Tag: south east asia

Malaysia Part 2: It’s a Small World when you’re on Two Wheels (Klang to Singapore 20/07/16-26/07/16)

Aug 6, 2016

Skipping Kuala Lumpur I headed south from Klang. It was the same old west coast Malaysian cycling – busy roads and uninspiring scenery. A few dragon fruit farms spiced up the roadside activity but as quickly as they’d appeared they faded back into endless palm oil plantations. I remember being excited when I saw my … More Malaysia Part 2: It’s a Small World when you’re on Two Wheels (Klang to Singapore 20/07/16-26/07/16)

Malaysia Part 1: 25,000km and Still Going Strong (Thailand to Klang 07/07/16-19/07/16)

Jul 26, 2016

I’ll be honest. The only reason I took the boat over to Langkawi from Thailand was because I’d heard that the island was duty free. I’d also heard that booze was expensive in the rest of the country. That didn’t surprise me – Muslim countries have a habit of sticking a mean tax rate on … More Malaysia Part 1: 25,000km and Still Going Strong (Thailand to Klang 07/07/16-19/07/16)

Thailand Part 4: Eid al-Fitr in the Deep South (Krabi to Malaysia 26/06/16-07/07/16)

Jul 21, 2016

Still on my mini-holiday with mum, we headed over from Railay to Phi Phi island. My parents had visited Phi Phi when they back-packed South East Asia in the 80s. We were both curious to visit the place: my mum wanted to see how the new ‘poster child’ for Thai island tourism had changed and I … More Thailand Part 4: Eid al-Fitr in the Deep South (Krabi to Malaysia 26/06/16-07/07/16)

Thailand Part 3: Beach Bumming with Mum (Myanmar to Krabi 11/06/16-25/06/16)

Jul 14, 2016

Crossing into Thailand from Laos a few months ago had prepared me for the shock getting off the boat back into Thailand and returning to the 21st Century. Air-conditioned shops, petrol stations, coffee stalls and western food outlets. I cycled onto a perfectly flat four-lane road and almost head first into a car. Whoops. I’d … More Thailand Part 3: Beach Bumming with Mum (Myanmar to Krabi 11/06/16-25/06/16)

Myanmar Part 2: Please, not the Police! (Dawei to Thailand 31/05/16-11/06/16)

Jun 27, 2016

A year ago I turned 23 in Turkey. I’d spent the night camping in petrol station owned by a lovely Kurdish family who invited me to dinner and gave me a sheltered pitch from the rain. On the 31st I woke up on my 24th birthday and started my day just as I start most … More Myanmar Part 2: Please, not the Police! (Dawei to Thailand 31/05/16-11/06/16)

Myanmar Part 1: Meditation with the Farting Monk (Thailand to Dawei 19/05/16-30/05/16)

Jun 18, 2016

I was more excited crossing into Myanmar than I remembered being at a border for a long time. Perhaps because it’s the first country on this trip that I never planned on cycling in. I’d considered it as a distant possibility before I left but it seemed like too complicated a country to ride. There … More Myanmar Part 1: Meditation with the Farting Monk (Thailand to Dawei 19/05/16-30/05/16)

Thailand Part 2: The Gypsy Curse (Chiang Mai to Myanmar 17/04/16-18/05/16)

May 30, 2016

You can’t teach an old dog new tricks. That’s what I learnt in Chiang Mai. I’ve summoned the mental strength to cycle across vast deserts and over huge mountain ranges but when it comes to resisting a social drink in good company… I simply can’t. My plan after Songkran festival was to get back into … More Thailand Part 2: The Gypsy Curse (Chiang Mai to Myanmar 17/04/16-18/05/16)

Vietnam: Familiar Faces in the Black Hmong Tribe (09/03/16-19/03/16)

Apr 27, 2016

Wow. A blog title that doesn’t begin with the ‘C****’ word? That feels a little strange to type. Four months ago I crossed into China from Kazakhstan and now I’m finally out the other side. The South-East Asia adventure begins here in Vietnam. I was a little nervous at the border. Officially you have to … More Vietnam: Familiar Faces in the Black Hmong Tribe (09/03/16-19/03/16)