91 km

We got up at just past six and were out of the room just after seven. We ate a snack in the room so we could ride a ways before having breakfast. Nothing in Cherating looked open as we rode by anyway. It’s a sleepy town waiting for tourist season.

We had breakfast at a roadside cafe, Malaysian style. Dave had nasi lemak and I had a different kind of nasi (rice) that was yellow and had Indian-tasting spices. I also had and egg and a pinch of vegetables. It was so thickly humid that even in the cool morning air we were dripping with sweat. We went back to the table to look at the other treats the woman had out, more sweet goodies. In addition to one we’d had before (green gooey sweet thing), Dave also chose one that looked like a small pancake folded in half with yellow pudding inside. We couldn’t determine the exact flavor, but it was really tasty. The people here like their sweets.

Some of the day was through road construction again, but we had a bit more room. We went through areas of the jungle that were being cleared for what looked like preparation for big wide roads into the forest. They were cleaned to smooth sandy soil, with right angles and straight lines cut in the forest. I really don’t know what they were planning.

Other areas were beautiful and close enough to the ocean that we caught glimpses now and then and smelled salty air.

Late in the day we went through the Petronas gas refinery area (I think) with entire towns built around the largest power station I’ve ever seen. The land was cleared flat, you would never have guessed it was once forested, and tidy roads, houses, and other buildings were laid out for many kilometers. The traffic was fairly heavy, but we didn’t feel it too badly because the outside lane was designated just for motorcycles and scooters. An entire full-width lane! Besides that, there was a nice shoulder, so we really had plenty of room.

We landed in Dungun, another town waiting for the tourists. This time we finally got a good deal with a hotel (we’ve been trying to bargain, but no one seemed interested so far); we got a 120 RM room for 60 RM, but no breakfast included. “That’s fine, we’ll take it,” I say, because we have our own snacks and there are cafes everywhere along the road. The room is very nice, and we enjoy cooling off in the air conditioning.

This time of year we are riding into headwinds every day. We are nearing the end of the wet season on the east coast. There are very steady northeast winds that blow every day. I estimate we could probably travel almost 50% faster if we were traveling south instead of north. Although we are still in the wet season, it has barely rained at all. We have had hardly enough rain during any day to get us wet. An actual rainy day would feel very refreshing because of the heat. Instead, it is just humid.

So far, the most people we have seen riding on the same motor scooter is four. Usually it is a father, mother and two children all somehow riding the same tiny motor scooter. I am still waiting to see five people on one scooter, and I’m sure it is only a matter of time. I’m not sure what the minimum age is to drive a scooter, but it would seem to be about the time their legs are just long enough to reach the ground from the seat. We have seen some really young kids riding scooters. I am pleasantly surprised to see more people riding scooters with helmets than without. Yesterday we saw an old man driving a pink scooter with a helmet that looked like a cotton ball.

We had dinner one night at a restaurant with several Osama bin Laden posters on the wall. Michelle had not noticed the posters as she answered the very common question about where we are from with an, “United States”. It was hard to read the face of our waiter as he learned of our home country. He confirmed with an, “America”. It was not the quick acknowledgment and smile that was so common with most everyone else we had met. However, our dinner was fine, and the waiter was friendly and very accommodating to our meal requests. Although it was at times an uncomfortable experience for me, I think there was a positive exchange of understanding that occurred there. I believe we are all living together in a world of human folly where ignorance is dangerous and attempts at understanding can bring out the best of humanity.

Drivers in Malaysia actually stop at a red stoplight even if there is no cross traffic. However, lane boundaries are very fluid. There does not seem to be any police presence attempting to maintain order, but for some reason people still follow the basic rules. How strange. Maybe there is a stiff penalty for breaking a traffic law and this is enough to persuade people into following the rules with minimal enforcement. Similar to the Malaysian method of dealing with drug traffickers. Drug traffickers are hanged. Period. I am guessing it is not this severe for a traffic violation, but stiff enough for drivers to wait for a green light.

The drivers in Malaysia are generally very considerate and attentive. They are used to sharing the road with bicycles and scooters so it makes for a nice place for a bike tour, even when the traffic is heavy. We get many “hellos”, waves and thumbs-up from passing motorists and pedestrians. The local people have been very friendly and nice to us. This is a great place to ride a bike.

Today we slept in until 8:30 then went out in search of breakfast. We had pancakes topped with fruit, and coffee for Dave, tea for me, at the restaurant attached to our guest house. But the portions were small, and we decided to hunt out a cheaper, locals’ restaurant. We found a place hopping with people just down the road, a typical Malaysian outdoor restaurant (all but just a couple of the places we’ve eaten at have been outside in the breeze). We had breakfast number two: nasi lemak (rice, egg, chilli sauce, mini fish). Finally we felt fairly full. We went back to the room to relax and read.

