Things haven’t been going so well of late. Perhaps my standards of success are increasing, but doubtless overcrowded towns, failed journeys and heavy rain have all been chipping away at my enjoyment of this trip.
In efforts towards redemption, I have fought hard to find what I want. I’ve tried, for example, to get myself a bike to explore Penang, I’ve tried to reach a nice quiet beach and I’ve tried to see some waterfalls in a National Park. All have ended in failure. My Plan B, invariably, has been to hit the road.
My eventual and overall destination on this leg of my trip is to get to Saigon (Ho Chi Minh) in Vietnam. The road ahead, while difficult, is tangible and can be followed at some pace.
With every disappointment, this road ahead towards greener grass seems more alluring. With alarming frequency I have seen little of a destination aside from its bus stop and a bed. I feel, then, that something must be going wrong when now I am happily whizzing up the Thai East Coast, having bypassed practically all of its enormous offerings, not to mention those of Northern Malaysia which I also bypassed in search of a Thai island paradise.
So where am I going wrong? Am I going too fast? Should I learn to be more patient?
Actually, I don’t think I’m going wrong at all. I didn’t like Cameron Highlands so I left. I didn’t like Georgetown so I left. I didn’t like Surat Thani so I left. I didn’t try anywhere else because I didn’t hear of anywhere else that I wanted to go. Instead, I chose the onward road.
As an independent overland traveller I have a luxury that most don’t; free choice. I have the option to skip on through places I don’t like, saving time for those I do.
For now, I’m happy skipping on. Hopefully soon I’ll find some place that seems worth spending time in.
