Start of Malaysian East Coast Ride (17th - 20th April 07)

Day 1:
Kota Bharu to Kuala Besut
Distance - 63km
Average - 18.6 km/h

After nearly 2 weeks off the horse, it was great to get back in the saddle. We have started to get quite attached to our bikes. We often refer to them as 'the kids' when they sleep in our room. We have got fond of buying them little gifts, like the bell with a compass on the top or our new mirrors so we can see traffic without craning our head around. Maybe a GPS could be the next bday pressie from the olds ...........

Anyway, we were looking forward to riding again and also hitting the beaches. We headed to the coast from Kota Bharu and came across our first beach after 20km. To celebrate the fact it was the first time we had seen the sea for 2 months we stopped for a refreshing swim. The water must be over 30 degrees and is crystal clear. Fantastic. The road we are riding along runs for about 700km down the coast. There are beaches aplenty and there is NO-ONE on them, we are usually the only ones swimming. It is quite difficult getting changes under a sarong. But since muslims wear full clothes while swimming we make an effort to not show off our nakedness (ie. bikini and shorts).

The road is dead flat and winds along the coast, under the shade of tropical palms and through small towns. We stayed in Kuala Besut (Kuala = river mouth)the first night and came across a great seafood restaurant right on the waterfront. We had steamed fish with lemongrass and ginger and a malay vegetable curry. The fish was super fresh and we got to pick which one we wanted from a bucket. It is great to be back on the coast and we both really relish being able to go for swims and eat some great seafood.

Fresh fish at Kuala Besut waterfront


Day 2:
Kuala Besut to Penarik
Distance - 62.5km
Average - 17.2km/h

The next day we headed off after our usual breakfast of Roti Canai (indian bread with curry) and Kopi (coffee, either black with sugar, or sweet milk). Roti Canai has to be one of the best foods in the world and could be likened to having toast for breakfast, but there is no comparison. It only cost 0.60sen (NZ 20cents) per peice and we often knock back 2 or 3. It is great getting stuck in local style, with your hands. But make sure not to use your left hand as that is used for number 2's. So there is an art of ripping with your middle fingers while holding it with your thumb and little finger. Then dip it in the curry and ahhhhh. Roti usually only lasts til 10am so there is no roti for sleeping in.

Delicious Breakfast: Roti Canai and Kopi'O


After riding for a while we stopped for lunch at a roadside restaurant, we were joined by a malaysian local doctor and his friend. We got talking to them and after they asked us questions such as our daily budget, the cost of our bikes and our occupations, they offered to buy us lunch. After trying to resist we succumbed and let them. But this is typical of Malaysia. The people are super friendly and are interested in talking. Most people speak some english as science and maths at school are taught in english. We use conversations to try our Bahasa Malay on them and get tips.

After about 60km ,we came across a town called Penarik. We werent planning to stay there but we saw a sign for some chalets with a cyclist on them. So we followed the sign and found these chalets. They were right on the beach and we were the only ones there. They pretty much only cater to cyclists as no transport stops there so cyclists or other tourers are their main clientele. The town has a few hundred people in it and that is the only accommodation. We ended up staying for 2 nights it was so great. The beach was beautiful and once again......we had the whole beach to ourselves. It was a few kilometers long and there was no one else!!! The place was run buy a couple of young guys and they showed us photo albums of other cyclists. They went and bought us fresh fish and we had great Ikan Bakar (bbq fish).

Penarik Beach

View from our chalet at Penarik


Day 4:
Penarik to Kuala Terengannu
Distance - 66km
Average - 18.0 km/h

After a day on the beach we continued our journey and rode another 60km to Kuala Terengganu the state capital of......Terengganu. Apparently it has the largest museum in SE asia. We will definately have to see that!!