I did some speed work while in Malaysia. Not because I'm blistering fast, but because my rear hurt too much to ride slowly and spend extra time in the saddle. It's heat caused sweat softening my "sit zone" that's the culprit. The heat also caused the balls of my feet to hurt, giving me a "hot foot." I had to sag the one day because of me bum - first instance in six months. It rained harder that day than any day since Pennsylvania (the day my shoulder made me have to sag after only 12 miles).
My speed work began on a short day into Malaysia. A ferry ride took us across a muddy river dividing "sinful" Thailand from Moslem Malaysia. At the top of the ferry ramp was a banner welcoming Odyssey2000 riders to Malaysia. We had a 25km police escort on a flat route to the hotel. They stopped traffic so we could run red lights at speed.
Our first night in Malaysia was in a 45-DAY old Marriott Renaissance hotel. Connected to the hotel is a shopping mall. The most popular ice cream flavor sold there is sweet corn ice cream. It tasted just like buttered sweet corn and even had kernels in it. Another booth sells cups of steamed sweet corn with a little butter, milk and salt for $.50.
Most of the riding in Malaysia was fairly flat. This was a good thing. There wasn't much in the way of scenery and almost daily rains. When it wasn't raining I got wet anyway from sweat.
The people were very friendly. Some were jerks. The Moslem women are covered head to foot exposing only their faces. Too many of the women on Odyssey were groped or subjected to rude gestures by men and boys.
We had more presentations by government officials in Malaysia than any country since South Africa. We stayed in a lot of inexpensive luxury hotels and resorts with huge curving swimming pools, bars that charged as much for beer as places in Norway (remember Malaysia is Muslim), flow & temperature controllable showers, and air conditioning.
The roadkill was different in SE Asia. Dead snakes. Large dead snakes. Very large poisonous dead snake. At least most of them were dead. That's why there's no camping in SE Asia. And why when nature calls, cyclists look for dirt paths rather than walking through tall grass or through bushes.
Singapore is like a low rise version of Hong Kong only cleaner and without the great bargains, just mini mall after mini mall with Christmas decorations and oriental elves. I was glad I was one of the few who only had one day to spend there as I had been booked on the first flight to Christchurch, New Zealand, via a 12-hour layover from 7am-7pm in Sydney, Australia.That's when I finally got the chance to see, photograph, get snapshots and take pictures of the Sydney Opera House, and see live kangaroos (as opposed to road kill) in the zoo.
Because the majority of participants were NOT going on with Odyssey2000� to New Zealand, we had a party in Singapore. It started with a fashion show. Most of the models showed outfits they purchased this year. The final three "models" wore their helmets as jock straps and nothing else. When they turned around their bare cheeks had "O" "2" "K" on them. The best part of the show was the surprised look on the face of the girlfriend of one of the "models."
The party also included a performance by the Odyssey Choir. They did a repeat performance of their hit, "There Must Be 50 Ways to Flush a Toilet." They sang a medley of songs indicative of the places we traveled. Finally, they led us in a rendition of Auld Lang Syne. With a few people teary eyed, we then watched the third of the Odyssey2000� videos covering Washington D.C. to Norway.
After the video, it was time to say goodbye. Some of the riders and staff are people I will never see again. Some riders took it very hard. Fortunately, one rider is setting up a website bulletin board so we'll be able to keep in touch through cyberspace.
Keeping the rubber down and the spirits high,
Bruce