January 3rd: Nong Bua to Erawan – 63 km
Day 82
What a difference getting up early makes. We ate a leisurely breakfast and we were on the road by 7:30. At this hour, the traffic was light, the air was cool and most importantly, there was no need to rush. Today was a pleasant day. We were leaving the suburbs and the surroundings were becoming more rural. Closely growing trees provided regular shade and only opened up to reveal fields of sugar cane, instead of strip malls. We were seeing more tractors and home-made trucks (basically tractors with a flat bed in the back, two car seats, and a hand welded hood, no windshield).
On the down side, we were leaving the flat plains and moving into the mountains. Just as we finished today I saw them waiting for us in the distance.
Although the amount of curiosity seekers is much lower than China or Vietnam, today we encountered some very interested locals. One man in a blue pickup truck, (everyone here drives a pickup, I would even bet they are more common here than in Texas), tried to stop us 3 times. First he almost hit me with his door as I passed him parked on the shoulder. Then 5 minutes later he flew by us and pulled over and was waving money at us. The third time he stopped again and gave me a deep bow. We didn’t stop at any of these occasions so we didn’t get a chance to learn the real reason behind this stop and chase ordeal. I can only guess that maybe he felt bad about almost hitting me the first time he stopped, hence the money and the deep bow later. No more than 15 minutes later, a man with a camera jumped into my path and tried to wave me down, as if I would really stop and pose for him. Maybe we look too friendly but I don’t think there is anything that we can do to make our appearance more menacing, not as long as we’re riding trikes.
We made it to our destination early in the afternoon and for 300 Baht are now enjoying WiFi, and a pool! Thailand is spoiling us. Where is the hardship of adventure in this land of milk and honey?
