December 6, 2016
to Chiang Mai: caffeine and hills
"Sure is nice to have a good cup of coffee" Patrick says. We've been seeing signs for Sabuy D coffee and stop for a cup. Thankfully it's across the road from a huge tourist attraction and hot springs. After months of 3 in 1 nescafe instant coffee, stopping for some foo-foo coffee is a treat.
There were more climbs, short steep climbs than expected today. We stop for a lunch of pad Thai. Just after reaching the high point on the descent, we see a touring cyclist coming up the hill. Tim from the UK, is on his annual 6 months touring, he has been doing this ever since he decided he was not interested in making more money and retired. All along the descent are signs and stalls selling strawberries. Laura and Aaron Beese cycled this route in reverse and in their blog mentioned this stretch of road as "strawberry fields forever." http://www.crazyguyonabike.com/doc/crasiainasia
We finally reach the "flat" part entering the edges of the city. The traffic increases in volume and speed, we stay on the shoulder marked as bike lane though constantly have to weave around obstacles. We stop at a 7-11 for ice cream and chocolate milk.
We turn left from 118 onto 121, the directions to Katie and Jared's house now is 2.5km, the GPS helps us get there with ease. Katie and Jared are warmshowers hosts, but Rachel had been in touch with them through facebook for a while. We will take a couple of days here to run some errands and rest up for the next section.
Our hosts just had their Christmas party because they will be in the US for the real thing. Result is lots of left-overs that we are happy to help them dispose off. Smoked chicken and pulled pork are some of the treats.
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Today's ride: 84 km (52 miles)
Total: 25,743 km (15,986 miles)
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