This blog covers our journey back into Thailand, cycling the southern coast as we headed towards Malaysia.

SUMMARY

Thailand is a travellers’ paradise and has been popular with backpackers for decades. Thailand is also a big cycling nation so tourers are welcome with open arms. There is a 30-day visa free period for many nations and options to extend if you plan to stay longer. Smooth roads, free camping, fresh fruit, good bike shops, delicious food and English spoken in many places…need we say more. The downside is the heat during March-May (think saturated clothing) and the rainy season between June-October (think mouldy panniers).

STORY

Following a whistle-stop tour of the Cambodian coast, we closed in on the Thai border. The crossing was hassle-free and we were back on the left-hand side, welcomed with a perfectly smooth and car-free highway. After passing the ‘Narrowest Part of Thailand’, our first stopover was Mairood Resort in a small fishing village. The place was quite unique and we had to navigate over narrow concrete bridges over deep water to find our accommodation.

Despite being relatively expensive for the location, the place was beautiful; wooden huts set in a jungle oasis with birds and a swimming pool at the centre. We were the only guests. We spent the day enjoying the peace and quiet around the pool before enjoying a nice evening meal at a table romantically laid out by the lovely owner.

The next few days we were hit with rain and thunder. The humidity remained throughout and turned us into prunes. The route wasn’t very inspiring, largely consisting of one long highway with little visual interest. The widely available 7-Eleven’s continued to be our saviour in Thailand. We single-handedly kept this chain open during our time here. A great rest-stop for shelter as well as for instant energy snacks. A top favourite of ours: cheese toasties. The rain didn’t deter the roadside fruit sellers who were offering a range of exotic wares including mangosteens, rambutans (like lychees) and durian. It also happened to be the ‘Royal Ploughing Ceremony’, marking the official beginning of the rice growing season. This, along with a new king, meant there was lots of activity (heavy drinking) in the towns we passed through. On the way to Rayong, we opted for a Matt-special scenic route. This time it paid off in my favour, in the way of countless beach-hut sweet stops where we gorged on coffee and Banoffee pie.

Hotels in Thailand are definitely a welcome and affordable treat after a long sweaty day in the saddle. We never paid more than £20 for a spacious, air-conditioned room which you’d pay £60+ for back home. Star 3 Residence in Rayong was recommended to us by a guy on Instagram and for good reason. Our gauge for determining decent accommodation includes only the basics - room price, clean sheets, air con and whether the staff let us lock our bikes inside…

The road to Pattaya City was a dusty and busy motorway, where lots of concentration was required. The city itself didn’t leave much to the imagination, it’s an extremely developed tourist town, packed with tacky bars and a beach that give’s Blackpool a run for its money. We both couldn’t wait to be on the boat and out of there. Before we left, I must admit we did have a MacDonalds in the spirit of things..

The boat would take us across the Gulf of Thailand to Hua Hin, once a quiet fishing village and now a popular tourist destination (but far quieter and prettier that Pattaya). We were rapidly running out of time and this boat ride would shave a couple of days off. It also meant we could avoid the capital city of Bangkok, a place we’d both previously visited. Once we had boarded the boat, we got chatting to a Belgian ex-pat, Christian, on his way back to his home in Hua Hin. We arranged to meet up with Christian that evening for pizzas and beers, to chat more about our adventure and his life in Thailand, in return for being shown around his town.

Now on to the real reason we were excited for Hua Hin - the Vana Nava Water Park. I’d been fixated on going to a water park for months now and this was the largest we’d found on our route. My heart was set on conquering the ‘Free-fall’ after a troubling childhood memory on a family holiday in 2002, where I’d kept the whole park waiting lingering too long at the top of the slide, too petrified to take the leap.

I am not ashamed to say we were the first ones there when the park opened. This was, however, our first mistake. As we climbed to the top of the ‘Boomerrang’, we were quickly turned away as our party of two was apparently too small. We were told to come back when there were more of us to meet the minimum weight quota…doh. Later in the day, we returned and had to borrow some kids to make up the weight (we even got a photo to prove it). I combatted my fears on the Free-fall without much fuss at all and even had a go on the Torpedo, where the floor literally falls from under you whilst locked inside a pod.

That evening we met Christian again for our final night in Hua Hin. He showed us to a local street food market with live music, before welcoming us into his lovely home for a couple of beers. He built the house with his wife when they both moved here, after running a Thai restaurant in Belgium for 30 years. It was a great opportunity to see what life is like for a ‘Farang’ (a generic word used in Thailand meaning ‘white race’) and it’s chance meetings like this that make this trip so unique and memorable.

The rest of our time in Thailand didn’t disappoint. Leaving Hua Hin, we headed for a Warmshowers place that we’d heard lots about, around 100km away. We arrived at Coconut Homestay in good time after an enjoyable ride through coconut farms, limestone cliffs and National Parks. Coconut Homestay was without a doubt one of the nicest places we stayed. I’d have paid to stay here if it hadn’t happened to be on Warmshowers and wished we could have stayed longer.

