Day 16
As is normal during our rest days, we rest our legs but are not truly at rest. I spent the day typing and in a reversal of roles Cher cleaned and lubed the trike’s drive train. A complicated procedure in our tiny, windowless but cheap hotel room. Manipulating one trike at a time we managed to squeeze the back-end into the bathroom, leaving the front end in the hallway. We place a layer of newspapers on the floor to soak up any over-spray or sludge. Our normal procedure is spray down the chain with degreaser, wipe, and then lubricate. Our chains are filthy after about 1 week. I’ve proposed doing a complete cleaning once a month, which involves removing the chain and immersing it in a solvent, scrubbing it and re-lubricating. Click here for an excellent article written by Sheldon Brown on how to keep your chain clean.
Lucky for us, most bathrooms in Asia are wonderfully suited to filthy travelers. They are tiled from floor to ceiling, with an open shower where several water faucets are available. The shower and the bathroom are one in the same. In essence you have one large shower where you can wash yourself, clothes, bags and even trikes.
Our Google Nexus tablet has been the sole means of maintaining our website. Before we left Hong Kong, I unlocked the bootloader so we can transfer files via a usb. With a simple word processing program and a cheap blue tooth keyboard, we are able to write, edit and post our blog. Cher has also discovered that we can link our cameras directly to the tablet using a OTG (on-the go) cable which allows you to link many USB devices directly to your tablet. Our tablet is a valuable resource in many other ways. It’s our multilingual dictionary, navigation, internet, and entertainment center. It’s small, portable and the battery life is better than a full-sized computer.
Taking a break from our chores, we took a stroll and sampled some of the local specialties, which were cheap and delicious.
Although our foray was brief, we sometimes feel guilty when we stay inside and rest on a beautiful day. However, we have had nothing but beautiful weather since day one. Yes, some have been unbearably hot, but we have not had one rainy day yet and this constant sun does provide us with some of the sweetest, robust fruit which we’ve been eating by the bushel. Still we hope for cooler weather, but driving into the tropics and then towards the equator, I’m not sure if we’re going to find it so soon.