The last two days have been quite an exhausting adventure😊. After leaving Surat I headed north towards the base of the isthmus of Thailand. Lots of climbing but actually pleasant enough as the clouds kept the temperature down to manageable levels. Found a great place to eat and clocked on my map I had 32k to go. Easy. 🤣🤣🤣. About a K after lunch well the road er…,disappeared…literally! From tarmac to red, sticky mud for k after k. Been here before I thought….seen this movie before says I! And then something weird happened – a bloody great animated kangaroo statue! I kid you not. Feck….not only am I time travelling I’m also space travelling too….there I was thinking I was in Thailand when all along I was still in Aus!! See the pictures yourself if ya don’t believe me! Wet myself laughing (though I’m not sure I could really tell as I was wringing wet with sweat!). Anyway, the non road stubbornly remained a non road for around 11k. The bike almost fell apart Chitty Chitty Bangbang style! Gee was I happy when it decided to return to a ‘road’! I pulled in to my nights lodgings late but it was a great little place right on the beach front. I was wrecked! Of course, there was feck all to eat and the ‘resort’ (gotta love their optimism) only had one dish – fried rice and chicken – so I had three of them!!

Of course, this morning…no food! And wet cycling gear – the humidity is so high that my cycling Knicks were still wet despite 12hours of ‘drying’. I think that set the tone for the day! I set off on an empty stomach until I found a shop which had buns and coke….breakfast a’la Thailand! Then I got lost. Then I broke my phone charger cable. Then I got chased soooo many times by bored dogs. Then the road disappeared…again! This time it was red slush. The wheels clogged up, everything was covered in the stuff, gee it was hard just staying upright. At around 5kph I moved slowly forward like that till I realised I was lost and had to go back through the shite all over again 🤣🤣. Wasn’t funny at the time…..I think I said something like ‘oh dear oh dear, this is rather tricky but, hey-ho’….or something like that 🤣. Actually, I just got on with it…I was where I was, in the mess I was in (literally) and just refused to get overwhelmed by it. There were a few expletives but more for cathartic purposes than anything else. Nothing like a good ‘F&@k it’ every now and then! Eventually I got myself out of it, and with little phone charge and no charger I headed for the main dual carriageway and smashed out the final 30k on a road I knew I wasn’t going to get lost on! Arrived at Chumphon, and the rest is the usual routine!
Amidst all the chaos of these last few days I’ve had so much time to reflect – I’m enjoying the process as things start to reveal themselves. I’ll share in another blog!

Thanks for reading! Time for a rest 😊

So, this journey has taught me many things about myself …..some I like, others, not so. But one thing I didn’t know was that I can time travel. Hold on, hold on, before you go ‘see, too much sun…gone to his head and he’s lost it completely now…’…..let me explain.

So, yesterday, bumper ride north of 150k. So getting accurate signage to let me know how far to go is pretty up there in importance. My Maps app is good but drains the phone, plus when I use low power mode it keeps turning itself off, so I just rely on road signs. So, cycling along, sign reads, by way of example…’Sarut 27k’ . Grand, lock that in, mentally dial it in, and off we go, counting down the Ks. So, around 30 Minutes later I’m greeted with a sign ‘Sarut 31k’. WTF. So not only have I not moved forward in time and space, I’ve actually regressed further back than the time I was at at the 27k sign 🤣…if you get my (backward) drift!

First time it happened I thought I had misread. But after the 4th or 5th I knew one thing….Thais can’t use an odometer 🤣. It’s soul destroying but occasionally funny! So now I just don’t believe the signs. So I’m not sure quite what distance I did – could be 4,874, or 13! Who knows!

I’m am however despite the time travel making great progress forward – I’m now only 700 from Bangkok! Those long big days in the saddle have eaten in to the distances much quicker than I anticipated.

This morning I got all togged up and the bike loaded in the foyer and I went ‘bugger it….I don’t want to ride today. I’m tired and need to rest’ so I paid for another night and went back to bed 😊. I think that’s a first for me, and a welcome one too!

I’ll be heading up through the isthmus over the next 400-500k. Hot and humid is on the menu, along with copious amounts of liquid and the occasional morsel of food if it can be located, and/or I can be served 🤣

Take care one and all and thanks for your texts, emails and messages 😊….they really matter 😊

Friday and Saturday:
Well, there’s something of a routine beginning to happen -wake up, ride a bike, eat, drink water till it’s coming out of my ears, eat, try to find accommodation, sleep! These last two days have been exhausting. The temperature has soared and my day is dominated by water stops and an endless hunt for food. Paradoxically, there’s lots of food, but often they just pretend not to see you! It’s weird – like being at sea and surrounded by water but unable to drink any of it!! Often you rock up at a stand and a) it’s unattended b) it’s attended but they are fast asleep and/or c) they are in attendance but don’t want to serve you 🤣!

