Almost home

Well, past more monkeys and more jungle, past oil palm plantations I made it to Kota Tinggi, about 40 km from Jahor Bahru. I got to stay at a brand new hotel, and so cheap and clean and really good service. I'm now in Jahor Bahru, and bought my ticket home, for July 6th. I have 15 km left to go to get to Singapore. I was going to leave tomorrow, but I will have to stay here one more day to pick up the ticket.
I can't believe I did it.
Till I post again, be good, be happy and have fun

I'm so excited

And also exhausted.
I left for Pekan, and was really looking forward to an easy day. Unfortunately it was not to be. Pekan itself seemed like a pleasant enough town, but.... the hotels were awful (neither had rooms with a bathroom, and they were both upstairs, so I would have to carry the bike up a flight of stairs) So I decided to try to get to Mersing. Well, Mersing was 145 km away and I didn't see the sign until it was almost too late. I could have turned back, but I hate hate hate to do that. Especially for a hotel without a bathroom. I made it to a small small town called Neisai, and they had a very nice motel, with a nice bathroom. The town didn't have a restaurant or cafe, but the room itself was nice. I think it was a fishing/angling place because several of the guests were getting ready near the river docks when I left to begin the journey to Mersing.
It was 100 km. But.... even though it was a bit hilly (ok a lot hilly) it was still very beautiful. The roadside isn't very developed, so although a few times I wanted a cafe for something to drink, most of the time I appreciated the unspoilt coasts and jungles. And. And. And.
I saw wild monkeys. Really. They were all fluffy and cute, but since they had teeth both bigger and sharper than mine, I decided their fluffy cuteness was better appreciated from a distance. I even saw one peeking out at me from the foliage. It was pretty awesome.
I might be able to make it to Jahor Bantu tomorrow. It depends on how I feel in the morning and how the road goes.
Till I post again, be good, be happy and have fun.

hmmm what to do, what to do

I've made it to Kuantan, and am at a cross roads so to speak.(actually I'm literally at a cross roads) _- I could go to Melecca by bus, but that would kinda suck, or I could keep going south on the road I'm on. Both would get me to Jahor Bahru by July 3, and into Singapore by July 4. I'll finish on independence day. I will then have to get my ticket home.
The road has been pretty good, but it didn't rain yesterday. I've decided that rain is a good thing, in that it keeps things cool (the other day it was almost cold). Last night it finally rained but I didn't care much, because I was happily eating curried shrimp.
Good food helps make any problem seem somewhat less severe. Another lesson learned.
I still don't know what I will do when I get "home"
Till I post again, be good, be happy, and have fun

country roads

I was disappointed that the coastal road isn't really very coastal. (although there have been some beautiful exceptions along the way) However, I've changed my mind somewhat. Even without the coast it is beautiful. I'm tired though, and sometimes I can't wait to finish. But then I also am still enjoying myself very much. Sigh.
Actually the road has been very slow due to construction, but the truck and bus drivers are very courteous. Once one even followed at my snails pace until it was safe to pass me- instead of crowding me off the road. I thought that was very cool of him.
Till I post again, be good, be happy, and have fun.

I feel much much better now

I am now perfectly well, and pretty darn good thanks. I have money ( apparently the banks here will not accept certain serial numbers on some US dollars -CB because there were some forgeries, and I am still kinda mad a Thailand, 1st for the bad exchange rate and now for giving me money I can't change. Well, fortunately my hotel let me pay after check-out and I received the money Uncle David sent, so all is well. I am fed, cool and have something interesting to read. What more could a person want
Till I post again, be good, be happy and have fun

Why?Why not

I'm sorry I didn't post for the last couple of days. Since I left Kota Barhu I got a wee bit sick. I won't give the disgusting details, because, well, they are disgusting. I've made it to Kuala Terengganu, and I'm heading south. I was a bit disappointed in the road. It only hugged the coast a little bit. It was still pretty though. I still feel a bit weak, but I had a wonderful dinner at the Chinatown here. It had sweet sausages,something I haven't seen here yet.
till I post again, be good, be happy and have fun.

Not George of the Jungle

I left Jeli early in the morning. I slept amazingly well, considering the jungle at night is NOT a quiet place. After Jeli the jungle rescinded into plantations (pineapple and banana) and then into just lush green valleys. I made it to Manchang in very good time, but the town had only one hotel, and it wasn't very nice at all. (expensive and shared bathroom) Originally I had planned to go to Kampung Raja but I knew I didn't have time, and I didn't know if it would have any hotels, so I decided to go to Kota Bharu even though it is a bit more northerly than I wanted. I'm so glad I did. I found a nice guest house, but it wasn't in the center of town. So the owner's brother drove me into the city center so that I could get some money changed, get on the Internet, do some shopping, go to the central market etc. The man was so nice, he even showed me where the museums were and told me some of the history of the place. He said if I need anything to call, and then when I wanted to pay him, he refused to let me give him "a little for gas". I'm always amazed at the kindness of most people.
Till I post again, be good, be happy, and have fun.

