Monthly Archives: March 2014

Day 166

I rolled out of bed at 5:30am and took a walk down to the beach to check out the stars and gather the laundry before the morning dew set in. However, I couldn’t see anything at all. Even my head lamp was blinding me. Cher woke up and thought it was smoke, and there was a fire burning nearby, but after just 30 minutes on the road we knew it was just humid. We were both thankful that we put in a long day yesterday and became even more thankful as the day went on.

From our “resort” on there was nothing. No stores, gas stations, nor restaurants. Had we continued past our last stop, we would either pushed on until we arrived in town, or spent a hot thirsty night camped on the beach.

We arrived early and moved into a hotel another cyclist had recommended on Google Maps as cycle friendly. It’s always a good sign when you see lots of bed linen hanging on the clothesline. It was everything we hoped for, clean, functional, and relatively cheap. We were so pleased with the cyclists recommendations that Cher began making her own. Cher has also started marking our hotels on our map for any other weary travelers in need of a budget shelter.

We once again found a Chinese restaurant and to our surprise a westerner was sitting at a table drinking a beer. We have learned that although alcohol is banned in Malaysia, many Chinese restaurants and shops still sell it.

He invited us to join him. What could we do but being Social? In a moment we were sharing beers and life stories. Adam, who we learned was from California is working as a training teachers here. He had been in Malaysia for 3 months, in a very local area, and we are the first tourists that he has seen. Seeing our reluctance to buy more beer he treated us to two more. Cher and I have bored each other with our common knowledge and Adam hasn’t had a western ear in a while. He was bursting with words, but we were all happy to have some outside interaction.

I can sympathize after having taught in Hong Kong and working with local teachers all day, but I also had Cher and western friends in the area. Cultural differences make it very difficult to express yourself freely, especially in a professional environment. We were impressed that he had made the commitment to come out here where there is a sharp cultural contrast. We learned it’s not unusual for people to ask what religion you are, assuming that you must have one.

We are cheap dates and after not drinking for so long it went right to our heads and we went back to his place for a night cap or two, some guitar, and conversation. We talked about travel, love, education, books, yoga and plans for the future. Adam was a great host and Cher and I were fortunate to have bumped into him. He was such a great host that when we got back to our hotel Cher told me to turn off the alarm clock before we went to bed.

Day 165

We woke up refreshed and ready. Surveying the road ahead, we guessed that we would either have a very short or extremely long day. A search for hotels revealed only 2 between us and the next major city, 133 km away. We stopped at the first hotel after 50 km and since it was only 11am and we didn’t fancy wasting such a beautiful day in such an average spot we moved on. Pekan appeared to be more of a way station with a couple of expensive touristy restaurants and not much else. The only “budget hotel” in town was way above our budget so once again, a short day turned into a long one.

Luckily the road was flat, and well paved. Adding to our enthusiasm, this small strip of tarmac was one of the few man-made things cutting through long extents of uninterrupted forest on our right and blue waters on our left. Within the forest were black and brown, burnt and dead trees contrasting with the pure blue sky and the clear waters were rimmed with saffron yellow as the tidal waters gathered the inland soil and carried it out to sea. Gorgeous scenery and a smooth road drew us on, and we cruised at 19 km per hour.

We stopped at around 70km to investigate a sign for a resort and found a couple of abandoned buildings built much too close to the water and some men gathering coconuts in a wheel barrow. There was nothing for rent. We have found a lot of big dreams, with bad plans.

Although the road is right next to the sea, there are very few resorts. The waters are muddy next to the shore and there are no bars since alcohol is banned in much of the region, with punishment of caning if you are Muslim. We suspect that many people have the if I build it they will come philosophy, but the people never materialized. We stopped at another resort and found a few run down bungalows. We were quoted 100 RM and I counter offered with 50 RM, and she accepted.

Cher wanted to keep going but for once I was the voice of reason and we stayed. We had seen very few businesses and although we felt fine now there was no telling how we would feel after another 50 km. Headwinds, hills, or even a lack of water become greater obstacles the more tired you become. We had air-conditioning and although our bathroom door and front door had gaps big enough for birds to fly through and lizards to crawl under we stayed. We made ourselves comfortable. I lit some mosquito coils, sealed the bottom of the front door with some prayer mats, covered the bathroom door with a dirty blanket, got out our sleeping bags and hit the hay. (I wish it was hay, our plastic covered bed really made us sweat and dream of ice-cold sacrilegious beers.)

Day 164

Today was a hot short dirty day. Our path veered away from the beach and through an area of heavy construction with trucks tracking a deep red dirt onto the roadway which blown by the wind covered us. We then passed an oil truck that flipped over and spewed its load on the road and into the ditch.

