So, Thailand. It’s the most eastern country so far but weirdly enough probably the most similar to the U.K. - and not because of the big things.
I’m pretty sure that its not 37 degrees celsius back home right now (sorry guys) - instead it’s the little things: modern vehicles; the Thai versions of KwikFit and Makro; petrol stations where you can do your food shopping; clean streets; glitzy office buildings, smooth roads with markings, cats eyes and safe driving; shops offering everything you’d expect back home - from big brand tellies through to the deli counter at the local Tesco’s selling BBQ-ed chickens. And Nutella, of course.
All of this comes as a bit of a reverse culture shock, but after 8 months on the road, including 3 months in the former USSR and 3 months in Pakistan, India and Myanmar - I’ll take that!
So where am I at?
Well, Thailand is country number 21. By my maths (kind of forgot to reset the odometer before I left) I’ve covered around 23,000 miles (37,200km)…out of a planned total distance to Sydney of 17,000 miles. Sorry Dad - those extra maths lessons you made me go to never quite worked out.
If you want some even geekier stats (ohhh go on then) the bike has burnt something in the region of 1500 litres of petrol, averaging around 24km/litre (66 MPG). If you can call whatever they put in the tank in Tajikistan ‘petrol’, that is.
I’m on my fifth back-tire, third front-tire and my second front-wheel - I traded the first one in Kyrgyzstan after the crash because I decided I didn’t trust it anymore. I’ve had six punctures and lost two panniers - one full of camping gear (lucky Burmese) and one full of dirty laundry (not so lucky French).
The front sprocket driving the chain was tailor-made in Delhi because I couldn’t get it any other way and the rear wheel bearing is held in somehow that I don’t quite understand, thanks to a group of innovative Russian mechanics in Almaty.
The number plate is currently in three pieces, held together with glue after I reversed into a railing (bad day. Meh). There’s an intermittent oil leak from the crank-case (if it’s not from the head gasket, I don’t care) and the front brakes are distinctly spongy, despite them being bled repeatedly, possibly due to a damaged line, knackered piston/cylinder or it’s seals.
The bike is covered in bumps, scratches, smashed up bodywork, oil-stains and is currently sporting an attractive ‘Burmese red-mud’ colour scheme.
But I love it that way - because it looks frickin’ bad-ass, like an adventure bike SHOULD look. Every mark on it has a story behind it and I'm proud how far we've come. I still don’t get why you’d want a bike of this type to look any other way!
The next 3 weeks will be about chilling out and enjoying riding in a part of the world that’s relatively hassle-free. The north of Thailand is famed amongst the adventure motorbike community for it’s trails and mountain scenery, so I’m looking forward to taking full advantage of that.
After that, I’ll be heading into Laos where - inspired by Antonia Bolingbroke-Kent’s ‘A Short Ride in the Jungle’ (read it, it’s good) - I want to check out what’s left of the Ho Chi Minh trail down into Cambodia, before reaching Bangkok. Vietnam would be on the list and part of me is tempted to have a go at getting my way in as others have done by paying an extra ‘fee’ (technically foreign big bikes aren’t allowed), but TBH I can’t be bothered with the hassle.
But here's the exciting thing - once I reach Bangkok, I'm only a few days away from Kuala Lumpur, and a half-day air freight flight across the pond to Perth. I'm beginning to beleive that I might just actually make to Oz....!