28/2/25
It was a relief not to be getting up as early. We had breakfast included at the hotel and we weren’t going to miss that. We tried to get as much stuff tidied and reloaded on the bikes before 7am. We managed to sit down for breakfast at 10 past but they weren’t ready yet. It was actually really unusual. We’d experienced nothing but punctuality so far.
When the food was brought out it was pretty disappointing. We could identify chicken or egg or both in all the dishes. The coffee was instant granules. A tub of melon appeared. That was tasty. Eventually all the dishes had been brought out and we spied something that looked like battered tofu. We’d actually bought some tofu the day before and had a block with us along with some coconut milk and soya milk. We are prepared vegans. When we enquired with google translate it turned out to be egg free, and there were some other vegetables in there too. Finally a cooked breakfast we could enjoy.
It was about 8:15 when we left. We could already feel the Sun bearing down on us. Hopefully tofu and fruit was worth it. We left the town on a wide, exposed and busy highway. A couple of turns later the traffic seemed to thin out. We can’t understand the Thai road naming system anymore than the Turkish or Italian. Back home in the we know that A1>A14>A142.
Although we’d initially planned to take the main roads we quickly found ourselves wanting to take some detours on narrower and more shaded roads. All the while we were enjoying the incredible scenery generated by the karsts. It was a surreal place we’d only dreamed of. Looking up and staring at the rocks wasn’t half as boring as it sounds. They were so intricate and full of mystery.
Such luxuries as shade weren’t easily found however. Still, we found some really small roads. We could ride two abreast and it was far less stressful. Eventually we had to rejoin the main road. It’s always a bit of a shock to the brain moving from quiet bumpy side roads onto fast moving noisy ones. The road went through a long village with megaphones attached to the telephone poles playing someone’s voice. It was evidently some kind of religious service, and we soon passed a mosque, but it was unbelievably loud.
We stopped in some shade to put on some suncream and coming towards us we saw another pair of cycle tourists. It was an encouraging sight, we really hadn’t seen as many as we thought we would on our journey so far. We waved them down. Myriam and Antoine were another young couple and they had cycled from France, via China. It was exciting to hear about their adventures. They were headed south to have a holiday with their family before cycling home, via Iran. Incredible stuff.
Back into the roasting sunshine we went. It was a much clearer day today. We were feeling quite enthusiastic regardless of the heat. It was hard to keep on top of drinking enough. We soon turned off the main road again and then again off the minor road onto a back road. The surface was usually concrete slabs. A little less than perfect tarmac but easy to ride nonetheless.
We passed Khao Khoi Dam, not a large blockade that we could see, but a fishing lake at the bottom of some karsts. It was a serene place. We took a break in the gazebo that was in the middle of the water, a strong cool breeze blew towards us and birds swooped around. We ate some banana and papaya.
We continued along these tiny roads for quite a few more miles. The garmin didn’t know about all of them, we used google street view to confirm the existence of pavement. It is a bit unreal how they’ve driven a camera car everywhere. The last part, before hitting the main road was brilliant, the branches of the palms lay across the road so low they almost grazed our heads.
We took the 4205 west, then turned back north on the 1010. It was a few kilometres more but we were avoiding the highway like the plague. We passed a school. Some schools are Muslim, all the children are dressed accordingly. They all waved and said ‘hello’ in a broken chorus. Then two small girls in matching uniform and headscarves came zooming past on a scooter. They can’t have been more than 10.
Just up the road there were yet more cycle tourers. This time a couple of Germans. They’d been touring a few times and this time were just frolicking in Thailand for a few months. The woman had recently been bitten by a shark. The same species of shark we’d been snorkelling with too. It had clearly been a really traumatic experience.
There was a cave we would have liked to explore but we weren’t prepared to pay the high prices to go in. Instead we kept going until we finally had to use the highway. We’d spied a nice vegan restaurant to eat at on google maps. Before we got there we stopped at a fruit stall to stock up. Two large dragon fruit, a guava and some weird molasses drink. Liquid sugar basically. We necked that.
The restaurant had all the Jai diet signs outside but was sadly closed. We thought it might be. Than Bok Khorani national park encompassed the nearby karsts. It’s hard to imagine but they’re a beautiful backdrop all around you for miles and miles. We’d read online, and it was confirmed in writing here, that you can camp at national parks for just 30baht a night. We’d have to try some time. Access to the park was another high charge we avoided. Apparently there’s only 800m to walk inside, but it did look really enticing.
Back on the stroad, it is quite sad there are no pavements or crossings, we looked for somewhere to eat. Meat is always the main focus. They seem to enjoy it on sticks here, we aren’t quite sure what animal it is though. One restaurant menu had lots of dishes but every single one contained pork. Another restaurant had no menu at all. So we gave it a gander.
The woman was super friendly and immediately invited us, and the bikes, inside, out of the punishing Sun. She was keen to provide us with food and we presented her with the ever useful vegan passport. She quickly caught on and offered us vegetable fried rice and papaya salad. We gave her a block of tofu to fry up with it and she was happy to comply.
The only disappointment was the inclusion of what appeared to be tiny prawns in the papaya salad. She’d offered us a crab, which we’d quickly turned down, but the message had not entirely been understood. There was probably fish sauce in the papaya salad too. The kind woman did give us an orange each, for which we wouldn’t be charged.
It was only 2km to the hotel. We’d booked another cheap place. Only £10 again. When we arrived, it looked magnificent. A luxury hotel, or it was once, with an incredible backdrop. A huge karst with a hole through the middle. It even had a swimming pool. We did know that it might not be quite as it seemed from the reviews.
It was already past check in time because we’d started our ride so late. The room looked perfectly reasonable. A little tired but comfortable enough. The bed was a little saggy in the middle. We went to the nearest shop to buy a cold drink and a few snacks. They have little bags of nuts and dried fruits for either 5 or 10baht by the door. We bought a cold bottle of coconut nectar, but it was like drinking sugar and not sufficiently refreshing. We went back for a bottle of orange fanta. Yes, it is junk but it was so hot and it’s so tempting. No, it doesn’t leave you quenched. Not really.
When we got back to the hotel we went down to the swimming pool. No towels were provided. It was rich in chlorine. But there was a flume. Some local Thai boys were playing there and were keen to say hello. One of them kept using phrases that were way too casual for the situation. Maybe he learnt them from a TV show. Their English wasn’t the greatest. Not that we judge. We are constantly reminded that we can pitifully only speak one language.
There was another man there. He was from Rhodes. We enjoyed telling him we were there so recently. He was holidaying alone. He chatted to the boys as well. Within two minutes they were talking about premier league football teams. Liverpool has a lot of support in Thailand. Isn’t it odd that almost every young man from Thailand can name a number of major cities in the UK. Soft power eh?
We ended up back in the room soon enough. Air conditioning on. It was lovely and cool at least. We started eating a few snacks. When Jonathan went to the toilet he was startled by the presence of several cockroaches wandering around. They have very long antennas. We went to reception and the woman came back with some spray. They obviously had some. They seemed to be living in the wooden mirror which had rotted.
It was a bit disconcerting to say the least. We could hear them scuttling around inside. But then a couple of them dropped out and were obviously distressed. The spray is potent stuff. We put it to the back of our minds. It was only one night and for the price we’d paid it was just about tolerable. Before bedtime there were 4 bigger ones that had seemingly given up and we brushed them into the corner. Not our finest hour.
Surly They Won't Make It 