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March 31, 2005
Super Stardom
Total KM 1581
Imagine the opening scene in a bad movie where a man, his name is of no importance so let's call him Mr. ________, is walking out of his suburban-house towards his car. First there is the sexy next-door neighbour tending to her flowers-
"Hi, Mr. ___________"
Next, the milkman rolls up-
"Good morning Mr. __________"
Then we have the paperboy-
"Hello sir!"
Finally there are some children off to school-
"Good morning Mr. ___________"
A nice, friendly neighbourhood. But imagine being Mr. _________, and living out this above scene all day, everyday, with total strangers greeting you. This is what cycling the broken-glass encrusted roadways of Thailand is like. The novelty of it wears out faster than a cheap Chinese condom. You can't keep a train of thought going because you have 5 kids repeatedly screaming "Good morning!" at you until you are out of sight, regardless of the fact that it's 6:00 in the evening.
Then, when the screaming kids are finally out of earshot, you come across an extended family all sitting out on their front patio and every single one of them is determined to say hello.
"Hey you!"
"Where are you going?" - I always point in the direction that I am coming from.
"Why are you here?" - I've actually been asked that, in a very friendly manner, by a few people. I assume it was a mistake...
and my personal favorite-
"Where are you?" - What is this, a fucking game of Peek-A-Boo?
You can open you eyes now, I'm right here for Christ sake.
What am I complaing about? Most people are really happy to see me and are quite friendly. Almost annoyingly friendly. I should start charging the staring squads - which I muster up just about everytime I stop for water- 5 baht a head.
5 baht for a lookie look
10 baht to grope my bicycle
and 20 baht to rip a chunk of hair out of my arm.
A man actually did that to me on a bus, sort of. He came up to me, stared for a minute and then stared pulling at my arm hair. I pushed his hand away and ripped out a few strands to give him - as proof to his family that he met a foreigner- which he immediately grabbed up and thrust into his shirt pocket. I demanded 20 baht be he refused to cough it up.
But I am learning how to better ignore people, which I think should be very useful should I ever get duped into marriage.
Posted by tyler at 12:05 PM
March 22, 2005
safe
After 10 minutes in southern Thailand I had forgotten all about the threat of violence, I was too busy worrying about the traffic. I entered the country at Sungai Kolok and within 5 km I was almost hit by a scooter and then I saw some unconscious guy being thrown in the back of a truck while his scooter lay in the dust on the side of the road.
I'm now in Songkla province away from most of the violence of the south.
Posted by tyler at 04:26 AM | 4 Comments
March 18, 2005
Public Service Announcement
I'd like to talk for a moment about recklessness... I'm not well versed on the subject but I'll try...
I don't have travel insurance - Stupid?
But
I've taken First Aid! - Smart
I'm not taking Malaria pills - Stupid?
But
I have my Rabies and Japanese Encephalitis vaccinations! - Smart
I'm cycling into troubled southern Thailand tomorrow - Stupid?
But
I'm letting you know and I will update as soon as I can! -Smart
I'm looking at about 300 km through the southernmost provinces of Pattani, Yala and Narathiwat. I'll hopefully be able to scare myself and get the adrenaline going and do it in less than 2 days.
Yeah, so that's that. Reckless? Maybe. Stupid? Kind of. But it's a calculated risk. Stay away from religious gatherings and crowds. Stay away from tourist hotels. Most importantly I think - stay away from the police. They are common targets by the insurgents.
Wish me luck!
Posted by tyler at 07:57 AM | 1 Comments
March 16, 2005
Wildlife in Asia
The FAQ section is ready as are some new pictures of Malaysia and Thailand. Check them out.
I'm in Bangkok and finished with my beach vacation and tomorrow I've got a 22 hour train ride back down to Malaysia to look forward too. Woo-hoo. Can you feel my enthusiasm? I've been lounging on Ko Chang and Ko Samet for the past two weeks and I am quite antsy to get back on my bike for some detox.
Both of those islands are National Parks but you could hardly tell. I felt kinda bad for being there. Ko Samet is littered with trash and all the reefs that I visited in the Ko Chang vicinity were dead (I can only assume from snorkellers and divers alike)... On 3 seperate occasions I witnessed 3 boats anchored at the same time near a single reef and there were at least 75 snorkellers in the water at the same time in a really small area. I was getting kicked in the head, the feet, the ass, it was horrible. People were standing on the once alive reefs taking a break. It is a sad situation with some National Parks but it doesn't have to be, if you are not happy with this current situation then avoid these places. If you really want to go, seriously consider the consequences to visiting such a place. I'm not just talking about the dead reefs that I saw, it goes alot deeper than that but I don't have the time nor energy to go into it.
Posted by tyler at 05:35 PM | 1 Comments
March 05, 2005
FAQ questions
Total KM 898
I am making a FAQ page for this site. So please email me if you have any questions (the wierder the better) and I will try and add them.
You'll notice the KM counter won't be moving for a while beacuse I'm on vacation baby. Going to go to Ko Chang with a friend. I'll be back on my bike around mid March.
Posted by tyler at 03:26 AM | 3 Comments