The Thai word for westerners is "falang", which means long or big nose. A rather unflattering term, but probably an interesting observation about what they see as our most prominent and overt feature. Well, if you dish it out, you have to be able to cop it back, so I say fair enough. I really do like the Thai culture though. It is built on a solid foundation of Buddhist tolerance and respect, as well as lack of ego. Sure, this doesn't apply to everyone, and they have some of the same problems we all do, but we could learn a lot from them.
Well, I was pretty much right. It is fast, seriously fast. Faster than I want to go really. However, as the entire country seems to be covered in really heavy smoke, its not like I'm missing out on seeing anything. That is to say, if I was going slower, I would not have seen any more. So I have been concentrating on riding, not looking at panoramic vistas. We have a small group, 2 Aussies, 1 American and me, with a ride leader and support vehicle driver alternating these duties. The routes chosen are picked primarily on how many bends they have, so this is very much a sportsbike type tour. We have covered a lot of distance without making much progress, if I can put it that way. Less adventure, more speed, but a change is a good thing.
Get this, my bike is fitted with a siren and a set of alternating blue and red police flashing lights!! Only in Thailand. Handy things to have, and naturally I have been having heaps of fun with them, mostly at the expense of unsuspecting road users. The bike itself has a short underslung exhaust, with an Arrow muffler, and it doesn't muffle much at all really. The bike has a punchy exhaust note anyway, but the Arrow gives it a nice loud bark, and it is fun to ride, if a little uncomfortable for a guy my height with its low seat. See photos below.
We have been riding for 4 days, basically in a circle. First we headed south from Chiang Mai, then west to the Burmese border, and followed it up to the Golden Triangle region where Burma, Thailand and Laos meet. We have had a boat ride across the Mekong into Laos for some local shopping. We then headed south along the Laotian border on Hwy 1148 to Nan, which is due west of Chaing Mai. Today is a rest day in Nan, so I have time to catch up on things like laundry and blogging. From time to time we cross paths with mass tourism, but most of the time we are on backroads, so I'm happy getting into places where few others go. Our accommodation is very good, and the food is sensational. We are almost totally eating local, and I've only blown my head off with chillie just the once (and I like it hot!). I try not to think too hard about things like kitchen hygiene, que sera, sera, but so far so good.
Generally the roads have been good, although the backroads are frequently narrow and bumpy, often with patches of gravel, so one does need to be on the ball. Traffic has been quite manageable, with the odd scary moment, but it all seems to flow with no fuss, and no aggro either. The Thais seem quite unconcerned about such minor matters as they go about their business.
Well, I was pretty much right. It is fast, seriously fast. Faster than I want to go really. However, as the entire country seems to be covered in really heavy smoke, its not like I'm missing out on seeing anything. That is to say, if I was going slower, I would not have seen any more. So I have been concentrating on riding, not looking at panoramic vistas. We have a small group, 2 Aussies, 1 American and me, with a ride leader and support vehicle driver alternating these duties. The routes chosen are picked primarily on how many bends they have, so this is very much a sportsbike type tour. We have covered a lot of distance without making much progress, if I can put it that way. Less adventure, more speed, but a change is a good thing.
Get this, my bike is fitted with a siren and a set of alternating blue and red police flashing lights!! Only in Thailand. Handy things to have, and naturally I have been having heaps of fun with them, mostly at the expense of unsuspecting road users. The bike itself has a short underslung exhaust, with an Arrow muffler, and it doesn't muffle much at all really. The bike has a punchy exhaust note anyway, but the Arrow gives it a nice loud bark, and it is fun to ride, if a little uncomfortable for a guy my height with its low seat. See photos below.
We have been riding for 4 days, basically in a circle. First we headed south from Chiang Mai, then west to the Burmese border, and followed it up to the Golden Triangle region where Burma, Thailand and Laos meet. We have had a boat ride across the Mekong into Laos for some local shopping. We then headed south along the Laotian border on Hwy 1148 to Nan, which is due west of Chaing Mai. Today is a rest day in Nan, so I have time to catch up on things like laundry and blogging. From time to time we cross paths with mass tourism, but most of the time we are on backroads, so I'm happy getting into places where few others go. Our accommodation is very good, and the food is sensational. We are almost totally eating local, and I've only blown my head off with chillie just the once (and I like it hot!). I try not to think too hard about things like kitchen hygiene, que sera, sera, but so far so good.
Generally the roads have been good, although the backroads are frequently narrow and bumpy, often with patches of gravel, so one does need to be on the ball. Traffic has been quite manageable, with the odd scary moment, but it all seems to flow with no fuss, and no aggro either. The Thais seem quite unconcerned about such minor matters as they go about their business.
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| GOTTA GET A SET OF THESE !! |
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