebody, I turn and there they are waving, I return the gestures and it always brings a smile to my face. But what I like even better is as I ride along and I can see somebody looking at me without any intention of making any contact, so I call out, wave or both. Suddenly they are doing the same and a big smile appears on their face, that never fails to make me feel good. It doesn't hurt to say hello in whatever language to a stranger, it can make their day as well as mine.


Whilst I am rambling on, let me tell you a little story. A week or so back I cycled for 3 days with Joelle and Clement from France. At some stage I talked to Clement about books and he kindly offered to give me a book, but I declined as I already had two, so didn't need another. On the evening that we split up Clement had the book to give to me. As soon as I saw it I knew that I would never read it and again declined his kind offer, but he was pretty insistent and eventually I took it so as not to offend him, but it was just extra baggage, thankfully not very big. Anyway 4 days later I arrived at Patong on Phuket and after looking at a number of guest houses and hotels checked into one for 2 nights. The following day I went out on the bike to the south of the island, but I knew by early afternoon I was in for a late finish, it was tough going too, and as I had been on the bike for 10 days from Bangkok I decided to have a rest day the following day. I did just that and did nothing and felt guilty about it, what's more again by early afternoon I once again knew I wouldn't leave the next day, though I wasn't happy at all about it. I didn't really like it in Patong, it's not my scene, yet I didn't want to move on either. The third day there was more of the same, again by early afternoon I knew I wouldn't move on. I was withdrawing into myself, spending too much time in my room and on the balcony, such a waste of time. I wasn't even enjoying myself, I felt despair, I was stuck in this place. I couldn't work out how I had got myself into this situation and worst of all I couldn't see a way out, I might be here for days yet. It was during this time that I wrote the first part of this post, probably a reflection of my mood at the time. One effect of all this was that I started reading again, the first time in weeks that I have read anything other than a travel book or a map. I finished the book I had started so long ago and thought I might as well read the book Clement had given me. I was surprised to find out that it was a novel, The Alchemist by Paulo Coelho, I don't usually read novels. Still, I gave it a go. Once I started reading I became totally engrossed, I could hardly believe what I was reading, it was about me! It didn't actually name me, but never the less it was about me. It was about a young man (ok, ok, but I am young at heart and it is a novel) from southern Spain who when he was young his father wanted him to be a priest. He didn't want to, he wanted to travel the world and the only way he felt he could do this was to roam the land as a shepherd. His father eventually bought him a small flock. He had been a shepherd for a few years when he had repeated dreams about a small girl who transported him to the pyramids in Eygpt and told him that there was treasure there, but as she was about to show him he always woke up. He went to a old woman who read dreams and she told him that he should go to the pyramids and all would become clear, it was his Personal Legend. He thought she was a waste of time and forgot about it afterall he couldn't give up his flock, his livelihood and the only job he had experience in, then a while later whilst in a town to sheer his flock he talked to an old man. He told him he was a king and he knew about his dreams and the pyramids and he too said that he should go and reacdh hi8s Personal Legend. This was too strange so had to be true, so he then dicided to go, sold his flock and bought a boat ticket to Tangiers in Morrocco. Soon after he arrived he had all his money stolen, he had not a penny in the world and the Foriegn Office were hardly likely to help him out (actually, I added that bit). He got a job with a man selling crystal and when he had enough money he was about to head home and buy a new flock when the crystal seller encouraged him to continue to the pyramids and realise his dream. He continued and as his caravan rested at an oasis he fell in love with a girl he met at a well. He thought this was his treasure, his Personal Legend, but the girl told him to carry on as this was not the pyramids and if he really loved her he would return to her. As the story pregressed I realised it wasn't so much about me, but applied to about 95% of the population and it was a story about urging people to realise their dreams, about omens and receiving signs, learning how to interpret them and understand them. I didn't finish the book, but I went for a walk and whilst walking I realised that tomorrow I would leave Patong and whats more I was relishing getting back on the bike, I could hardly wait for tomorrow, the despair had gone and been replaced by happiness and contentness, I felt released, free. I thought alot about the content of the book and how and why I had come to aquire it. Firstly the book had been delivered to me with some insistence, I would never have chosen it myself, I had already judged it by it's cover. Once I had it I had no intention of reading it, so Patong was a significant place to be as it wasn't my type of place, so I spent longer and longer in my room and started to read. If I had been anywhere else I would have been out and about much more, unlikely to be reading. The room was also important. If I had taken any of the other rooms in Patong that I had seen then I would have found in much easier to move on, the room I had was a nice place to stay, an easy place to stay. But why had I been forced to read this book. Well in a few weeks time I will embark on the toughest part of this journey so far. I expect it to make the last year seem like a picnic, but I will write about that nearer the time. When I go through this stage I will need to be aware of the omens, the signs, to try and understand them, to understand my inner feelings and be able to act on them and make the correct decisions. I have been on the road now for just over a year, but I feel that this is the most signficant thing that has happened to me. You could say it is fate, coincidence, that may be so, but all I know is the strong emotions I felt both before and after starting to read that book were very real.


The only advantage about staying in Patong for a few days was to see the sunsets. Each evening for about 20 minutes there was a kaleidascope of colour (photos), more than worth the short walk to the beach, just magical, magical.


This morning it was raining when I woke up, it was still raining when I left, but there is no stopping me now.

