just across the strait of malacca lies dumai, the port on the indonesian side. with the fast ferry the crossing takes just over two hours. i applied for a visa on arrival as i could not apply for a visa up front without a ticket out of the country. i had a bad time at… Continue reading dumai
Category: people
malacca
malacca became UNESCO world heritage site in 2008 along with georgetown of penang. with a long colonial history, first the portuguese then the dutch, the city has many buildings left from these days in the historic centre. the city draws its charms from that colonial history combined with the influence of the peranakan, a term… Continue reading malacca
the east coast
back on the coast means one less thing to worry about: the shower in the evening. i’d rather be salty from the sea than from my own sweat. i camped again after asking at a nearby restaurant if it would be okay. it turned out to be run by lovely people. i had a tasty… Continue reading the east coast
bicycle pit stop café
for a cup of excellent coffee and maybe a homemade tiramisu cake on the side, siTigun is a wonderful place to visit on a bicycle. created by two-time round the world cyclist tigun wibisana, it has many additions you won’t find in an ordinary cafe. a place to park your bicycle inside for example. classic… Continue reading bicycle pit stop café
the mooncake party
karin had just signed up on couchsurfing and got immediately invited by a member of the penang group, which included an invitation to the mid-autumn party, an annual harvest festival. a widespread folk tale tells about the role the mooncakes played in overthrowing the mongol rulers in china in the 14th century. as group gatherings… Continue reading the mooncake party
the rusty dudes
after more than a year on the road, some parts show heavy wear. and what about your goodbye presents? the badge i got from my bandmate nils: seems the mighty dudes do not agree with too much rain and prefer the sunny side of life!! the worldtourguide is holding up better. it’s even prospering due… Continue reading the rusty dudes
two cyclists and a letter
I had just started cycling the last 60km towards songkhla as a shout from behind woke me finally up. it was adam from australia, cycling since february from england towards his homeland. we cycled together into songkhla and after lunch decided to call it a day. after checking into one of the guesthouses, we went… Continue reading two cyclists and a letter
smile guesthouse
a recommendation from caro and tobi, the smile guesthouse in krabi is the perfect guesthouse. clean, friendly and cheap. the simple but ultra comfortable rooms felt like home soon after i moved in and spread some of my stuff around. it reminded me so much on flatsharing rooms i remember from berlin. plain and yet stylish. the roof terrace is the perfect place… Continue reading smile guesthouse
the killing fields
choeung ek is the best-known from the sites known as the killing fields. right after the entry the commemorative stupa filled with the skulls of the victims takes away all illusions about this place. it is a weird atmosphere as the fields look like a garden or a park. but the pits in the ground where… Continue reading the killing fields
mekong discovery trail
i stayed in strung treng for two days. after the relaxing week on the 4000 islands i was in no condition to get back to normal cycling life immeadiately. i fell asleep before the match between germany and uruguay but was awake for the final. the extra days gave me time to plan my further… Continue reading mekong discovery trail