Almost Famous

I stayed one extra night in Gerik, but didn't blog about it because it wasn't special. I ate some very good roti with curry, watched a movie on hbo. But the next day I went to Banding Island. It is a man made island in the middle of a very very large lake. It was beautiful. There were monkeys and fish. I was able to get a lake view room and watched the sunset over the lake. It was just wow. I then set off on Hwy 4 to Jeli. It looks like a town on the map. ... we'll get to that later. Ok the road sometimes needed some tlc, but I wish I had my camera for the elephant crossing signs. Yep apparently elephants do cross the road. And they are wild. I didn't see any, and in a way I'm kinda glad because what would I do if I actually ran into a wild elephant?
The mountains were beautiful, and even when I got caught in the mists myself I still couldn't help but be awestruck. This is some of the wildest most fantastic country I've been to yet. (Laos comes a close second) The jungle sometimes comes right up to the road. Someone said there were tigers, but I don't believe them. I saw some cattle tied up by the road, and nobody would tie up cattle if there were any chance of tigers. There were places on the road where I just had to stop and look around.
I finally reached Jeli, but it is not really a town. It is a loose association of villages, without any hotel or motel. Fortunately one of the people I asked took pity on me. He was in charge of the bungalows they give to workers at the power plant. They had a spare one, and it is pretty (also a bit too big, and it is obvious no one has lived in it for a while, but still it was nice of him to offer it to me. ) I came into the "town" to get some drinks and food, and met a reporter. She is going to put me in the paper on Tuesday or Wednesday. So I'm almost famous
Till I post again, be good, be happy and have fun.
I also met an English teacher, her name is Suhaida and we had a very nice chat.

hurts not so good

Baling was a very very nice town, and now I'm in Garik, another small town. I've left flat long ago. I also cut the burn on my calf with my pedal. I'm not in pain per se, but it doesn't feel that good either. I did, however, have a wonderful lunch/dinner.
Jeli is 124 km away. And there is nothing on the map between here and there. I guess I could take a bus, but.... There is some lake country in the middle that I think should be beautiful. And even though it isn't flat anymore, it is fantastic. I can actually hear the monkeys in the jungle.
I will make sure I get up early tomorrow. Hopefully it won't rain until I get there.
Till I post again, be good, be happy and have fun.

Sing sister sing.

Songs are really starting to go through my head. Unfortunately I can't remember all the words.
Last night I watched Shrek 3, and thought it so-so. Not that bad, but I could have waited. I started out a bit late, but it was ok, I'm still here in Baling pretty early. There are bat caves here.
The road has ceased it's ode to flatness, but the jungles and mountains are gorgeous. And one guy bought me an ice tea (I think he felt bad because I burned myself on the exhaust of a motorcycle) and a woman stopped me on the side of the road, to ask me if she could take my picture for her class, as part of her lesson on strong women.
Yeah, things are more expensive here, but they are also a bit nicer too. One thing I think Malaysia can teach the US is how to live with many different ethnic groups. No one "assimilates" and yet they all work together and get along. The Muslims leave everyone else alone, the Hindus leave everyone else alone, the Christians leave everyone else alone. It seems to work well.
Till I post again, be good, be happy and have fun

It's raining, it's pouring

I'm riding my bike instead of snoring.
I got caught in two rainstorms. (well they weren't really storms, but...) I'm getting ready to cross over to the east coast, but I'll be here a couple of days. Gotta do laundry.
Till I post again, be good, be happy and have fun

Last night

I only chose that title because it is the song playing at the internet cafe. The cafe is in a shopping mall in Alor Setar. Malaysia is still beautiful, I am riding with the call to prayer being broadcast (this is a Muslim country). It sounds mournful. The road is really good so far, very very smooth and flat, but lots to see so it isn't boring. Kangar does indeed shut down pretty early (by 7:00 most things were closed) but there were a couple of pubs and restaurants keeping the darkness at bay.
Till I post again, be good, be happy, and have fun.

May -day

So far Malaysia is beautiful, easy, and has some pretty good road side food. I found out about that from the rainstorm I decided to wait out. I'm in Kangar, about 30 km from the border. I'd be in Alor Setar, but... In Hat Yai there was a major problem with the bike on a bus. I don't understand why Thailand has such a problem with bikes. Bangkok had the same deal. Anyway it set me back a bit.
I had read that western women (that would be me) will have a hard time here because it is mostly conservative Muslim. And I see a lot more headscarves than I do pony-tails. But no one has said anything to me or even looked at me dirty. And most of the comments while on my bike fall into the standard. Whooo whoooo and some form of encouragement, usually accompanied by a thumbs up sign. You can't believe anything you read in some of the guide books.
When we finally got on the charter van (because the bus refused even after I showed them how) I looked around and you know what? I bet it would have been ok to ride the bike. Of course I doubt the radical faction is very visible -- I doubt they wear name tags. Hello, my name is Something and I'll be your terrorist today. But it didn't seem to be dangerous, or scary. And like I said, this town is supposed to have nothing going on, and be hell for western women. I found an interesting market, walked around some, ate ice cream, and haven't been hassled at all.
Till I post again, be good, be happy and have fun.