Later in the afternoon we walked down to the beach to swim. This was a very different experience from Pulau Tioman because it was all sand with no reef, and had more waves. We swam out in the warm water and played in the waves. The swimming is good for my shoulder, stretching and exercising it differently than how I use it on the bike all day.

Which reminds me. A few people have emailed and asked about my shoulder. I should give an update. It’s working well most of the time, but starts to ache a little after about 60 km. I stretch it out and it will feel better for a while. The day we biked (and pushed) up that insanely steep path on Pulau Tioman it really hurt, but it was just fine after a couple of days. The only way to cause bones, ligaments, and muscles to get denser and stronger is to push them just a bit harder than they’re used to. They’ll respond by beefing up. I feel like the stretched and torn ligaments in my shoulder are getting stronger, and even though my shoulder looks whacked, it’s working well. I can even sometimes sleep for a short bit on that side, which is my favorite side to sleep on.

97km

We had a nice room in Pekan at the Chief’s Guest House, which was recommended by a local. We’d looked at a couple of other “hotels” but they were really disgusting and probably just brothels. I was grossed out after looking at them, so we were so pleased when we saw the Chief’s Guest House. It’s spacious and clean with shiny hardwood floors and nice bathroom for 55 RM ($17 US). This place would probably cost at least a hundred in the US, probably more.

We had a hot pot and coffee in the room, so we decided to eat our own little snack in the room before heading out early. Then we stopped after about an hour of riding for breakfast: Nasi Lemak, or rice, fried egg and chili paste with a few mini fish. We also shared five small fried yummy goodies set out on platters. They looked like donuts, but were more dense and chewy inside, I’m guessing made with rice flour. They had different fillings or coatings, most had some coconut in or on them. These were so good! Then we rode on.

After about 48 km we got to Kuantan, even though our guide book said it would be 35. The distance is not marked between all cities on our big Malaysia map, so often we are guessing. Kuantan was our biggest Malaysian city so far. We got more money from an ATM and finally exchanged our remaining Singapore dollars. We had lunch at a Thai restaurant.

Here’s the thing about the restaurants and food in Malaysia. Chicken is vegetarian. I am not kidding. They put chicken in everything, sneak it in there like they think you need it or they’re trying to clean out the kitchen. They call a dish vegetarian but it will come with chicken. You can even ask for no chicken, no meat (in English and in Malay) and they will nod their heads, repeat it back to you and still the dish will come with chicken. I’m OK with this, but Dave is really a vegetarian, has been for at least 15 years, and he does not want to eat chicken.

The riding was hectic today. Most of the way there was road construction with narrow shoulders, lots of traffic and many semi trucks. It was noisy and busy and that really wears me out. Not to mention the ever-present headwind. I was tired and sore by the time we got to Cherating, but it was OK because we planned for a rest day here tomorrow. This is a quiet little beach town with very few tourists and we expect a good rest.

97 km

After we left the internet cafe we made a quick stop at a grocery. I went in to buy bread for the next day and Dave waited outside with the bikes. When I came back out, of course he was eating. He’s a rather large fan of eating when we’re on tour, never seems to get full. So anyway, Dave was sitting down in front of this little cart eating, with an excited Malaysian man chattering away with him. The man was all excited and light on his feet, sort of dancing around while talking. I came up to them and Dave handed me a puffy bread thing, saying to take a bite. It was a puffy little bite of heaven! It’s called Pau Pau Lai Lai, and it’s steamed bread with filling, either sweet or savory. Dave had bought a sardine one and a coconut one. Then the guy started bringing out more for us to try, saying he was giving them to us for free. He really wanted us to know about this yummy treat, because he said we’d be seeing it all throughout our trip. I guess he and Dave had quite a chat while I was roaming the entire grocery store looking for the elusive bread.

After talking with him some more, Dave asked if he could take his picture and he proudly posed by his cart. He has seven kids and a wife, so he works from 7:00 am to 3:00 am selling the bread while his wife bakes them at home. That’s seven in the morning, through the day and night, to three in the morning. When he spoke of his family and his desire to work and support them he got very serious. Then soon enough he was laughing and talking again, and wishing us the best of travels. He asked if we would send him a post card from the U.S. when we returned, so he wrote his address for us and we will.

(Updated to add: Dave lost a week’s worth of pictures on a flash card that went bad and this was on it. We’re so sad we can’t show you this guys joyous face.)

90km

It was raining hard when the alarm went off this morning, so we snoozed for a bit before getting up. We went out for breakfast (a different restaurant than last night) and got on the road at about 9:00. It was still sprinkling off and on during the morning, but it was warm enough to feel good.