Set within a quiet utopia, the rooms were modern and spacious, set around a central pool lined with coconut trees. It was the perfect spot to rest and recuperate. We had also managed to time our stay with Basia and Pawel (@2findthepath), a cycle touring couple from Poland. After an afternoon by the pool, we headed to the village to pick up some dinner. Most of the shops were closed, but we managed to pick up some freshly prepared som tum (Papaya salad) and kluay tort (fried bananas with sesame) from the evening street market. We ate together by the pool that evening and chatted over cold beers about our experiences and the road ahead.

After a final morning swim, we tore ourselves away and said our goodbyes to Basia and Pawel. We continued down the coastal path, switching in and out of the back roads to cut through palm forests. Empty resorts lined empty beaches, with only a couple of tourists here and there. The secret to a relaxing holiday: visit out of season. We chanced a beach camp that night which was just bearable with the small fan inside the tent. We woke to watch the sun rise in the morning, before packing up and continuing on our route. It is such a laid back country and we were thoroughly making the most of it. Our favourite Thai road snacks on the coastal route included banana samosas, fresh watermelon and the champion - mango sticky rice.

That night we stayed with the famous Warmshower’s host Patty (@baansumlee) and enjoyed her delicious homemade yellow and green curry. We chatted about our onward route and Patty gave us some great tips that only a local could provide. She is such a sweet lady and has fully immersed herself in this new found community she has only recently discovered. After Patty’s breakfast pancakes the next morning, we cycled a 20km route together before saying our final goodbyes.

Continuing our streak with ‘free’ accommodation, we got accepted at a Wat by some very laid back monks. They were huddled in a corner together smoking when we pulled in… One young guy (not a monk) opted to be tour guide and showed us around, extensively. After setting up our tent, we prepared to make dinner and our new friend stayed with us trying to get by on Google translate. Later that evening, we explained to our friend that we were now going to sleep, but he remained. The next morning to our amusement, he was fast asleep on one of the benches close by. I think he liked our company…

Our journey continued away from the enjoyable coast, as we finally headed inland towards Malaysia. A long 134 km day in the saddle brought our total to over 1,000 miles in 16 days (and 16,000km in total). I was ready for a break, and it came in the form of the paradise island, Koh Lanta. The island promised of Western food, beautiful beaches and most incredibly a Warmshowers room at the breathtaking Moonlight Resort. The host was currently working in Bangkok so we had the place to ourselves and were allowed to use the resort facilities as we wished. The welcome fresh juice and cold towel nearly brought me to my knees.

*Arriving at Moonlight Resort, Koh Lanta*

Despite the urge to pack full our rest days with all the many activities recommended to us, I decided to concede with Matt and just enjoy a relaxing day by the pool doing very little. I will never forget the sunset we enjoyed that evening, with a cold beer in hand.

We booked on to the 4 Islands tour the following day, which didn’t disappoint. Snorkelling in crystal clear waters and lunch on a secluded white sandy beach. The only minor hiccup was a near-death experience in search of a secret beach. The only way in was via a small cave in the water, where we had to swim through at the opportune moment when there was a break in the swell. With only one man and one torch as a guide, the fifteen-strong group battles our way through and just about made it to the secret beach in one piece. The only thing was we had to do it again on the way out. Just to emphasise the apprehension, one lady in our group cried the entire way out.

After our mini island holiday, we regretfully tore ourselves away from Koh Lanta. Malaysia was calling. We headed back to the mainland and towards Trang, where our next Warmshowers host was waiting. Kim, an American guy and English teacher who lived in the city with his wife and daughter, was an interesting character. He encouraged us (Matt would say forced) to stay an extra day so that we could give a series of talks about our trip to his pupils. We knew it was a fantastic opportunity and we didn’t want to let him down. We just felt anxious about the dwindling number of days to cycle the length of Malaysia in time for our flight home.

The next day and without preparation, we arrived at a large high-school complex to set up for our day of talks. Early morning, we faced a room of approximately 200 kids staring back at us as we spoke about our trip. We did this four times throughout the day for each different year group. The older pupils understood more of what we had to say, were very animated and even asked a bunch of questions. The common theme being ‘How much money do you have?’. Most of the kids couldn’t comprehend that we have cycled from the UK and were more impressed that we had made it here from the neighbouring state.

‘Teacher Kim’ showed us around the school at lunch time and introduced us to his colleagues. For lunch, we were treated to a lovely Thai meal by some of the teachers and brought untold sums of traditional snacks (sticky rice, bar buns, iced coffee) throughout the day. We were left feeling honoured to have been welcomed into the school and given this opportunity at short notice, despite initially feeling uneasy with no option but to agree. We witnessed the end of day line-up as the 2000-strong school assembly patiently waited to leave school, before cycling south towards the border. The next day we boarded a boat which would take us to the island of Langkawi, Malaysia - our penultimate country on our cycle tour across the world.