In late September I posted a note at Crazy Guy on a Bike seeking a cycling partner for a trip to SE Asia. Fortunately for me, a cycle tourist with a tremendous amount of experience in Thailand responded to my request and so I joined Jerry Griswold for a tour in Thailand. This would be my third tour with a 'stranger' as companion. With my previous trips on the Great Divide I joined a group of strangers brought together by the Adventure Cycling Association. Those group of stranger tours work because of the rules adopted by the Adventure Cycling Association for their tours. You know the rules going in and adherence to the rules minimizes conflict. On your own, joining with another stranger, or friend for that matter, requires flexibility and tolerance to avoid breakdown. Or, one person has to lead and the other follow. This second model happily worked quite naturally for my tour with Jerry because Jerry has an incredible amount of experience cycle touring in general and in Thailand in particular and he also had a well thought out tour already planned.
By joining with Jerry I was going on his tour to the places he wanted to go by the routes he chose. For me, it was just great. I normally enjoy planning and worrying about a trip but this time I had the chance to relax and just go with the flow. My preparation involved buying a couple maps and making sure I had my bike and credit card. I never looked at the maps, I got some good use out of my credit card! I didn't really know quite what to expect on this tour, where I would stay, where I would go even, cycling conditions. I did know roughly that we would travel from Bangkok to Phuket Island at approximately 25 miles per day, but I knew nothing more until I met Jerry in Bangkok, the day before we left. I should have looked at the map to figure out that 25 miles per day would not get us from Bangkok to Phuket and surmised that we would need to use powered transport for part of the trip.
Thailand calls itself the Land of Smiles, a title the people richly deserve. My tour with Jerry focused on some of the most famous and luxurious resorts in Thailand. We first visited the famous, infamous, Pattaya beach, then to Ko Samui, and finally Phuket, resurrected from the ruins of the tsunami in 2004. While resorts have little to attract me I could see why people flock to these areas after my visit. Traveling by bicycle from resort to resort makes for a rather schizophrenic vacation. Between resorts were hours of hot and muggy bicycling, sustained by simple meals of phad thai and Gatorade from the Seven Eleven stores along the way, no western faces or english. The resorts are populated with western tourists from Australia, Europe and the USA, surrounded by elaborate luxury and determined to party hearty. It was interesting and sometimes shocking, like going from a hot sauna to a snow bank in winter.
Despite some issues I have enjoyed myself in Thailand and thoroughly enjoyed interacting with the Thai people. I had forgotten how charming and friendly they are, it truly deserves its title as the Land of Smiles. Of course the bike has allowed me to interact in a way with local people that wouldn't happen with an upright bike. Jerry constantly questions why I would choose a bike that can't climb hills as well as an upright bike to which I usually respond by praising the comfort. But, actually I consider the way it gets me in contact with local people from the young to the old as perhaps even more important. On a street lined with shops I can't go 100 meters without needing to wave to people calling out their approval or surprise or incredulity. The little kids stare in stupefied amazement, even the dogs get up the energy on a hot muggy afternoon to give me a couple of barks.
I have also thoroughly enjoyed foot massages, my favorite massage as it includes much of the leg. I have also developed a rather reliable method of getting an actual good massage instead of a come-on for extra services. Some shops actually put "No Sex" on their sign, which is pretty reliable I suppose but not all do so. I have found the best way to get a good massage requires you to first walk out of the bar scene, if one exists. Then walk around till you find a shop with the big boned muscular farm girls with strong hands sitting outside, instead of the pretty petite young ones that most shops put out. It helps if the girls are, well I have to say, homely. I think that, depending on what one wants, it's best to look for a place where you won't be tempted, otherwise you're likely to find that the organ above your shoulders has stopped working and some other part of your body has taken control.
The roads and drivers have been really nice here. The highways have ample shoulders and as importantly are swept clean of debris by the steady flow of motorbikes. Also, the drivers are used to having motorbikes of varying speeds on the road so seem not only very patient but also vigilant. Not once in the entire trip have I felt threatened by the traffic, no one buzzed me or honked at me in irritation. Many motorists have given good natured toots on their horn after passing, especially because of my bike but not one has come blaring up from behind startling me into a swerve.
The food is great. You can always find fried rice with chicken and vegetable or even better yet Phad Thai, the national dish. I have found good food at even little food stalls out on the outskirts of town and have not once gotten sick. I have not eaten fresh foods I could not peel, I try to use some common sense and so far my digestive system works well.
Jerry also kept a diary of the trip, you can read about his experience at The Amazing Sights and Sounds of Thailand by Jerry Griswold.