November 13, 2012
The Eagle Ranch was quite the place to stay. Looking around it was hard to believe this was Malaysia. On the way out we took lots of pictures. There had been a big rain storm over night and the roads were still wet. Today was a holiday. The big Deepavali festival was starting and all along the route people were lighting fireworks. We saw large tents being set up for evening celebrations. We were headed for the coast and, eventually, we came to the ocean. There is something really special about riding along the water. For one thing, the views were terrific.
A young man flagged us down asking us to stop for a photo. Khalib lives in a small village a few hours drive north of Kuala Lumpur. He invited us to stay at his house when we get there. He took lots of pictures and then told us about his trip by bike around the world. He really enjoyed traveling through the US even though everyone thought he was Mexican and regularly spoke Spanish to him. We exchanged information and I hope it will work out to stay with him.
We meandered along the coast and stopped in Port Dickson for lunch trying to decide what to do. We had only gone about 20 miles at this point but there aren't many hotels within another 20 miles. Kathryn was game to keep going. I wasn't so sure. The skies were looking like a storm was brewing and I didn't want to get caught. I expressed concern and Kathryn thought the storm would go elsewhere. Even though I didn't like the idea, we started riding out of town. As we rode the skies got darker and darker and soon we were riding in the rain. At first the rain cooled me off and it felt good. And then the rain turned into a deluge. And then it was a deluge with lightning and thunder. I was beyond socked to the bone. The road was a river of water and it was difficult to see. This didn't seem like a safe place to be at all. The storm lasted about an hour and we were still a good 10 miles from any accommodation.
At the junction for the turn to Kuala Lumpur we asked about a hotel. There were 2 options. Continue into KL for 20 kms or turn toward the coast for 9 km. I was ready to get off the road and chose the beach route. We would stop at fruit stall vendors and ask for directions and they would point us down the road. Eventually we found Bagan Lalong and many resorts. All the resorts are very busy with the Deepavali holidays. This is a Hindu Indian holiday and I was surprised by how many Indians live in Malaysia.We ended up at the Camar Laut resort for $62. Even though this was expensive, boy did it feel good to find a place to land and get out of the wet clothes.
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