11. Almost, but not quite, in Port Dickson

I needed to do some practical stuff before leaving Melaka so I asked around at the hostel. Howard promised me to take me to a good bike shop later and I went out to do my laundry. When I reached the appointed place it was another guesthouse, locked, and nobody answering the door. As I waited, thinking about what to do, a man walks up to me with a suspicious look on his face. I explained my mission and he asked “Did Howard send you?”. As I acknowledged he replied “Fuck Howard”, and let me in. He guided me to his washing machine and told me to use it. Sure, why not.

At the bicycle store I finally got spares. I also adjusted my handlebar as it hasn’t been entirely comfortable and I got a pair of shiny, purple and absolutely gorgeous bullhorns.

Howard and Sam followed me out of Melaka to point me in the right direction and we said goodbye.

I was riding through a nature preserve and, beautiful as it was, it made me realise that once again I had missed a turn somewhere and this time there was no choice but to turn back. I cycled for a while looking for the road, I couldn’t remember passing any, when I stopped at a fruit stand. It turns out the crossing I am trying to find is after the preserve, not before, so I had to ride the same road for the third time. It annoyed me a little.

A monkey crossing the road cheered me up again and when I stopped at a gas-station for some soda and a Mars bar I was told a group of cyclists recently passed. The mood was recovering and I happily unwrapped my candy when hundreds of red little ants crawled out of it.

I caught up with the cyclists a little later and we had some ice tea. They were five cyclists coming from Estonia and riding from Singapore to Langkawi. I biked with them for a couple of kilometres but they were too slow for my taste, so I finished my cigarette, said “See you later” and sped off.

I passed the Port Dickson Hospital then one luxury beach resort after another looking for something resembling a city. Suddenly all civilization ended and I was riding with the beach on my left and a forest on the right with nothing in front of me. Is this really it, the beautiful paradise I’ve been told about? A bunch of resorts? I checked my stamp-sized map I bought in Johor Bahru and sure enough, I had passed Port Dickson. I really wanted to continue but didn’t know where so once again I turned around and checked in to the last resort I just rode by. I paid what it costs to stay in the cheapest room in a Malaysian luxury hotel and became even more annoyed when a place like this only has Wi-Fi in the lobby! I went to my room, opened the door, and my mood improved again. I guess I can stay for one night I thought when the two-room suite with waterfront balcony revealed itself.

I had an amazing pepper steak practically right at the beach, watching the sunset while talking to the waiters, who all thought I was completely mad. The dinner alone set me back more than the entire three days in Melaka, but it was a great steak. It came from the good part of the cow, I was told.

After dinner I took the computer down to the lobby to Google a bit and it turns out I had not yet reached Port Dickson! I cursed myself for not doing proper research and I think that maybe, just maybe, I should get some decent maps.

Tomorrow I will get out of this hellhole as soon as possible. Right after a swim in the pool.

Distance:
78 km from Melaka almost all the way to Port Dickson, including biking back and forth.
Total: 373 km.

Howard and Sam guiding me out of Melaka.


Other riders.


Lonely dinner with a view.



Timelapse from balcony.

Comments

  1. The mood was recovering and I happily unwrapped my candy when hundreds of red little ants crawled out of it.

    Låter inte nice jag hade vänt hem igen!

    En karta kan du få av mig

    A................ ... ..
    . ...
    ..............B

    eller

    ..... ..... ......
    ..... .... .....
    ..... ..... ......

    sträcken får du dra själv lycka till

    ReplyDelete
  2. Glad you didn´t get sick from that cold/leftover chicken you had the other day. You deserve a nice peppersteak :D
    Love the idea of a swim in the pool, sounds really nice! Wonder how that luxury hotel looks like?

    /CC

    ReplyDelete
  3. Daniel: Tack! Jag tror att dina kartor är bättre än mina.

    CC: Check your mail in an hour.

    ReplyDelete
  4. "who all thought I was completely mad."

    Oh! So they thought?

    /Tobbe

    Btw! Excellent progress, and keep up the good work with updating the blog, i f5 it atleast twice a day :)

    ReplyDelete
  5. Keep up the good work. Loving it. Du bringar så mycket glädje till oss i Svenssonkarusellen här hemma!
    Jag var på AW igår med goda vänner (Ola o Maria m fl) och spenderar dagen med att tvätta och gå promenad i det väldigt väldigt gråvädriga Malmö.
    Din blogg är en stor ljuspunkt i tillvaron!
    Kramis!

    ReplyDelete
  6. bild på cykeln hade varit trevligt - bullhorns!? Hur går skäggodlandet - kanske krävs separat blogg för den utvecklingen ha ha!

    ReplyDelete
  7. Imponerande läsning Anders!
    Följer dina upplevelser med spänning, man blir ju lite sugen på värme o palmer när man läser och ser på dina bilder.

    Stefan T.

    ReplyDelete

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