Chinese New Year. A time when one of the planet’s largest communities celebrates with their families and friends. A time for reflection, fireworks, food and good times. And waiting. And waiting. And waiting…
What we didn’t realise (and what the freight agent we’d employed in Kuala Lumpur who promised to have our bikes out of customs within 24 hours failed to tell us) was that we’d arrived right smack bang in the middle of the Chinese New Year celebrations. We arrived on a Sunday and booked a hotel right near the airport so that we could get straight down to business on the Monday. Our hearts sank however when Old Mate at the hotel reception told us that because of Chinese New Year, all of Malaysia had a holiday on the Monday. And the Tuesday. Come Monday we took a punt and went to the freight office anyway, but to no avail. Calls went unanswered, and emails sat undelivered on servers.
KL’s Chinatown by night
So two days were spent in KL and we ticked most of Tripadvisor’s top 10 attractions off our list. It was bitter sweet however, as all we really wanted was our bikes. We finally got in touch with somebody on Wednesday morning who told us the bikes would be ready by the afternoon; so we packed our bags immediately and headed back to the airport cargo area. Once we got to the freight forwarders holding area, we meet some very enthusiastic staff who just couldn’t get enough of our bikes! We constantly had an audience of 5-10 blokes who watched and helped us put the bikes back together – we’ve since discovered that our bikes are real head turners here in South East Asia, where small motorbikes and scooters are so common.
KL’s Petronas Towers
KL Bird Park
Behind the waterfall
We were constantly surrounded by people as we put the bikes back together
A happy camper, after boxing and reassembling the bikes
Very happy to see our bikes again, even in their boxes
Very happy to see our bikes again, even in their boxes
It was five o’clock by the time the bikes were reassembled, but we were determined to get as far away from the city as possible. We decided the Cameron Highlands would make some good sightseeing and motorcycling, so we punched the details into the GPS and headed off. We were amazed at just how far we made it too – Malaysia’s road infrastructure is incredible. The speed limit was 110kms/hour the whole way, and nearly all of the traffic sat 10-20kms/hour above this. We made excellent time and were really happy to be on the move.
On the streets of Tapah, Malaysia
The following morning we headed up into the Highlands proper but were thwarted by bad traffic; the Chinese New Year celebrations were still in swing and it seemed that half of KL had come up to the highlands, so once back down the other side we decided to jump back on the expressway and head to Penang Island.
High in the hills of Penang
Riding through a small town in Penang
The view from our hotel room in Penang
With the deadline of our tour through Burma looming on the 20th, we decided to head from Penang straight to the Thai border, which again saw us stuck on the raw side of the Chinese New Year. Literally hundreds of people were queued up to get across the border and with no signs, order or general instruction it was a very trying and time consuming process to get both us and bikes into Thailand. But we eventually made it through and made as fast as we could to our next destination; Koh Lanta.
Riding the streets of Thailand, on our way to Koh Lanta
Bikes and beach. Could be worse!
And this is where we find ourselves now. It’s tough, but we figured we’ve earned it. We’ve stopped for two nights for a break from the road to recharge our batteries (and our cameras!), before we make a big push towards Mae Sot where we’ll cross the border on the 20th to begin our compulsory tour of Burma.
The beach we decided to park ourselves at for the night on Koh Lanta
Very happy to not be wearing our riding gear right now
Yep, Blokes with Cocktails
Sunset from Koh Lanta
Well done guys. The adventure begins.
I hope that’s not a mocktail. Loving the posts Lads.
A pleasure to meet you guys. You exude great positive energy needed for the adventure you’re on. Good luck for the rest of your travels and if you need any help whilst in Thailand, drop me a mail at intoodeep@me.com
Cheers. Matt.
Thanks Matt – your advice for our route from Koh Lanta was spot on! Sincerely very much appreciated. Hopefully we don’t need to call on you for any advice along the road, but thanks for the offer regardless – look after yourself.
D&J
Hi James and Drew, congrats on weathering those early frustrations so well and really making the most of your time since. You sure look relaxed there at Koh Lanta and like biker gods among worshipers there in KL as you rejigged the BMWs. All the best as you continue north towards Burma and beyond and thanks for this marvellous blog; so good to be able to share your marvellous adventure this way ! Cheers, Andrew & Priscilla.
Really enjoying reading your travel stories, Head Turners. Keep up the brilliant writing and riding. Koh Lanta looks like hard work, but we are sure that you will be able to handle it. Thanks for the entertainment. Look after yourselves. Sally-Anne and Tom
Hi Drew and James, glad all is going well now you are on your way. You will always remember Chinese New Year!!
Photos are great, loving your blog
Stay safe xox Mum
Hi Drew, We drove from Penang down to KL via the Cameron Highlands back in 2005. Really lovely places to visit – especially in the hills.
Have a fabulous trip – will enjoy reading about your adventures. I’m sure you will be the focus of attention and kindly scrutiny in many places you will visit.
Laura & Patrick
Great pics , it’s wonderful to share this journey with you both. Love Nancy and Dad