Day 377 - Patong (Phuket)

Leaving Chumphon I was on my own again. I got directions out of town from the people at the guest house, then decided to ignore them as they seemed to heading the wrong way, I find it much better to just go by instinct and the compass. Then I saw signposts pointing in the direction I was going to a beach and the port, a bit odd as I was heading in land and across the peninsula. Then I realised I had my east and west mixed up, something I do even more than left and right, so I did a U-turn and followed the instructions the guest house had given me, they were spot on. Sod my instincts! Once on the right route things went really well, I felt good and strong all day and it was a breeze. I had expected to climb through mountains, but it was a flat twisty road through the hills, much easier than expected. It probably also helped as I was back on my own again and could ride at my own pace, it is so difficult at somebody elses pace, whether they are faster or slower. Roadkill here consists mainly of snakes, all different flavours. I had seen a few live one too, some I have had to swerve to avoid. I am not sure if I would kill them if I went over them or if it would just make them angry. Later in the day I passed a signpost that said "Union of Myanmar 100m", so two months after leaving the place I am no more than a stones throw from that God foresaken land and regime, definately not the time for a wrong turning! And anyway, in whose eyes is it a Union? Only the military rulers I would guess. In Ranong I decided that the hotels would be near the port, they weren't, but the port was 5km the other side of town, so more wasted time and effort, though at least I got a glimpse of the sea, the surrounding islands looking really nice.



The next day I felt as bad as I did good the previous day, if that makes sense. I stopped for food, more rice, but I still lacked energy, so I stopped again and decided to throw as much sugar at the problem as I could, that did the trick and normal service was resumed. Looking at the map I decided to stop at the only place that was really close to the beach, about 3km off the main road. There was a lovely beach there, about 4km long and not a soul in sight. There were lots of signs about, all tsunami related, highlighting the fact that it was a danger zone and lots of sign to evacualtion points. From here on for the rest of the coast down to Phuket I always knew when I was near the sea as there would be evacuation signs. Nature and man have a remarkable ability to recover through and other than the signs there is no indication as to what happened here 4 years ago. Anyway, I decided to stop the night on the beach, but went back to the village to pick up some food. Whilst there I called in at the tsunami museum. I didn't really see or learn anything I didn't already know from the extensive coverage at the time, though I saw one picture of locals running away from the wave as it hit the land and one western person apparently casually walking towards it. I couldn't help but wonder if that man is still alive. Whilst there I was told they had a guest house, so enquired at the price. It was over my price range, but the people were so friendly and helpful that once they reduced it a little I decided to stay. The museum is in a community education centre, funded by the Americans to help the recovery from the disaster, and a lot of very good work is being done there. They had built the guest house, a wooden structure on stilts, just 3 months ago so that visitor to the centre had somewhere to stay. Officially it wasn't open yet, so I was the first person to stay there, which would explain why they were taking so many photos of me whilst I looked around it, and I thought they were taking photos for my good looks! Today also saw a dramatic change in people. Suddenly there were roadside signs to mosques, and the women were all wearing long skirts and veils, I was now in an area that is 90% muslim. Even some of the men had long beards, beards being a very rare sight in Asia.



The following evening I hit package tourist land, still 100km short of Phuket, but there were now pricey hotels and restaurants, no street food vendors and prices had pretty much doubled for everything. Then I had a pretty easy final run into Phuket, but from about halfway down the island it became hilly, very hilly. I now belted down hills and really had to work hard going up short steep twisting hills, sweat pouring off me, progress was now really slow. At last I could see the beach of Patong in the distance and soon enough I was heading down the main street, one block back from the sea front, a mass of signs, hotels everywhere, where do I start? It took me a while to find a suitable place, most were too expensive, or too grotty if in my price range. One place a little over my price bracket showed me into a very dark room, but as I walked further in I was surprised to see a window, a very large one at that. I pulled back the curtain and lurking behind was a balcony, so I went out onto it. It was still dark, a bit odd as it was still only 2pm. From the balcony I could touch the build next door, no thanks, not for me. But my search paid off as I found a big clean room with an enormous bed, fridge, TV and balcony that overlooks the town and the hills beyond, oh, and one very small patch of sea. I went for a walk on the beach (1st photo, it obviously Patong isn't it?), hardly anybody was there, but enough to keep those running the parasailing in business. Walking around I once again felt very out of place as I didn't have a tattoo. Not a problem as there are no end of tattoo places, though I drew the line at getting my body pierced. It's great having a fridge for a change, it gives me the chance to have little things that I have missed for so long, like bread and butter as there are no end of 7/11 Supermarkets here. But I was soon left looking at the empty wrapper of a loaf of bread, where had it gone because not even I could eat a loaf as quick as that. I have given it alot of thought and the only answer I can come up with is that it evaporated, it's still about 30-35 degress out here. I will buy another load, but next time I will eat it really fast to see if that makes any difference. A walk in the evening was an eye opener. Every few yard is a massage place and price lists are thrust in front of you, most are exactly the same, even the way they have been printed. I asked one girl what a Russian massage was and she demonstated by gently caressing my arm, but gentleness apparently comes at a price, 50% more than a Thai massage. There are dozens of bars, enormous ones at that, they have a roof for shelter but no walls and they stretch way back from the road. Girls are used to bring in the punters, though there are very few being the low season. There are girls dancing on tables, girls in fancy costumes, though judging by their voices they are probably men, and scantilly clad girls sit in the smaller bars to entice the men in. Not my scene really, I returned to watch Sharipova getting knocked out of the French Open.