And hotels are becoming something of a Bermuda Triangle as they constantly ‘disappear’. I went to four on my app yesterday….three didn’t exist and the other was closed! I must confess to being wearisome of this daily slog to eat and find rest….not least as it often coincides with the hottest part of the day! But….it is what it is and it’s all part of this travelling experience.
The past two days I’ve cleared 200 or so Ks with a massive ride tomorrow to get to the bottom of the isthmus of Thailand. Can’t say I’m looking forward to tomorrow with soaring temperatures and humidity off the charts! Had my third puncture today – I don’t mind as it’s a chance to stop but gee I wish they would occur where there’s a modicum of shade!

Two things have brightened me up these past few days-talking to Niamh, which is always a highlight of any day, and talking to Azi after her heart procedure! Azi, I’m so relieved that the emergency procedure was a success, and you’re back home recovering- someone sure was looking out for you, and looking out for those of us who have the joy of knowing you, as we all get to continue to experience your love, care and compassion 😊.

Rest and take care!

After the big ride on Tuesday, I was tired heading out today for another 100+ day. Didn’t help that I had to do battle with the morning traffic in the city – it’s amazing how quickly you simply abandon all pretence of being a law abiding cyclist and just act like everyone else, bumping, pushing and shoving, going the wrong way against traffic and basically adopting the ‘snooze, you lose’ attitude! Worked for me! I got out the city and found a Roti stall for breakfast – again, my palate has adapted from cereal and toast to spicy food. Anyways, like Tuesday, the initial 50 or so Ks were on ‘bat shit boring’ roads – dual carriageways swarming with tourist coaches, some of whom came way to close for my comfort. I then got off the highway to another delightful backroad. Had lunch in this really rural village, seemingly untouched by modernity and all the better because of it. So you can imagine how that image was shattered when the little child on the table next to me had her head in her mums iphone whilst it blasted out the Baby Shark song….in English! Nothing says rural cultural Thailand than that shite! Later
I stopped at a tiny village cross roads and had an iced coffee whilst watching the world move through this small cross roads. I pedalled off and after about 6k the lady in the shop where I had got the iced coffee waved me down on her moped….to give me 10 Thai Bharti….about 30c. She had overcharged me at the shop so had come chasing after me! That she would chase after me to correct an error I hadn’t even noticed is simply amazing ! She refused to keep the money.

So anyway I get to Songkhla port and booked in, again just as the heavens opened. Thought I’d get some food….well, bugger me, after an hour wandering around the ‘old town’ (which is really very picturesque) I couldn’t find one Thai eatery that was open or willing to serve me! The place is packed with wanky coffee shops – places to be seen and heard in – so all the street cafes have been forced out. Very sad…and I was very hungry! I stood at one place serving Chinese food for 15 minutes being completely ignored!

Had to laugh though when I got back to the hotel – the super friendly ‘security ‘ guard in the hotel car park, where my bike is, had assured me (with two fingers, two eyes salute to signal he was watching my bike) that it’ll be safe….when I came back he was fast asleep at his ‘station’!! I wanted to hide my bike and wake him up but decided against it 🤣

Thursday: well, what a great night (and half the morning in truth) sleep I had! Clearly I needed it!

I spent the morning dawdling through the narrow streets of Songkhla. Quite lovely. Also found the open market which was an assault on all my senses!

Today has been one of quiet reflection amidst still…still….trying to find something to eat! Being hungry in Thailand seems crazy but it’s been my reality in the larger towns whereas in the backroad villages there’s plenty to choose from!

My mate Barry asked me the other night ‘so, is this trip helping, is it what you thought it would be?’ Made me stop and think. To answer the latter question first, it’s doing everything I hoped it would in terms of putting time and space between me and my perpetual triggering experiences in Adelaide, and in that regard I feel less stuck in a routine which only served to enhance my own emotional depletion. It’s been an incredible experience, and even the low times have brought new insights.
As to the first part – is it helping…that’s more tricky.