We heard a lot of monkeys in the trees today early on the ride, and even saw two monkeys riding in the back of a truck! They were hanging on to the bars that hold up the tarp covering, acting like it’s no big deal. I really wonder why that guy has two monkeys in his truck.

The headwinds picked up this afternoon, and we slowed down a bit, but still got to Pekan and had a room by 3:30. That’s a good ending time. We have time to wash up, wash our clothes, write a bit in the old journal and get out for dinner. We’ll look for internet after dinner and if we’re lucky, you’ll see this post soon afterward.

72 km

The ferry picked us up at our dock at 7:30, and after many stops at other docks on the island, we arrived in Mersing around 10:30. We ate breakfast and bought some lunch snacks and headed out at about noon.

The ride was very nice, with light rain a couple times throughout the day and always a breeze. We are facing a headwind every day we head North up the coast, but it’s not too bad when we’re inland a ways and the trees block some of it. We also had lots of hellos, thumbs up and smiles today.

We found a nice hotel in Kuala Rompin for RM35 with air conditioning and a sizable room at the Hotel Kenkana. There are only two budget hotels in town, the other is in the same row of buildings with a larger sign but we didn’t even check in there when we saw this room. The other option is the beach resort, a pretty nice hotel with rooms starting at RM 140. The rooms were nice but we want to stay on a budget unless we have good reason to splurge.

We had dinner next to the hotel on the corner, a typical Malaysian-looking place. We had a nice waiter who answered a couple of our questions about food (and we are finally getting a good variety of things we can order, all super yummy!). Once we ordered Dave noticed there were Osama Bin Laden portraits everywhere. Yes, they were on all the walls, all sizes and poses. These guys were real fans. Uh, wow. That’s probably why, when the waiter asked with a smile where we were from and we answered, he sort of got a blank expression and said “America,” and then walked back to the kitchen. Then I looked around a bit. I was the only woman, and all the men looked very conservative, with hats and everything. They were all busy talking over coffee. But then everyone started getting up to go and all the restaurant staff were putting up chairs, sweeping, cleaning counters and all that. It was just before 7:00 pm. All the places we’ve been to so far are open and bustling until we head back to our hotel for bed and probably long after. This was weird. When the food came, it was good. But we ate quickly because we were the last people left and they were practically mopping us into a corner. OK, folks, we’re leaving!

A note about the people: Malaysia is a Muslim country. We have seen covered and uncovered women, we have seen traditionally dressed men in those little hats and others in Hawaiian shirts. But all of them, so far, have been nothing but kind and friendly. Certainly we’ll see more places like this restaurant, but one-on-one, people treat us really well here.

Today we slept in, read our books through a rain storm, then after eating we went for a swim. This time, we walked down to the pier on the North end of our cove and jumped in there, and swam South to the sandy beach we’ve been getting in and out of.

We covered quite a distance and were in there a long while. It was the most spectacular swimming so far. We saw more kinds of coral and many more fish than before. All different shapes and sizes of fish were darting in and around the coral patches, and we also swam through large schools of tiny fish flashing left and right and all around us. It was amazing. We would point neato things out to each other and dive down to inspect underneath overhanging coral together.

Dave pointed out the first spectacular find: a stingray! It was irridescent, grey/lavendar with blue spots. It was hiding under overhanging coral, but didn’t scare off when we kept going down to look at him. Then I was under the surface looking around and saw a turtle. I shouted, “TURTLE! TURTLE!” and Dave came over to see it too. We held hands and followed as it gracefully and efficiently swam near the bottom. It was heading into the current, the opposite of the way we came, and it was hard to keep up with it. He looked up and back at us a few times, but didn’t seem to mind us tagging along. The shell alone was at least two feet long, so it was pretty big. We were so close we could have made the effort to touch it, but we didn’t want to disturb it. After a while we came up and decided to head back the way we were going. A few minutes later I was under again when I saw a huge fish swim right by! I called to Dave and he barely saw it too. Later we found out from a local that it was a Parrot fish. He told us they are very friendly to divers and won’t hurt people. He did say, though, that if you are under and you die, that about two or three days later they will come back and nibble the bones clean.

We ate an early dinner, then went back out for dessert and juice. Every place here serves fresh-squeezed juice that’s more like a smoothie than just juice. It all tastes amazing, and we have to have some at every dinner.

We’ve decided tomorrow morning we’ll take the morning ferry back to Mersing and head up the coast further.