We stopped at what would be a beautiful spot overlooking the sea, except for the litter left by others enjoying this shady spot, to eat our crackers and canned curries. I grumpily admonished a man who came over to chat with “can’t you see I’m eating”. It’s hard to be friendly when you’re dirty, hot, and surrounded by trash.

We arrived in Kuantan after what felt like a long day and began our hotel search. One thing that we’ve realized is that in Malaysia there are not a lot of budget hotels. Hotels mostly fall into 2 categories, horrendous, and nice. We looked at 2 extremely cheap hotels that had the look of a neglected prison, these need a new term instead of budget, maybe destitute. After sleeping in over 100 hotels, we have found very basic hotels that are clean and we are quite satisfied with just a fan, bare concrete walls, and cold showers as long as there are clean sheets. Destitute accommodations have cobwebs, insects and lizard poo on every surface and the moldy walls looked as if a man trapped in solitary confinement had been scratching at them and rubbing his greasy hands on them. Normally the bed is against a wall that has a greasy brown imprint from decades of inmates idling against them. The bathroom has a clean mark on the tile from where people have stepped to use the toilet or shower. Of course some accommodations may have only a few of these characteristics, but we’ve found that one or two is enough for us to rule them out.

With a little persistence we found a brand new hotel with tiny rooms offering a promotional rate of 75 RM. We showered and became a shade lighter as rivulets of oily road grit ran off our arms. Our laundry washed and drying in the room we slipped into all new white sheets and blankets and prepared to sleep like royalty.

Day 163

One thing we have learned is to know when to stop.

I never knew how much I missed Chinese food. It’s not just the food either, Chinese restaurants are a very social setting and it was comforting to hear the constant clattering of dishes and the regular rise and fall of conversation. Much of this town has the appeal of something familiar. Small businesses of every sort sit shoulder to shoulder with their owners and costumers chatting and shouting greetings to their neighbors. Of course the greetings are generally Chinese to Chinese and Muslim to Muslim, since Malaysian society is very much segregated. But there still is a strong current of community and the majority of businesses are aimed at locals. For instance there is a barber shop, which Cher noticed has thick opaque curtains, that can be drawn over the door and the windows so Muslim women can remove their hajibs. There is also traditional Chinese dry goods store, which I smelled before I saw it, with assorted dried fish, mushrooms, and of course rice and other household essentials. Along with mechanics, hardware stores, grocery stores and people going about their daily lives we are of only mild interest and anonymous and unnoticed and we can go about our day as well.

Sitting here at a desk, in our clean functional room, well fed, clean and relaxed it’s easy to forget that we underwent any struggle whatsoever to get here. Refueled and a little bit Hong Kong home-sick we look forward to finding more Chinese food. For those reading at home we also get homesick for our families and friends but that normally happens right before we fall asleep, and our belly’s are full.

Day 162

When we decided to do this cycle touring, we chose to do it so that we could see and experience more. But now we know the reality – there is no guarantee that those experiences would be magnificent days full of wonder. Even though Cher doesn’t often admit that she loves overcoming adversity, such as tough border crossings, sketchy towns, and mysterious foods, but the heat has never been her favorite. I don’t particularly enjoy the heat either. You have to consume such a steady flow of water that I can’t help imagine my body as a leaky bucket that I have to continuously dump liquid into to keep it full. I just wish I could find that hole and plug it up so I don’t have to keep pouring this hot, bland and sometimes strange tasting tap water into my body.

Not impressed by the leakage

When I woke at 5:30 and stumbled outside in the dark to retrieve our laundry, I could already tell that it was going to be a hot one. We were already sweating at 7:30am. Although the sunrise was quite beautiful we dreaded it. Today was particularly hot and even more so as we were stuck on a highway the entire day without any shade. Cher almost had a melt down and could be heard yelling over the traffic, where are the trees? There were none and as we rode on, the road left the coast, beaches, palm trees, and villages were replaced by construction, gravel and shopping malls.

We attempted to stop early but only found overpriced roadside hotels so we kept moving. Hot and exhausted, we slid into Chukai around 2pm and began searching for a room. I wanted to settle for a cheap room with the toilet next to the bed, but Cher was not impressed and wanted to keep on looking. Cher’s persistence paid off and we were rewarded. We found a nice clean hotel, with everything in perfect working order in the Chinese area of town.

We had learned that Malaysia is 29% Chinese but until today we hadn’t seen any. Other than the clean room run by the Chinese, we were happy to find Chinese food. We have enjoyed the Malay cuisine, but we have discovered that breakfast, lunch and dinner are all the same. Maybe this is only the roadside restaurants, but after a dozen, we have found basically fish, chicken or beef, in one of 3 sauces over rice, various fried noodles, and rotti canai are served no matter what time it is. There is also a conspicuous lack of vegetables. We showered and rushed out the door and feasted on big buns as appetizer, then dined on a local specialty – stuffed crabs, and for the first time in a while fresh leafy greens stir fried with cloves of garlic. Had we stopped earlier we would have passed right by this town the next day. It’s always a difficult decision, if you keep going you might find nothing but if you don’t stop you could miss something amazing. This is why cycle touring despite the heat and gripes is so rewarding and also a great metaphor for life.

