I'm on my way along the coast to the south of Malaysia. When I stop for a drink somewhere on the way, I don't even get the chance to order something because I'm immediately invited to a table where a man is talking to his phone.
Apparently he's broadcasting live on TikTok and now I'm an unsolicited guest on the air, hahaha. I get a sundae shoved under my nose, but ice cream is really ice here: frozen water with very sweet sauces over it. Not so tasty but this one is free.
The route I drive is not very nice, but the hotel where I stay is even more so. There is a swimming pool in the gigantic garden and the beach is 100 meters away. It is wonderfully quiet: together with about 10 cats I am the only one present. Ideal for updating my blog and YouTube videos because there was hardly any internet on the island and I spent most of the day with my head under water.
The peace does me good, but the lack of people around also makes me a little melancholy. Certainly the fact that I'm already planning my return flight doesn't help. Communication with the company that provides the cargo flight (for my motorcycle) is difficult and everything that needs to be arranged keeps haunting my mind.
The route I drive the next day doesn't make it any better. Many industrial areas, especially of the Petronas oil refinery, with the accompanying ugly residential compounds for the employees. All the same houses in similar streets in an unattractive landscape. But the petrol is super cheap here: € 0.65 and of good quality
I spend the night in the coastal town of Mersing, only 130 km from Singapore. The hotel is very centrally located, with its own parking lot, but is in urgent need of renovation.
The priceless sunset, the cheap Malaysian evening meal and the beach sand at my feet make the day all right again.