Travelling itself is healing, but there is undeniably a sense of artificiality to it in that it’s a way of life, but it’s removed from day to day realities. So, whilst it’s helped in terms of time and space, the ‘real’ test of its helpfulness would be to ask ‘are you ready to resume life in Adelaide having learnt what you’ve learnt about yourself? The answer is – no, not yet. I know in myself that it doesn’t take much to feel those feelings and emotions, and think those thoughts that nearly broke me. I absolutely have a deeper understanding of why they are so powerful, and a greater insight in to why I need to stop taking on shite that doesn’t belong to me. But those rusted on, hard wired triggers are loitering with constant intent. Softening yes. But omnipresent. At one level I have pondered whether it is possible to truly heal when you’re removed from the things that you need to confront. But I’m reminded of what my wonderful counsellor said ‘you’re like an alcoholic trying to get sober in a pub’. By staying on the hamster wheel I had been on, constantly being triggered, angered and depleted, I simply had no way of even starting to heal. It was addictive to simply keep on being immersed in what I knew was hurting me. So….this journey is the initial critical circuit breaker, and in that regard…,it’s doing it’s job 😊. It won’t in itself bring about the healing….it’s not a simple matter of ‘go forth and cycle 3000ks and you’ll find your healing’ but it will give me the space to start that work 😊.

So the plan is to head North along the coast heading for Bangkok, where I’m likely to adjourn the cycling part of this trip to go to help out with my dads care arrangements. Whilst it’s disappointing in terms of not cycling further, that can wait.

Monday: Having struggled to find anything to eat bar rubbish from the 7-11….I settled for rubbish from the 7-11 before heading for the border. In my mind I had this image of this border crossing swarming with lorries and cars and people. Nope. Just me!! Place was deserted! Got out of Malaysia easily and getting in to Thailand was pretty straight forward too! Once in I needed to grab some local currency then get something to eat. I headed off towards the first main village which turns out to a very large town which was chaos! But in a fascinating way. I cycled through the back streets and multiple market stalls, which were heaving with people. One thing I noticed straight away was just how pleasant and friendly the Thais are. So many ‘hellos’ and ‘welcome’, it was great, with lots of eye contact and smiles – something you don’t get in Malaysia. What also caught my attention was the amount of police checkpoints and traffic stalling barriers – it reminded me of the images of the Troubles in Northern Ireland. I then cycled a route that basically followed the Malay-Thai border to the coast, and in to the bargain I got myself my first monsoon style downpour. It came out of nowhere – suddenly the winds whipped up, and down came the deluge. I love cycling in the rain, so I ploughed on, until it simply became too dangerous to ride – the roads quickly flooded, and I couldn’t see my front wheel, so I took shelter with some sensible Thais in one of the many small shelters scattered along the roadside. Great experience though. I made it to Tak Bai on the coast and booked in to a lovely chalet type accommodation right on a ‘lagoon’. All around the hotel is teeming with life – so different from just over the border. I always am astounded at how so much can change because of some seemingly arbitrary line drawn on a map – language, culture, personalities, approach to life, religion. I can actually see Malaysia from here yet it’s a million miles away! One thing they do share – their addiction to plastic. Everything is put in plastic bags even if it’s patently not needed. I refuse, much to their astonishment! The litter here is heart breaking.

Tuesday. Lu’s birthday 😘! I left early to beat the heat but also I knew I had 150ks to do to get to anywhere where there was accommodation. Out of the corner of my eye I saw a bunch of race bikes parked up at a coffee shop so I shared breakfast with a great bunch of Thai MAMILS (middle aged men in lycra!) – a wonderful start to the morning, not least as they paid 🤣! I knew the first 40ks were pretty boring main road riding so I got them outta the way then hit the back roads and was treated to around 90k of incredible riding, beaches, and delicious meals in 2 different street cafes. I drank my body weight in fluids I think! The highlight was definitely taking a dip in the sea – I had the beach to myself and the water was crazy warm. OMG what a treat! Anyways, after hitting the town of Pattani I found the hotels to be full. The sky was darkening and the traffic was absolutely chaos. I was tired and getting worried when I stumbled across a guest house which had a room! Just as I checked in the skies opened!!

Today was a ‘head down, bum up’ type of day – I had to just get through the Ks. But instead of a slog, I was treated to the most wonderful day of riding. Great food, great people, great scenery and the legs felt great too!! It was the longest day in the saddle so far. Plenty of time to also reflect – I’ll share my thoughts another time. Tonight….food, then bed!!