Day 161

A light shower at 6am woke us up, and it motivated us to pack up quickly before everything got wet. As soon as we were packed, the rain stopped, allowing us to have a leisurely hot breakfast.

Cloudy skies, cool breezes, and largely empty downhill roads from Lake Kenyir back to the coast made cycling a pleasure. Before noon, we had done 70km.

Instead of backtracking up north to Marang for hotels, we decided to follow our general direction, heading south. We were bound to find something along the road, or so we thought. 10km later, we found a roadside homestay for 70 RM, but longing for the beach we pressed on. A storm rolled in before we reached the seaside. Soaked and tired, I was determined to take whatever came up next. However, what came next was not ideal, we found a fully booked chalet, two abandoned beach homestays and a horrible overpriced chalet for 100 RM.

At almost the 100km mark near Dungun, we came to another lodge and this time we didn’t hesitate to take the room for 70 RM. With in room WiFi and air-conditioning, we couldn’t ask for more. However, we’ve had to lower our standards considerably. This room was double the price of some very good accommodations we found in Thailand and Vietnam, but it was still very much a budget accommodation with a dripping mossy bathroom, and clapboard walls.

Day 160

Despite the heat during the day, the night was cool and breezy by the lake. We woke up at 8am, planning to start the day with a kayak tour around the lake. The tourist center right next to the campsite has kayaks for rent and we patiently waited for the staff to come to work. However, they didn’t show up. We ventured into the afternoon heat to check out the Buweh Waterfall and another campsite 6km away on our trikes. It was so hot that I had to abandon the mission halfway, leaving Chopper to discover the beauty of the waterfall by himself. He came back with a disappointing report – the waterfall was nowhere to be found, and the other campsite comes with a premier view of a construction site.

The government has made a lot efforts to encourage tourism around the area. However the infrastructure does not really match up with the tourism demand. We were the only campers at the campsite which could accommodate at least 20 tents. We later learned that they are building a water theme park on the island just across the water from the main dock. For now we are treated by beautiful unobstructed sunsets. I wonder if the sacrifice of the undisturbed natural beauty will bring Lake Kenyir more admirers.

Two days of free camping was good for our budget, and it was much needed since accommodation in Malaysia has been very expensive. We will be heading back to the cities and towns tomorrow, and the cool quiet lake will be missed.

Day 159

In order to arrive in Sydney when it’s warm enough to climb, we really need to slow down. Since we are near Lake Kenyir, the largest man-made lake in Southeast Asia, we decided to take a detour. It would be a nice change to swim in crystal clear fresh water after spending the last month swimming in the ocean.

We started the day on a scenic road heading towards the mountains. The gentle ascent was quite enjoyable, with little garbage on the road or shoulders. For once, we could smell the aroma of the tropical forest. Before noon, we made a lunch stop at a local burger stall and had some spicy hamburgers, 2 RM for each. It’s quite surprising to find that burgers are common cheap food in Malaysia.

After a quick lunch, we were back on the road again. The temperature was actually pleasant but the afternoon sun was intense, and there was no shade along the road. The gentle uphills and downhills turned into a 10% ascent at the last 8km mark. I could feel myself melting, and the podcast I put on to distract myself from the heat phased out into a drone. Being the weaker link between the two of us myself, it was comforting to see Chopper had to stop to rest in the middle of the climb. A dip in the lake never sounded so tempting and with that in mind, we were motivated to finish the last few kilometers.

The accommodation options near the lake are quite pricey, but the good news is there are plenty of designated campsites, either along the roads or on the islands in the lake. We settled at a campsite near the Information Center, and quickly jumped into the lake without changing into our swimsuits.

The campsite has toilets, showers, and a kitchen area with electricity. The best part – it is free. We were the only campers there, even though it was a weekend night.

Before sunset, we saw a giant lizard sun bathing on the lawn and a wild pig scampering by. In the middle of the night we were awakened as a pack of wild pigs went on squealing, grunting, shrieking all night long. Chopper saw 9 or 10 of them doing their wild pig business, rooting around on the hillside for wild mushrooms, 10 meters from our campsite. We were in the jungle!

Day 158

Cher: What would you do if you become a wolverine tomorrow? Would you still finish this trip?

Chopper: F**k the trike! Who cares about cycling around the world when you are indestructible and immortal? I would take on some war lords, either that or saddle a whale and ride him on a world tour. What about you?

Cher: Definitely f**k the trike. Maybe I will become a chef, those claws would be great for cutting vegetables.

