1 February 2009, Chiang Khong, Thailand

Today was another good day for our final cycling day in Thailand. Fast and flat for the first 30km or so, then we had some stiff climbs – mostly rolling as we followed the line of the Mekong to the border town of Chiang Khong.

We took our time with plenty of stops along the way to enjoy the views of the river, see temples, stop for snacks and shelter from the sun. The heat is high during the middle of the day – upper 30s I believe. We reckon that as we head further South in a week or so, we’ll have to start our days earlier, and end them sooner and simply relax in the shade, just as we did in the final stages of the Pyrenees.

The route was reasonably rural today, but the houses along the way are all large timber affairs high up on stilts, with living areas below. There didn’t seem to be much in the way of farming or commerce, so I’m not sure how these people make their money, but they’re not poor. Perhaps housing is very cheap, but even still, I am not sure how the people living in this area make their living. There are farmed fields, but these don’t seem to be the homes of farmers.

The river itself is wide, muddy and fast flowing, with some little outcrops of sand and stone dotted down its length. We have seen a few long tailed boats and fishermen, but other than that, it’s an incredibly quiet stretch of river, and the roads were also remarkably quiet and peaceful. It prompted a conversation about India and the problem of the horns – I remain horrified at the degree of noise pollution that the Indians themselves impose on their own communities. Certainly, the use of the horn has become a cultural thing, but it is entirely in the hands of the people to change it. It is not something imposed by the government, a result of the haves v have nots, religion or anything else. It is pure and simple thoughtless destruction of the environment with noise. Being in such a peaceful and quiet place as Thailand, makes India even harder to understand.

We arrived in Chiang Khong to find a sleepy back packer haven complete with several very low key guest houses along the Mekong and 2 or 3 bars serving bigger portions of really good Thai food at good prices, beer, and movies in the evening. With no wifi yet, we checked emails and then went off for supper and movie. We struck lucky in town finding a bicycle shop that sells some chain pins that Andrew has been after for some time – his chain has broken several times and he has used up all but 1 of his supply of chain pins. A stroke of luck! We’ve been surprised at how many local cyclists we’ve seen out for rides usually in the late afternoon. They are ‘leisure’ cyclists rather than using bikes simply as transport. The cycle shop owner told us that they have a cycling club here and most members have 2 bikes – a road bike and a mountain bike. My goodness – Thailand is a long way on from countries like Nepal and India!

So – some closing thoughts on Thailand:
Thailand has been like a holiday for us – great cycle touring through lovely countryside on good roads. Lovely friendly people, most of whom have a few words of English that helps everything along. This part of the region seems to be a hotch potch of tribes and nationalities – a strong Chinese presence, the hill tribe peoples and more – many different faces and also body shapes. For the first time today we have seen podgy people in Thailand (other than tourists!).
The food can be sensational, although we have had a few duff meals, portions tend to be small, breakfast is not my cup of tea (tends to be treated just like any other meal, or involve a sort of noodle soup with plenty of offal) and unless real caution is used, it can become expensive.
Accommodation is high quality and usually ok for price, though not significantly cheap – we have never paid less than ₤5 a night here.

Most interesting though has been the comparison with the other countries that we have visited so far. If we exclude China from the equation, this is clearly an economy on the up – there are more cars (almost exclusively new-looking pick ups) than any other country. The youth all whiz around on smart mopeds, not crappy bicycles. The cyclists we see are leisure cyclists. Everyone is clean and tidy and very well dressed and trendy. Sanitation is superb, water is all bottled, electricity is never an issue. There are ATMs everywhere, supermarkets and restaurants and hotels. It’s a modern country with all the facilities and trappings of the modern world which has made it an easy place for us to be.

Tomorrow we head to Laos and, by all accounts, things will change. Many villages are very poor and have little or no electricity. But even there it sounds like things are changing – until 2 years ago there was just one internationally linked ATM in Laos – now there are several, albeit only in the 2 major cities. We’re excited to be getting off the beaten track again.

As we’ve cycled now for 5 days on the trot and feel in great shape – better than ever in fact – we want to keep it that way, so with 7 days of really tough cycling ahead to reach Luang Prabang, we have decided to take a day off the bikes tomorrow and simply mosey over to Laos and stay the night on the other side of the river, before heading off into the wilderness the next day. That way, we should keep ourselves in good shape.

We’re starting to work out a plan for the last few months that we have. We think that we need just 2 months for Laos, Cambodia and Vietnam. That leaves us with up to 6 weeks for Borneo and beyond, which is actually quite a lot! Time is starting to slip by more quickly somehow and the end is more visible – which is a horrifying and depressing thought. More than ever we need to savour every second of this experience and to enjoy living in the moment as much as we possibly can. All too soon we will be looking back on this time with memories only.