I spent a rest day touring around the southern part of Phuket island. The west side is really nice. I passed through the resorts of Karon and Kata beaches, though hardly anybody was either in the towns or on the beaches, probably due to the imminent rain. I took shelter under a shop front as it tipped down and got talking to a young man from one of the shops. He was facinated to hear that I had come through Burma, then told me that he was Burmese and had left 5 years ago and didn't want to go back other than to see his parents. Once the rain stopped I headed off, the road climbed sharply but thankfully I turned inland to the left. Shit! It was far steeper and went of for 2km, sweat was once again pouring off, though it was far easier than when carring all the baggage, but the views from the top were worth it. The southern most tip of the island is supposed to be really nice. It was ok, but not worth the trip alone. I made way north along the east side of the island, vastly different to the west, flat, with a dual carriageway to Phuket town and built up all the way, nothing nice about it. There was one last steep climb back across the hills to Patong. I only rode 52k, about half of it flat, yet I had still done more climbing in a day than I have for weeks.


With such a hard rest day and getting back late, I decided to have a proper rest day today. I have got up and that's about it. Had a quick walk on the beach again, but it looked like it might rain to I made my way to an internet cafe instead. Patong is not really the place for me, but at this time of year it is the only place that has a bit of life. Overall though, Phuket is much nicer than I expected and having seen this island I can only assume that some of the other must be really stunning, though I am not going to be able to see them.

Day 371 - Chumphon

Judging by the map the first 60km heading south from Cha-Am looked just my sort of road, right next to the sea, bliss. Actually, no, it wasn't bliss, it was 60km of shite! A dualled road, though not a busy one, but only for about 2.5k could I see the sea, the rest was big hotels and resorts that had a monopoly on the beach. Three times I made attempts to get to the seafront, each time I could see it on the horizon, but I couldn't get to it, so I gave up and stuck to the main road in a grump. The rest of the day was boring and uneventful until I got to Prachuap Kirikhan where I checked around a few hotels just at the wrong time, the rain was lashing down and a hotel with a sea view became "What sea?". It didn't last long though and I was soon off for a wander, it was pleasant along the seafront and on the pier. I went along to Mount Thingy as the views were supposed to be good from the wat at the top. Just as I was about to go up I saw a couple of cyclists parking their bikes, they were Joelle and Clement from France and we ascended the steps together. The whole place had been taken over by monkeys and they were a little bold to say the least, keener to show their teeth rather than move from the steps, so we went up catiously. The views from the top were good, but you had to keep an eye on the monkeys the whole time as at times they bounced of our backs and one clung to my leg. I was a tad concerned it would go on the wrong side of my shorts, not something I wanted having seen it's teeth. I wasn't sorry to go down, but on reaching the bottom Joelle and Clement found that their bikes had also been a target for the monkeys, though no damage done.

So the following morning I had a lie in and then headed of south with cycling companions for the first time in over 6 months. It turned out that from Vientiane in Loas to here Clement and I have been on exactly the same route other than around Bangkok, but I have always been a day or more behind. We tried to avoid the highway and very early on had to go through a checkpoint where we had to write our names and sign a form for some reason. Shortly afterwards we crossed a very wide road with no traffic on, thankfully, as I soon realised we were crossing the airport runway. After about 20k we stopped at the house of Theiry, a Frenchman now living here with his Thai wife who J & C had met the previous day and would give up some information on the roads ahead. Having departed we once again tried to get off the highway but it resulted in a deadend road at a lovely beach, then another track that ended in a footpath that dropped into a river, we were having as much success as I had yesterday. Back to the highway we went and tried again later, only to end at a pier (photo). More highway, then as it was getting late we turned down to the coast again. J & C went for a dip in th sea (I really should learn to swim) whilst I went in search of somewhere to stay. We were lucky and found a guesthouse nearby at a reasonable rate. It was by now completely dark.

We had an earlier start the following day, most of which was off the main highway, but not always with the sea in view, though when there was one it was usually really nice (photo). We decided on a short day and aimed for the next village by the sea, but there was nothing there, nowhere to stay and nowhere to eat, so as it was still early we carried on having been told there was another beach 6km further on. Sure enough after 8km we reached a beach and J & C went for another swim whilst I forced down ice cold drinks. We were told of a guest house 6km further on and a map was drawn in the sand. After 6km we arrived at a village to be told the nearest was still another 8km further on, it was going to be one of those days. Two guys on a moped showed us the way but once on the coast again we told them we would be ok. I enquired at some bungalows whilst J & C checked some others, though I was told they were closed as it is the low season, but when J & C arrived she obviously decided it was worth her while to let us stay. We ate dinner at a shorefront restaurant whilst providing a dinner for the mosquitos.

Today was a nice relaxed day, meandering down the coast to Chumphon. We found a lovely long sandy beach with nobody on it and stopped for a few hours, bliss, I even got my feet wet. Chumphon is a little away from the coast and a lively town. I suspect that tomorrow we will split up again as J & C want to take it leisurely down the east coast then take a bus to Phuket, whereas I think I will head to the west coast from here and arrive at Phuket in 4 days time. When I get to Phuket I am sure I shall wonder what the hell I am doing there, a fish out of water, but I want to see the 'other side' of Thai coastal life.