We woke early this morning to go swimming and had a great time skimming the coral. We see so many different kinds of fish and coral it’s just amazing. All this right under the surface, not very far from shore. We swam for a while, then got out to shower and have a snack. We then decided we’d cycle to the other side of the island. This island is not flat, it’s a big mountain poking out of the ocean. It’s covered in jungle and quite steep. But the guide book showed a path to the other side and we thought we could do it. There is a sidewalk-like path that connects most of the villages on the West side of the island. The main transportation here within and between these villages is scooters, motorcycles and three-wheeled scooters with cargo space. A few people ride bikes. The book made it seem like this kind of path would take us up and over to the other side, so off we went. Looked and looked, exploring each path that went off to the West. We found the electricity plant, the houses where locals live, the school, even a narrow jungle trail that seemed to go in the right direction but was not bikeable. But we couldn’t find that path! We stopped at a bakery to ask directions (and get some ice cream, a donut, and corn pudding) and finally someone came out and told us to head South on the main path and turn at the top of the hill to the left. He said it was steep. Steep! He made exaggerated steep motions with his hand. He looked at our bikes. Steep!

We finished our snacks and headed South. We found the left turn at the top of the hill. We saw it the day before when we were tooling around checking out the villages. We thought that was a driveway or something, because nobody makes roads that steep. Steep!

We switched down into our easiest granny gears and put our heads down and went up. We grunted. We swerved from side to side. And finally, I had to stop. And rest. Steep! Oh my, this is really something. “Who would do this on a bicycle?” I kept thinking. I started again and caught up to Dave resting. We started again. I couldn’t keep that up any longer, the effort just to keep going was making me go anaerobic. The muscles were burning, my lungs were screaming. STEEP!

Dave kept on turning those cranks while I pushes. There is no way I could have done this with my panniers on the bike. We stopped again at some point and I said I needed a few minutes. I was absolutely drenched in sweat, couldn’t catch my breath, and I kept thinking, “What are we DOING going up this steep hill in the MIDDLE OF THE DAY? Who does this? Why?” But then we heard some crashing in the trees and we looked up. Monkeys! Lots of them! We watched as they scrambled around and made their way down the hill and across our view from tree to tree. They were so graceful yet they were crashing and thrashing through those trees. They would stop and nibble on things along the way, chat to each other a bit, and then move on. What a privilege to have seen that. We had caught our breath, so we got on the bikes again and pushed forward. On and on we went like this, pedal for a bit, push over washed out areas or too-steep areas (I did way more pushing than Dave, sheesh.), resting and then doing it again. Finally we made it to the top. But by then I wasn’t at all interested in going down to the other beach, swimming, and then coming back up this nasty, hot, sweaty hill. No! I told Dave to feel free and keep going, really I don’t mind, just give me the key. But he said let’s just see how it looks on the other side, maybe it’s not so steep. So we rode down a tiny little bit, came around a corner and saw that it was steep. We looked at each other and said, yeah, let’s turn around.

So, yes, we did all of that and didn’t finish the goal. We turned around. I think any sane person would have done so way sooner. Going down was kind of scary because of the steepness. My hands were cramping from holding the brake so hard. But before we knew it we were back at that turn off the main path. I mean, really really quickly. We didn’t even go that FAR. It just felt like it. Dave took several readings on the way down with his compass, which has an inclinometer. He determined that the grade of the road was between 15-20%. Mostly on the upper end of that.

When we got back to the cabin we changed into our suits and went for another swim to cool off. It was late in the afternoon, but it was still warm and the water was clear and there were many fish to keep us entertained. We swam for quite a while, and when we were done we were ready for a big dinner. Quite a day.

94 km

We decided we wanted to take the ferry to Pulau Tioman, one of the ten most beautiful islands in the world. It is the tail-end of the monsoon season, so it’s not generally recommended to make the trip, but we wanted to relax for a couple of days and swim in the ocean. So, we bought tickets.

We ate breakfast and then came back to the ferry dock. The boat came in and it looked big enough. They loaded our bikes on the top deck on the front. We stepped down inside the boat and were pleased to see comfortable seats and feel cool air conditioning. As we started I got pretty excited, because the only other boat I’ve been on is a ski boat on a lake and the big car ferries in the Puget Sound. Pretty tame stuff. This was going out on the OCEAN. Wow. The ride was pretty tame because the boat was of a pretty good size, but I was still nervous–mostly about the bikes. I couldn’t see how they would stay up there with all the pounding and swaying. The whole ride took about two hours, and I was relieved to get off. I didn’t get sick, and it was fun at times, but I had a hard time relaxing. Maybe the ride back will be better, though it will be later in the day and likely be rougher.

We found a little cabin (called a chalet here) for 15RM and then went swimming. OH MY GOODNESS, we went swimming in the ocean with goggles. Why didn’t I think of this before? Goggles make all the difference. We swam and swam, looking down and diving down to see all the coral and fish. It was amazing. The visibility was better than we had hoped for with this being monsoon season.

We slept under a fan, with the sea air blowing through the cabin over us and the sound of the tide bringing the sea even closer to us.