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Published: March 1st 2007
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Rory practising Safe-Sex
Meeting up with Rory again in Ranong. He's decided that this is the safest-sex you can get in Thailand! Day 272, 27th February
Ta Hong - Chumphon - Isthmus of Kra - Khao Fachi
We awoke at sunrise to a breakfast our Thai hosts had made us. The kids were vying for attention, so I showed them the “Severed-Thumb” trick which both freaked them out and amazed them. After eating, we said thanks to Jatupon, took some pics, promised to send them from home, and left at eight.
Ranong was well within our capabilities today, but it was not to be. Thirty miles south near Chumphon the road headed west across The Isthmus of Kra to the west side of Thailand. I love that name, The Isthmus of Kra. It’s kinda magical and wouldn’t be out of place in a Tolkein book. “Thraleodor the Brave raced over The Isthmus of Kra on Kraithcholde, his Grey mare, to avenge the sacking of the hilltop fortress of Mynthdl-Rachlete in the Mountains of Glop”. Hmmm… Anahow, we’d been wondering just how hilly this road would be, but it was no probs. Just a mild climb of a few hundred feet.
Stephane didn’t really want to make Ranong today, I get the feeling that he doesn’t really want to meet
Rory's Free-Camp
Meeting up with Rory again in Ranong. He\'s decided that this is the safest-sex you can get in Thailand! up with the other dudes - I know Rory will probably be there. So, he had a problem with his chain which ate up over an hour. I cycled ahead and discovered the first king’s signature engraved on a rock at a memorial site. There was a strip of railway track nearby with no explanation as to what it represented. Maybe a train line crossed the isthmus at sometime in the past.
Stephane caught up with me only to have a puncture! One stupid problem I have is that since being with Stephane, I have no pump in case I have a puncture. I blew my old pump up in China trying to use it as a makeshift mortar in our firework wars, and have been without one ever since. I’ve tried to buy a new small western-style one, but here you can only buy those big metal two-foot-high ones with a collapsable stand and big wooden grips - like the ones you used to have in the boot of an old car. That’s no good, 2 extra kilos of metal. So, I need to keep Stephane in my sights.
When we set off again, we arrived at
Rory's elephant adventure
Apparently, on the way down to Ranong, Rory camped at an elephant training centre and got free elephant rides. the river that forms the border with Myanmar in no time at all. There was even a monument with a sign at the riverbank proclaiming, “Union of Myanmar 100 metres”. You could clearly see huts with people going about there daily chores on the opposite riverbank.
We continued south and it became obvious that we wouldn’t make Ranong today. Just a bit further south before we camped, there was a sign for Phra Kayang Caves, 1 km. We decided to investigate and were rewarded by an amazing cave complex, lit up, and full of bats and Buddhas. It was free to enter this magical place and there was a precarious walkway up some crumbling steps. It was a big hollow limestone hill, like a volcano, and as we pulled our way to the top using the rope we looked out on what can only be described as a kind of Lost-World! Back at the bottom, we followed an even more precarious pathway around the limestone crags at sea-level which led us to no-where, except between rocks and mangrove swamps full of mosquitoes and God knows what else lurking in the waters. As it became dusk we saw on some
Isthmus of Kra
Cycling from ocean to ocean in one day! "The Isthmus of Kra" sounds like one of those magical places, straight from one of those fantasy tales... mud flats lots of multi-coloured crabs and hopping land-fish - weird!
We got on our bikes and went a short distance before setting up our tents in some thick jungle as night fell and the night creatures started their serenade. By looking at my map, I calculate that we are 20 miles north of Ranong, I plan to spent a couple of days there and to do a run over to Burma so that I can get an extra 30 days entry permit for Thailand.
Total Miles: 12391.23 Todays Miles: 81.15 Average speed: 12.6 Time on bike: 6:23
Day 273, 28th February
Khao Fachi - Ranong
We were packed and on the road for seven. But didn’t arrive in Ranong till eleven! Twenty miles have never taken so long. Perhaps, when I said to Stephane “We may catch up with the others in Ranong if we get there early”, it slowed him down. I should of sped on, I don’t know why I didn’t?
Anyway, Rory was there in a café when we arrived in the town centre, he was just about to leave. It was great to see the guy again and
Isthmus of Kra 2
Flowing into the Andaman Sea, Burma was less than 100 metres from the road in places. we swapped stories over several cold beers in the shade. There was news about Tobes and Scott. Tobes has cycled all the way from Bangkok alone to Krabi to meet with friends, and Scott in doing some diving on the Surin Islands in the Andaman Sea. Rory then decided to stay another night in Ranong.
The first thing I did with Rory after the berrs, was to look for a new pump for my bike so that I wasn’t dependent on Stephane. We miraculously found one! Then I checked the internet and found some sweet little emails from Kathryn.
The others guys have been to Myanmar to get their visa extensions, I think I’ll do that tomorrow. Stephane isn’t going to bother, I think he’ll regret that somehow unless he leaves Thailand before the 9th March.
Later on, we hooked up with an American guy working for the World Bank. His name’s John and tomorrow he’s off to Myanmar on a fact-finding mission to see about how to spend money best on that country. His says there’s a lot of opposition to giving money to that country, and even that some people look down on tourists who
Funny Pic
Another weird pic from the inside cover of my cheap journal. go there. Argument is that the money goes directly to the military government and is not passed down to the people. I suppose if it was such a great human rights problem, then the American military could go in and change the regime for the better if they so wished - they did it with Milosovich, and I suppose they’ll try and find some excuse to do it with Saddam Hussain or Kim Jong-Il? Personally, I have no problems visiting military dictatorships and corrupt regimes - if we all didn’t go to these places the people would have nothing to smile about. At least the people see something of the outside world in a tourist, and, I suppose, feel some hope. Cos we tell the tales and show the pics back at home don’t we? Surely this can only be positive. And, I bought South African apples during the eighties! Go on - kick me!
Total Miles: 12413.17 Todays Miles: 21.94 Average speed: 11.2 Time on bike: 1:57
PS: Hey Jackie! I think you are my number one fan - thanks for all your nice comments. If it wasn't for you I would have given up writing this journal months ago. Would love to know how your trip went off in Thailand last month? ANDY
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the other "Jackie" :)
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Keep them coming :)
Still enjoying reading...dont' even think of not finishing this! I eagerly await the next installment.