It's been good to have compant for a while, but once again I am put to sham with my inability to speak a foreign language. J & C have also picked up a few words of Thai which has proved useful. The only two word I know are Nok and Noi which means little bird and has proved to be about as useful as I expected.

Thanks again for all of your comment and emails. Dan, I am not sure if I know you or not, but if you drop me an email, my contact email is on the right hand side at the bottom, I will give you any information you would like. Jackie, thanks for another comment and for reading this waffle. I have been meaning to mail you but just haven't got around to it yet, but now I regret that as we were both in Bangkok at the same time and it would have been fun to have met up. From reading your blog I assumed you would be well away by now, but I guess you have flown from Bangkok. Those who have sent emails, I have read them, but not being the fastest typist, these things take time, but I will reply to you, thanks.

Day 367 - Cha-Am

Blimey, another post already, some people don't know when to stop.


But I write today as I have now been on the road for exactly a year, and that is pretty amazing in itself. I shall never forget the day I set off. I set off from my sister Aoiffe's house in Aylesbury having left home a few days earlier. As I pedaled away I can clearly remember turning around and waving to her, but it was strange as I waved never expecting to be away for this long, in fact I hardly expected to be away more than a couple of months. Australia was the destination, but I didn't truthfully expect to get outside of Europe. The problem was that I had a little heart rythm problem, something I had had for a couple of years prior to departure. It started of as Atrial Fibrillation and got worse over time to the extent that I had a little operation in 2006. It did the trick and cured it completely, though it seemed to trigger Atrial Flutter in it's place and the last couple of months prior to my departure it was getting worse and worse, to the extent that I thought it was a total waste of time going and very nearly didn't bother, but in the end I decided that if I didn't at least set off I would forever think "what if?'. So I left with a pretty negative outlook, but at least I would find out the answer. It's has been well worth it too, as despite regular "attacks" early on it never stopped me cycling, though I expected the Alps to put an end to it all. It did cause some problems through the mountians, but nothing that stopped me for too long. Then I reached the Black Sea in Turkey and on one particular day it certianly gave me something to think about. I really struggled that day and with just 4km to go to my destination I thought "How on earth am I going to get there?" it seemed an impossible task, and hardly a sensible one. But I pushed on very slowly with regular stops, I had no choice but to keep stopping, not that there was much difference in the pace between cycling and having stopped, but at last I got there only to find nowhere to stay. I knew I couldn't go any further and I managed to find a house to stay in. Strangely enough that was the last time it has really been a problem and my heart hs been almost perfect ever since, so now I know the answer and I am so glad I made myself leave. If anything it has improved my health and that has to be a good thing.


But although I have been away for a year, to me it really only feels like 5 or 6 months, it has gone that quick. I have met no end of people who have been able to get a year off work to travel and early on I would have said it was plenty enough, but now I have changed my mind, it isn't nearly enough. Modern transportation has shrunk the world in size, but for many like myself it has made it a bigger place as there are so many places to visit, the more places you go the more it fires the imagination. If a country becomes a little dull after a while, cross a border and there are a full range of new sights, sounds and smells to bombard the senses, new people to meet and talk to and new experiences to be gained, some good, some bad, but generally exciting. I have always wanted to go on a long overland journey. but only in recent years have I had the desire to do it by bike. I rather assumed that an extended period of travel would finally put that desire behind me, but the opposite has happened. Now I know just how good it is, I suspect I am going to want more of it once I return, unless something else can put it to the back of my mind. The best thing about not have a set duration to the trip is that you never have that feeling that you are half way through, or that you time is running out. It becomes a lifestyle in it's own right, and a damned good one at that.


Even after a year I still get up every day with relish. I normally wake a little before 6, get up almost straight away and set off before 7. Nick Barlow will find that pretty hard to believe as in my backpacking and camping days with him, on more than one occasion he resorted to literally tipping me out of bed. Each day is there to be lived, each day is different and I don't know what's in store, though in reality it is still pretty similar to the previous day. But I love moving on, seeing a new destination, and I still get a wonderful feeling of satisfaction on arrival, of dumping my stuff in the room, knowing I have had a good few hours exercise. I still enjoy the days most when I have no idea where I will be staying, though again, it nearly always falls into place really easily, normally just by cycling on until I find something suitable, but even so, it's still more rewarding than the places I know have half a dozen guest houses or hotels.


I have to admit that I would have epected to have been a little further on than this in a year. I have cycled 23,351 km, but have also taken my time, stopped and seen places when I have wanted to visit and hardly taken the most direct route. Though setting out without an exact route and no schedule, even in my mind, I suppose I can't really be behind schedule can I?


When it rains here by heck it rains. Last night I dashed to the internet cafe as it started to rain, I thought I might as well sit out a storm there as anywhere else. When I came out it had eased but was still raining heavily. I started to run the 300m or so back to the guest house. After a few metres down the lane there was surface water, hang on, that's more than surface water! It was over ankle deep the whole way and with no pavement to walk on. It somewhat slowed down the running, in it's deepest spot it was just under knee deep, not bad for a little over an hours rain. Most people seemed to have taken shelter but others like me on the move were soon totally drenched though it made for a jovial atmosphere.