Since we didn’t turn into wolverines this morning, we carried on our ordinary mortal life. Chopper spent the day doing trike maintenance and I catching up on the blog. A swim in the ocean in the afternoon made everything better. That is something we can’t enjoy if we ever turn into the Wolverine one day, not with that solid adamantium skeleton.

Day 157

We were asleep by 6pm and slept an incredibly deep 12 hours of sleep. I could have slept more when the alarm woke us up at 6am.

Learning from the experience yesterday, I did some research on accommodations in Malaysia. A homestay turned out to be something completely different from we thought. It is a fully furnished house, with a kitchen, living room and bed rooms that can be rented out on a daily basis. It is not a budget choice for cyclists, as we always come in pack of 2 or less. Also, cheap sex motels that are abundant in Thailand simply do not exist in Malaysia, as the culture here is heavily influenced by Islamic laws. Traveling for Malaysian people is more of a family event than a personal odyssey, so fancy resorts survived the market while budget hotels only exist in big towns.

With that in mind, plan ahead is going to be the rule of the game. I found a resort that offers a “backpacker’s suite” for 50 RM on the beach 66km away, and a couple of other cheap places further away for the next few days. Hopefully we won’t be blindly searching for hotels under the hot afternoon sun.

The ride was hot and humid as usual, and due to our proximity to the ocean we got strong headwinds all the way through. But we were rewarded by the stunning view – white sandy beaches which stretch on uninterrupted by rocks or large resorts, with absolutely no one on it except us.

When we got to the beach front resort, we were the only guests and as advertised they had a cute little A-frame house for backpackers on a budget. After a tiring swirl of ferries, buses and trikes transfer, this was the perfect spot for a rest day.

Day 156

Even with our luxurious bus, I barely slept. While watching Malaysian t.v. on the bus, we were surprised to see an advertisement for shampoo directed at Muslim women. Of course you never saw her hair in the advertisement, as it was covered in hijab, but it promised to keep her cool all day long. I never thought about how to advertise shampoo to someone who keeps their head covered. I was now too excited to sleep, as I began trying to see the world through this new revelation. Even when I was tired enough to sleep, the freezing cold air conditioning and the bus driver’s racing through narrow winding mountainous roads, kept me up either shivering or rocking. Between curling myself up to keep warm and safe, and listening to Chopper’s snoring, I slept for 2 hours of the six before we were dropped off at the Kota Bharu bus terminal at 4am. Despite the early hour, we still drew a crowd when we were assembled our trikes in the dark.

As we crossed the empty city of Kota Bharu, our pilgrimage to the east coast in the dark was accompanied by the early morning adhan from minarets along the road. We moved quietly in the dark through forests and small towns before cycling down someones driveway past their cows to reach the beach just before sunrise. The view was supposed to be splendorous, but I passed out cold while we were waiting for the sun to come up.

After a short nap, we were back on the road, looking for a hearty breakfast to jump-start the day. We stopped at a road side stall where locals helped us to order our first breakfast in Malaysia – delicious roti with curry, and 2 cups of black coffee, all for only 7 RM. Most Malaysians speak English, so it took very little time to make friends.

We set off again, now searching for a room. I had seen a lot of signs for homestays and guesthouses when we were riding through Bachok. But with a good breakfast in my belly and a cool morning breeze, we decided to press on a bit further.

However, when we finally decided to seriously look for a room, we could find none. We followed numerous roadside signs for homestays, guesthouses, or travel lodges, but we found either deserted houses overtaken by the jungle, or nothing – we guessed that many went out of business and didn’t take down the signs. On the plus side we discovered drinking water machines which charge 10 cents per liter, so we could carry on our hotel search in the afternoon heat.

When we eventually found a few resorts that were actually in business, they were incredibly expensive. The first one was fully booked, the second one started from 68RM for a very basic moldy room with a cold shower. Whoever decided carpeting a room in the jungle next to the ocean would be a good idea? A fancy resort down the road asked for 288 RM for the cheapest chalet. Determined to find a good deal we continued searching.

We came across yet another sign for a homestay, and at the end of a dirt road we found a shed with 6 single beds in it, and the price for 1 nights stay at this wonderful human stable, 120 RM. We were directed to another homestay which was supposed to cost only 40 RM, but the owner was nowhere to be found. Chopper suggested wild camping, but I was in no mood to entertain the thought. We had little food, no fuel, and not enough water, and although we would have survived, I desperately desired a shower, climate control and a ready-made bed to lay down my weary body.

Forward we went, and after almost 48 hours of non-stop traveling we came across a hotel that cost 100 RM for a room in Tok Bali, we didn’t hesitate to take it. It was modern, cold, clean, and we didn’t even flinch despite the fact that it was 1.5 times our daily budget for food and lodging.