I wanted to get to the beach today but I simply couldn’t be bothered riding another 100km day. So I thought I’d go to Chanthaburi and have a wander and a look around at whatever tourists things they have.
I only decided this mid morning, so I booked a hotel and that meant I could take my time.
The ride today had some undulations followed by a sweet downhill and a run of 40kms into Chanthaburi. The undulations were very easy and the downhill was absolutely fantastic, but the highlight was the tailwind that kicked in soon after.
There’s something about tailwinds that completely takes your mind away from everything else. You can be hungry, lost, thirsty or dehydrated but if you get a tailwind, you’re immediately happy without a care in the world. It’s like diving into the waves, having an early coffee with a view or watching the Swans win – nothing else matters at that moment in time. This moment.
There’s nothing better than sitting back, riding no hands, tailwind, good road, doing 30km/hr with no effort. These days don’t come often enough 😁
The hotel (Kasemsarn) here is great. The green machine is locked to a gate undercover, out the back, and one guy promised to look after it.
Just down the hill from the hotel is the Riverside community which has a mix of Thai, French and Vietnamese buildings. Further along is the gemstones market which looks decidedly dodgy. There would be hundreds of guys sitting at desks with small trays in front of them, along with magnifying glasses, tweezers, lights etc. They all look like they’re about to tell you that your gems are worthless but for a few dollars, “I’ll take them off your hands”.
I was a little hungry when I first ventured out and walked past a place that mentioned smoothies. Mental note, go back and have a smoothie. On the way back, I did. To say I was looking forward to it was an understatement. But after reading the menu five times, I realised that the place is called “Smooties Bistro”. No Smoothies on this menu. The tricks your brain plays when you are hungry 😁 Deflated, I trudged all the way up to the bridge – without finding a damn Smoothie.
So, went back to Smooties and had a beer overlooking the river. Very nice. Emotionally, I’m almost over the fact that I didn’t get a smoothie this afternoon. But not quite.
I had dinner then ordered desert of watermelon, but it came in the form of a smoothie. 😁😁😁 Whaaat? Very happy John
The outlook here is really nice. Chanthaburi has surprised me in a very positive way. Now, where to tomorrow ???? (The daily question on an unplanned bike tour).