Thankfully by morning it had drained away. Heading out of Bangkok was just about as easy as heading in, though this time I was carrying a better map of the place, a freebie I hasten to add, I am still a tight git when it comes to things that aren't really necessary and all that is necessary is food, plenty of food! My new sandals got their first outing and I have to say I still prefer the old ones, so I haven't thrown the away yet. The new ones cover more of the foot, a sort of shoe without toes. It defeats the point a bit and my feet felt hot and sweaty, but no doubt I will adjust to them.


Today I had an early start at the floating market, but once again I was a little disappointed. I guess without us tourists it wouldn't exist. There were lots of boats selling tourist tat, some selling food cooked on the boat and other selling fruit and veg, but the buyers of the fruit and veg were the boats cooking food for the tourists. Still, it is a wonderful sight and the people are all very friendly. I made my way to Cha-Am and saw some mountains for the first time since Vientiane and also saw the sea for the first time since Oman. There are plenty of places to stay here but it took a while to find a place shabby enough to be in my price range, but I guess as I head down the coast I will have to face the fact that I will have to pay more for less. It's a gentle introduction to Thai beaches though as their is hardly a foreigner in sight. Walking along the shore having a paddle, which incidently I didn't go in as deep as I did on the flooded roads of Bangkok, I saw more elephants on the beach than all the bikinis, swimsuits and swimming trunks put together. Ok, so I only saw one elephant, but it was still more as people go into the sea wearing long shorts and shirts, basically their normal clothes. As I paddled I didn't feel overdressed, but I did feel overage as it's generally teenagers around here.

Day 365 - Bangkok

Well it was worth a day or two in Ayuthaya of anybodys time. Things were pretty spread out so cycling was the ideal way to get around. It was pretty amazing to see so many ruins and temples in what is now a modern bustling city. When I got back to my guest house I got chatting to a German guy. He was older than me, isn't that amazing. It didn't take me long to dislike him and feel uncomfortable in his presence, he was the questioning sort and became very annoyed when I answered his questions incorrectly, his fists would clench, his whole body would tense up and frustration was etched all over his face. Mind you, it was his fault for asking the wrong questions, for example he asked me how long I had been in Asia when really what he wanted to know was how long I had been travelling for. "No, no, no" he said "I want to know when you left home". Then his wife arrived and he introduced me to her, and I just couldn't help thinking "you poor woman" and for the remaining time I was with them I couldn't stopped wondering how she coped with him. I made my excuse of needing a shower and got away not a moment too soon.

Monday was a day I have been dreading for a long time, a ride into the centre of Bangkok. Each time I have met cyclists that have come through Bangkok I have asked them about it and they always say they took the bus or train. Well I made my way south on a road a few k west of the main north/south motorway and it wasn't too busy to start with, the junctions not to bad and I just followed the signposts. As it started to enter the city signposts were all to suburbs, none of which were marked on my map, so I just followed the compass south or westwards if that was not possible as the river would stop me going too far wrong. The road was dualled all the way, but a busy city road rather than motorway style, so most main junctions were traffic lights which was slow going but at least pretty safe. I wasn't technically lost, but nor did I have any idea where I was, I was just waiting to see a landmark, then I would find out where I was. Then I saw a signpost to Banglamphu, the area I was aiming for and a few minutes later, to my amazement I was at the end of the road I was looking for. I hadn't taken a single wrong turn, how can you if you don't know where you are, no back tracking, I had given up using the map and yet I had arrived far more easily than I could have ever dared to wish for. I checked out a few guest houses including the one where I stayed when I was last here, before opting for a very big but clean place that offered far better value for money than all the others. I went out in the evening to roads that were closed to traffic and thought it was normal until I saw crowds of people behind railings waiting for something top happen. Enquiries informed me that the Queen was in the wat, so I waited around too, but it was so still and hot the sweat was pouring off me. I decided to wait another few minutes until 8pm and sure enough out she came. Lots of other people came out first but she was the only one escorted by a huge umbrella despite it being neither sunny or raining. She even came around to our side of the car to wave to the adorring crowd, no mean feat, it was a very long car and she is a very old lady! I carried on down the Khao San Road, the main backpacker hang out in Bangkok. It was exactly the same as when I was last here, only more so. A mass of neon lights, bars, hotels, shops, all the usual stuff. It's only 200m long and get to the other end, turn the corner and it's dark and not a soul around, very strange.

