January 3, 2020
Thwapping Pineapples
Phon Phisai to Pak Kat
Thwapping Pineapples
Not very far down big highway 212 was a rude awakening for so early in the morning - a steep hill. We stopped to catch our breath and take a drink of water and then realized we were in front of dozens of desert rose plants in pots, big ones. They were the most beautiful desert rose plants I’ve ever seen! Obviously a master gardener had been hard at work and then there he was coming out of his garage/work place inviting us to take a look.
I had already propped my bike on the Click-stand and was getting ready to take photos. He motioned for me to walk among them. He looked proud of his plants as well he should be. I took lots of photos and he went and got two smaller ones that were blooming unusual blossoms. He wanted me to take photos of them. He showed me one large and low plant that he mimed had been full of blossoms. Then he went through photos on his phone and showed me. He was so proud of that display of flowers on one plant that he wanted me to take a photo of his photo on his phone with my phone, which I did.
He seemed like a really nice guy. We couldn’t communicate except that we were speaking the common language of plants. Andrea had come over by this time and he sensed we were gardeners as well. He showed us his favorite ones and another with a most unusual flower. He had some that were more than a meter tall, way taller than any I had ever seen. It was really fun to move around all his plants but there was not nearly enough time to examine each one carefully which each one deserved. The man was a real artist.
On the other side of his garage he showed us some other flowers and vegetables. He plucked two small papayas off his plant and gave them to us. He said they were especially delicious. It was a real treat to communicate with such a person on such a level where words were not all that necessary. As we were about to leave he told us to wait and he went running inside. He returned with two bottles of water for us. He knew what we needed most on our journey. What a great guy, humble to the end, which shows in the photo I took of him.
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4 years ago
We turned down a small road to get nearer the river and mostly to get off big 212. I won’t say it was a mistake to take that road but we found ourselves in the midst of a large sand and gravel operation. We were dodging clay clumps hardened onto the road as well as dodging large trucks hauling rocks, sand and gravel. After an hour and a half we had gone only six or seven miles so we went back out to 212 briefly. We did find another lovely small road near the Mekong. Since we were following the Mekong and the river takes a big jog to the north at that point, we were subjected to the NE wind blowing in our faces.
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Eventually we were back out on 212 again but it was fine. Even though 212 is a busy road it has its good sides especially the wide shoulder and smooth surface. We do have more promise of finding the old time Thai coffee called cafe bolan which we love on 212 as well. We pulled into the market area of a small town called Rattanawapi and got a great iced coffee. As we stood there drinking it I thought I saw a foreign man go by on a motorbike. It’s so rare to see a foreigner that it is immediate conversation for us.
I wanted to look through the market for a papaya so I left Andrea with the bikes at the coffee stand. In the market I didn’t find a papaya but I did bump into that foreigner. He was from Switzerland and was a super nice guy. He said he had lived in the area on a farm for only eight months. His wife (Thai) was there but busy haggling for some flowers. I talked to him for a bit and liked him a lot. He seemed like he was on top of the world just smiling and smiling. He was at least 50 and his wife seemed about the same age. Maybe they had been together a long time in Switzerland until he was able to retire, I don’t know. But he was loving living in Thailand now. I told him that he had probably done the right thing with his life because what I could tell about the area was that people were very friendly and mellow. He agreed.
Back on the road we went through a short section of pineapple stands. We hadn’t had any pineapples on our trip yet so of course we stopped to buy one. Five years ago in this same section of road a woman taught me how to tell if a pineapple is ripe. She thwapped her forefinger against four pineapples and had me listen carefully. Then the fifth one sounded hollow and I said, “That one.” She laughed and basically said that I had passed the test.
The pineapple experience couldn’t have been more different this time. There were two men who came out from a house to see what I wanted. I picked up pineapple after pineapple and thwapped them listening carefully. I looked over at the two men and they were just starring at me blankly, not smiling or anything. They were no fun at all. Andrea thought they were told by the woman of the house that she had to go to the bathroom and to go out there to sell pineapples to the farangs. I bought the biggest one I could find and strapped it on top of my panniers. The men continued to stare.
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4 years ago
4 years ago
Then we rode into Pak Kat, a nice little town. We rode up and down the few downtown streets wishing there was an old hotel. We would have loved to have stayed right downtown because it looked very nice with all the various interesting businesses. But those old hotels don’t seem to exist anymore. Only a few blocks away we found a nice place called the Mekong River Resort - 400 Baht which was the same as a motel.
We got settled and showered and were heading out the door to find food when a man, Didier, was suddenly before us with his bicycle. He was touring Thailand. He had just arrived and was heading to his room but was more than willing to stop and talk. We three talked enthusiastically about cycling in Asia for quite some time.
Didier was a ball of energy, a force of nature. I immediately liked him. He was originally from France but now lives in California. He is a chef and owns both a patisserie/cafe and a catering business in Sebastopol, CA. He was an absolute joy to talk with because he was so alive and interested in many things including cycling. He comes to Asia for three weeks every winter in order to unwind from a lot of pressure with his business. We talked about routes he could take and a lot about previous trips each of us had had. He told us he used to run a lot and one time he ran around the Annapurna Mountain range in Nepal. The Annapurna Trek is a famous trek that circumnavigates the series of high Annapurna peaks. I nearly died hiking it in 1979 but Didier ran it in the year 2000 I think he said. What took me 28 days took him 11. It’s more than 200 miles with the pass at 17,800 feet! Crazy but inspiring.
Anyway it was really fun to talk with Didier. He’s the sort of person I would love to meet again. If ever I am anywhere near his cafe in California I will certainly look him up. You just never know who you will meet when traveling and our bicycle trips seem to be about the people more than equipment or distance per day or anything like that. Didier agreed and said he doesn’t even keep track of distance. He simply unwinds and there is no measure for that.
lovebruce
Today's ride: 32 miles (51 km)
Total: 838 miles (1,349 km)
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4 years ago
4 years ago
I think I'll thwap a pineapple with my third thumb .. on Thursday!
4 years ago