The following day was a complete waste of time as I went to pick up my bike bits from the post office. I went there on the river ferry, a nice change from the hectic roads and just a 5 minute walk either end of a 30 minute boat ride. I found the Poste Restante easily, not even a queue, found the details of my stuff and then was told I had to go to the customs house, that could only mean bad news. It took me half an hour to get there, the place was packed, I filled out some forms and collected my queue ticket and sat and waited....and waited....and waited. Lunch hour stopage didn't exactly help, but after 2 hours 45 minutes I spotted the parcel and was called over. I opened it up for them to check through it, then out came a calculator. The calculation took too long with far too many number being put in for my liking, but at last they came up with the final figure 4106 Baht, I had expected to pay 2 for a parcel at the post office! That's 68 pounds. I was staggered, my worst estimation had been 10 pounds. I threw a wobbly and refused to pay, so they fetched a manager and once again I had to show him the contents of the parcel, and I asked why I had to pay import tax on the postage as well. I also pointed out that I wasn't really importing it as I was taking it with me and out to Malaysia. Without the aid of a calculator he said I would have to pay at least 2000 Baht. At least 2000! What's that all about? Surely there is a fixed import tax rate, but I decided to try my luck anyway. I suggested 1000, but they wouldn't budge below 2000. Now for a bit of a fun and a gamble, I said I would pay no more than 1000, put it on the desk, took the package and went to leave. I got as far as the door before being stopped and told to go back. Back I went but still no less than 2000, so this time I went with the real intension of leaving, I got out of the door but was then stopped by security and told I would be arrested if I went any further, back I went. More negotiations followed and I eventually agreed to pay the 1500 they were now asking for, that is still 25 pounds but somewhat better than 68 pounds. I don't really know who got the better deal as I am not sure if I should really have had to pay at all, but I made sure I got a receipt. The people of Bangkok seem to be duty bound to rip off a foreigner, aren't we lucky? I paid with a large note in a shop and soon realised I had been short changed and as I was about to mention it the rest was handed to me with a receipt, a slick operation that has clearly been well rehearsed. Then I went to buy a mango off a little fruit stall, but declined at the asking price of 83p. I bought 2 for 12p in Cambodia and got a 3rd one free. Later on I had a sticky rice with coconut milk and mango, a whole mango, yet it only cost 30p, work that one out. Incidently it was absolutely delicious and it is safe to say it wont be the last one I have.

Bangkok hasn't changed much since I was last here, though transport is noticably different. There is now a metro and a skytrain, very few boats of the river and very few tuk-tuks. Boats before were every few minutes and the river was like a motorway, but this time I had to wait 20 minutes during which time nothing else passed. Tuk-tuks seem to be aimed at tourists and they are sound as they should be on a race track and have big wide tyres to add to the image.

My first day of sightseeing included Bangkok's highlight, Wat Phra Kaew (Temple of the Emerald Buddha) and the Grand Palace. No description of mine could ever do the place justice, but I have so say it was jolly nice. There are more photos opportunities there than you can shake a camera at. The Emerald Buddha is the most reveered image in Thailand, yet he is only a little chap, no more than a couple of feet tall in a seated position, but it sits on a whole stack of gold stuff, pushing him well up towards the ceiling. Added to that the walls are covered in wonderful frescoes, all of which you are not allowed to photograph. In the afternoon I went of to some of the further away sights so took the bike and tested the sandals. The soles must be thicker that the other ones so I might have to raise the saddle a little, otherwise they were fine. I didn't manage to see anything that I hadn't seen before, but having stayed here for a week last time I think I pretty much covered the place. I went to the Vimenmek Teak Palace, the largest teak building in the world. When I arrived I was told the English speaking tour had just left, so I was lead at break nack speed whilst being given a quick look at each room and brief description. Even though it had "just left" we still had to overtake 2 other groups. Once with the English group the guide wasn't hanging around and I was heading out of the place before I had even realised I had arrived. Phew!

Today has been my third and final day in Bangkok, only 2 of which have been for sightseeing, and to be honest I struggled for motivation this morning, I have too many other things on my mind at the moment. But I forced myself out, and it was worth it, though once again I didn't see anything that I hadn't seen before but I did have a ride on the Skytrain which was good. Wat Pho was a highlight, really a complex of wats with the main attraction being reclining Buddha, 85m long and 15m high, with wonderful feet inlaid with mother of pearl. I took a walk through Chinatown, then went in search of the Buddha which is 5.5 ton of solid gold, before heading back by boat again.

So tomorrow I move on. I am heading for.....hmm, I have forgotten the place name, but it is where the floating market is and about 105k from Bangkok, so an early start the following morning will see me at the market well before the tour buses arrive. From there on in I am new territory the whole way, and the beach beckons. I can hardly wait for a paddle!

I have just uploaded another load of photos, are you a lucky lot!

Day 360 - Ayuthaya (Thailand)

Ouch! more pain please.


Well, I was just about to leave Siem Reap and was carrying my too many bags down stairs when I studdenly did something to a muscle in my left thigh that made it painful to walk and very painful to lift my leg in a cycling motion. But I got my priorities right and ordered breakfast which included a wonderful banana pancake, though not so wonderful when you put French Fries Sauce on it instead of Honey, they look very similar. Surprisingly the pain had really subsided after about 20 minutes and after a bit of walking I decided to give cycling a go. It was ok, so I carried on at a gentle pace and thankfully it was fine, though I could feel it all day. As expected the road was really good as far as the airport, then from there onwards it was old tarmac getting worse all the time. The roadworks began and small bridges were being built which meant lots of slippery muddy diversions as it had rained a fare bit overnight. Soon the tarmac was covered with a thin film of mud which made it slippy the whole time. Then I said goodbye to the tarmac and hello to the dirt road. Actually it wasnt too bad, muddy in places but generally dry, though some long stretches were really bumpy like a washboard which made progress really slow. Then I could see Sisophon, my nights destination ahead, I had got away with it very lightly, but there was a sting in the tail and the last 2km were really muddy and very wet, a real quagmire that again left me trailing mud through the guest house.


The following morning I was greeted with what I really didn't want to see, wet roads from more overnight rain, but I guess that is better than wet roads from actual rain. There was some new tarmac and other than another muddy diversion the first 20km were fine, then it was bye bye tarmac again. From here on in it was horrible, mud the whole way. Thankfully it was pretty wet as the slightly drier mud was the worst and really stuck to the wheels and I could feel myself instantly slow down. My favourite mud resembled fresh juicy cow pats, cycling through that mud was great as it didn't stick and even helped clear that mud that had stuck. Worse was to come in the form of big potholes. I never have a great desire to cycle through them so naturally avoided them, though passing cars didn't and that resulted in me getting regularly showered in mud, which was surprisingly warm. At last I arrived at the border town of Poipet, but once again some of the worst was saved for the towns. Here the entire road was flooded for about 200m and it was deep too, not muddy but big stones. I really didn't want to cycle through as I didn't know what would be under the water, so I took it in stages, watching the routes other vehicles took and seeing if they dropped into potholes. I used the entire road to chose my best route, but other motorists were fine and nobody complained. I arrived as immigration covered in mud, most people stopped for a look and some made comments. Now I have always wanted to see what would happen at a land border like this as the 2 countries drive on opposite sides of the road. I suppose something happened between the 2 border controls that I missed, but I soon moved over as I was heading straight for a lorry. Once into Thailand there was lovely smooth tarmac, oh joy, deep joy! As I passed through town I looked for a jet wash but when I found one they wouldn't let me use it. I kept my eyes peeled for the 50 odd k to Sa Kaeo as I felt that if I turn up at hotels in my state I might find them all 'full'. At last I found a tap and hosepipe and was given permission to use it, so I cleaned the bike, all my bags, my sandals feet and legs. Now what happens as soon as you clean your bike? As I set off again I was heading straight for a huge black cloud, there would be no missing it. As both me and my clothes would be cleaned when I arrived I decided to carry on as it was only about 11k away. The cloud was up for a real fight and quickly it whipped up a very strong wind that tried to force me back to Cambodia, 1-0 to the cloud. Then the rain came, very hard and I was very soon drenched, 2-0. With the wind in my face and the hard rain I could hardly see where I was going, I just hoped the motorists had a better view, 3-0. But I wasn't going to be defeated, there was no way I was going back to the mud of Cambodia, 3-1. Then the cloud scored an own goal as there was so much water, some of which was poured over me from passing cars that my clothes were cleaned and I had showered before I had even arrived, 3-2. But it rained all the way to Sa Kaeo and I had to wring my shirt out before going into a hotel, but still left muddy footprints across the floor, 4-2. Well done cloud, I suppose you think you are clever. Hmmm! May be I have been travelling alone for too long.


The next day was a whole day of tarmac, bliss. Actually it wasn't very exciting, though I did pass some nearby hills and a Nationl Park. There were lots of signs to waterfalls etc, but I was really intrigued to see one to an "Amazing Mound", though I wasn't intrigued enough to actually go and see it. But what can possibly make a mound amazing, and when does it stop being an amazing mound and become just an ordinary hill?


Today's cycling wasn't that great either, though Ayuthaya is just 75km north of Bangkok and that means the road and junctions are getting bigger. Having looked at the map I had a choice of 2 routes, one which went though a very big junction that I decided to avoid. My other route was on much smaller roads, but then I hit a big road that I thought my road would go under but I couldn't get across, so I had to join the main road. It was motorway like and I wondered if I should really be on it, but then you see motorcycles and cars coming towards you on the hard shoulder and I guess that even if I wasn't supposed to be there, nobody would actually care. Ironically I ended up at the junction I had tried to avoid. But I arrived reasonably early and as there as plenty of temples to see here I went out on the bike and saw some of the further ones (photo) which gave me a real taster of what is in store for tomorrow. It is strange, but having visited northern Thailand for a few days, arriving back it all feels very familiar. What is also strange is that as I make my way around Ayuthaya I am sure I came here before in 19??, but with the memory of a goldfish I am not surprised that I can't remember.


For some reason lately I have been on a bit of a downer and I don't know why. I can think of a number of reasons, but nothing that I can really say that is the reason. I am not too worried about it though, I am sure I will pull through quickly enough, and besides, it's been a long time since I have had a rough patch, so it's only right that I should have another one.


Thanks for all your comments on the last post, I enjoyed reading them all. Funnily enough I have got a picture of my sandals (see photo). I am not sure that you can technically see it, but it's under the mud somewhere. Perhaps the idea of cleats in wellies should be taken up, I would by a pair. Odd isn't it, I write what I think is a pretty boring post and it gets more comments than I have had in a long time.

Day 355 - Siem Reap (Angkor Wat)

I am finding more and more that when I arrive at a place I am disappointed in it. I hear or read about it, then it just doesn't live up to my expectations and I seem to enjoy the getting there rather than the being there. Not so with Angkor and all it's temples, highlighted by the fantastic Angkor Wat. It's actually a place that for years I have wanted to visited, and I can assure you it has been worth the wait.

I bought a 3 day pass, a slick operation if ever there was one. You have your photo taken and seconds later you are issued a ticket complete with mug shot. First stop I made the main attraction, Angkor Wat (photo). I dont like seeing the best first, but I wanted to visit it a couples of times if possible. It is supposedly the largest religeous building in the world and I guess if you include the massive moat, then it probably is, but the temple itself only occupies as smallish area inside the moat. Its reached by 2 impressive causeways, but for me the fine details in the carvings is what stood out. Thankfully it was far less busy than I had expected, so wandering around was quite peaceful. I then made my way to Angkor Thom, entered by gateways flanked by a series of figures with large faces over the gateways themselves and surrounded by a 12km wall. At the centre was Bayon, little more than a pile of old stones from a distance, but once inside there are some 250 plus large faces keeping an eye on you. I stopped for lunch nearby, where all the woman shout from a distance in a very high pitched drawn out call Water Sirrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrr. The afternoon was spent at the temple of Bapoun. This was dismantled, then had all the plans destroyed by the Khmer Rouge and it still being rebuilt, a giant 3D jigsaw. Then there was the Terrace of the Elepants, Terrace of the Leper King and Prea Ko. The nice thing about all these sights is that they are all so very different to each other, no time to get bored or templed out. I made my way back to Angkor to get a good photo as the sun went down, but just got wet from the rain instead.

The next day was more of the same, starting from where I had left off the day before, although they were the lesser temples and nowhere near as impressive as the others. Ta Prohm was probably one of the highlights, not for the temple, but for the way it has been taken over by the trees growing there, both now need each other for their survival (Photo). The last temple of the day, Bantreay Srei, some 30k north of Siem Reap and fantastically preserved and with fine and detailed carvings. I managed to cycle 82k and that was on a non cycling day, something wrong there I think.

On the last day of my ticket I made my way to the Rolous group, defineately not as good as the others but worth a look. I went back to a couple I had passed the previous day but didnt have time to stop at and had no information on them. They were great, some of my favourites, the first being Kraven, a small brick built temple with some wonderful carvings into the bricks that made it look as though the subjects had been pushed through from the other side. The one across the road whose name I have forgotten and the moment, but frankly I am sure you wouldnt care about the name anyway, was very different, a tumble down affair, but just wandering around there were lovely little lichen covered carvings that made them look really colourful. I made my way back to finish my 3 days as I started, at Angkor Wat. This time I took a bit more time to look at the details including walking the whole way around the 800m of bas reliefs.

None of my posts would be complete if I didnt moan about something, nor should I go too long without telling you how much pain I am in. I can cover both by talking about my sandals. When I go into temples and have to leave them outside I am always concerned that they will not be there on my return, that somebody might have stolen them. I am a bit paranoid as they are cycling sandals, they have cleats in the bottom and would therefore be very difficult to replace. Then just a few weeks ago I saw them after a visit to a temple and I suddenly realised just how tatty they look and in reality they are the very last pair anybody would wish to steal. They were about 5 years old when I left home and other than a week in February I have been wearing them the whole time on this trip, consequently they are rapidly falling apart. Nothing is made to last these days! The left toe keeps flipping over and I am sure will break off soon, but now on the same sandal the heel has collapsed and sharp bits stick into my heel when I walk, very painful. If I walk in a very strange way it is just about bearable. As each day passes I am looking more and more like a tramp. Hopefully there will be a new pair in Bangkok when I arrive. Dont worry though Caroline, the 2 pairs of ill fitting trousers Ieft with are still going strong. They are iller fitting now and hang like a sack, but no need to replace them yet. Caroline has always said I was the worst dressed man she knows, but I am now the worst dressed man I know too, and that no mean achievement in places like Cambodia!

So what now. Well heading west towards Thailand, the direction I want to go is one of the few bits of road I knew about before I left as Lindsey and David had warned me about it. It is know as the boulevard of broken backsides, and that is just for people in vehicles with 4 wheels. The road is in terrible condition for the 160k to the border. So why is that. Well allegedly a local airline owner is paying an unknown amount to an unknown government official not to upgrade the road as it has been for the rest of the way to Phnom Penh. This is so that people will fly from Bangkok to visit Siem Reap rather than use buses. To make thing worse it is now the wet season and when it rains roads quickly flood and dirt roads become quagmires. It has rained all afternoon here today, just getting to the internet cafe I had to walk through flooded streets. There are other options though, I could head north on dirt roads, but that might be just as bad, who knows, may be even worse. I could head all the way back to Phnom Penh, then south to the coast and west to Thailand, all the roads are good, but I dont want to retrace 3 days worth, especially as I have already cycled the last bit twice already. Then I could head south on a boat to Battam Bang, that would be really nice, but Mr Too Stubborn For His Own Good refuses to use public transport. So I think I will head west on the crap road, but I am not 100% sure yet. Oh to be on the tarmac of Thailand, then I wont mind the rain. Rain when it is hot is quite nice, but I dont do mud! I will head off tomorrow weather permitting.

Its also about I replied to Tonys comments. Thanks for you continued comments, they are always appreciated. It is nice to have regular comment contributers as I then know that at least somebody is reading this stuff, but you are normally far to generous in my opinion. I am never entirely happy with the content of this blog, normally I just sit down and type in a rush, then when I have left I remember all the things I had meant to comment on. Also the photos are never as good as I would want them to be. I have always enjoyed photography, but carrying a small camera creates limitations, which is really a compremise, but means I never happy with the photos. I want them to be far better than they are. Also mud is relative. If you bike is covered in mud who cares about another patch of a few millimetres, but if you have just cleaned it that same patch is mighty annoying. But thanks again, and to all the others that comment, keep the comments coming, I always enjoy reading them.

There is a whole bagful of photos uploaded of the various temples here, there is just so much good stuff here that I thought I would put a load on, but rest assured I took far far more! Hopefully it will bring back a few memories for you David and Lindsey.