Malaysia and Singapore
Thursday, March 22, 2018
- Three Continents
The border crossing to Malaysia was definitely the easiest in Southeast Asia for me. Just put a stamp in the passport and you can stay in Malaysia for 90 days. After only a few kilometers, however, I had my first shocking experience.
A pickup turned right into my lane. I slowed slowly when I saw him coming. Suddenly a scooter with two people passed me and rammed the pickup at full speed.
The two people were thrown through the air like puppets. Luckily people came from all sides to help. This was a warning to me and I decided to drive carefully here in Malaysia from now on.
First I drove to Kuala Terengganu, where I took a few rest days. Since my departure 13 days ago in Bangkok I have not taken a break anymore. So I was able to restore and refresh my supplies.
The constitution grants religious freedom and makes Malaysia an officially secular state, while Islam is established as a "religion of the federation". What immediately stands out are the many mosques here in Malaysia.
The jurisdiction of Syariah courts is limited to Muslims in terms of marriage, inheritance, divorce, apostasy, religious conversion and custody. You can not marry other believers.
About 61.3% of the population practice Islam, 19.8% Buddhism, 9.2% Christianity, 6.3% Hinduism and 1.3% Confucianism, Taoism and other traditional Chinese religions.
After three days of rest, I climbed back into the saddle and continued cycling along the east coast. This site is much less populated than the west coast. Until Pekan, the area was still densely populated. But soon it was really hilly and you saw more and more palm oil plantations.
Indonesia and Malaysia are the largest palm oil producers in the world and together supply around 90 percent of the oil traded. Today, palm oil is half of our supermarket products: in foods such as margarine, ready-made products, pizza and biscuits. In cosmetics, detergents and candles.
Oil palm trees need to grow in the tropical climate and need a lot of space. The primary rainforest has declined to one-tenth of its original population.
If you want to know more about the Malaysian Timber Mafia (including banks such as UBS, Credit Suisse and Deutsche Bank), I recommend the book
Through the many hills I sweat a lot on the slopes. Shortly after Mersing an insect suddenly flew into my ear. I tried to remove this by hand. But immediately more and more things appeared.
When I realized that I was being attacked by a swarm of bees, it was almost too late. I immediately jumped off the bike, removed the helmet and stopped the first car coming towards me. Immediately, I jumped in, saving me.
Some cars stopped immediately and someone even alerted an ambulance. The paramedics first wanted to take me to the clinic to give me a serum for bee stings. I declined with thanks. From then on, I looked for bees every time I got up, and the stings swelled up a lot in the days that followed.
After 5 days I finally reached the village Pengerang. From there I wanted to take the ferry to Singapore. This service does not exist anymore so I had to cycle through the mountains back to Tanjung Belungkor where I could leave Malaysia by passenger ferry.
The border guards looked a little strange about my machete, but soon let me in. From the Changi Ferry Terminal, a beautiful bike path leads into the city center.
On recommendation I landed at the Tree In Lodge treeinlodge.com, which is run by SK and Yong. Both are passionate cyclists and have given up their old jobs to share their passion with other cyclists.
During my stay in Singapore, I had some great gatherings. For example, I met Eugene here again. Eugene and I met three years ago in Prizren, Kosovo, at the beginning of my journey. A big reunion in the home of Eugene with many interesting stories.
Of course, a visit to the Supertrees in the Gardens by the Bay should not be missed. The 25- to 50-meter-high iconic, tree-like, vertical gardens are decorated with large canopies that provide shade during the day and bring to life the night with an exciting display of light and sound.
Not far away there is the light show
Singapore is a global trading, financial and transportation hub. There are four official languages: English (mother tongue and mother tongue), Malay, Mandarin and Tamil. Worldwide, Singapore is a leader in several sectors of the economy, including a trading center, the world's largest manufacturer of oil rigs and a major hub for ship repairs, as well as the world's leading logistics hub.
During the day, I spent most of my time cleaning. Dusty, my bike and all the bags had to be cleaned from dirt. My next destination is Australia, where you can not import foreign plant parts or soil. The rules are extremely strict.
Since I had never washed my bike and luggage in the last 3 years, this action took almost 4 days. In the meantime, I allowed myself a trip to the Botanical Garden.
The Singapore Botanic Gardens is a 158-year-old tropical garden and the only tropical garden to have been awarded UNESCO World Heritage status. On an area of 82 hectares are more than 10,000 plant species
I really liked the many different plants with their colorful colors. I would recommend anyone visiting the gardens. It is worth it ..
I had a nice reunion at Tree In Lodge again. William from France arrived there one day. We met 6 years ago in Vietnam and China. In the meantime, William went to Singapore with a friend from China (which took 2 years) and has been living in Indonesia for several years. Life is full of surprises!
The time in Singapore flew by. After 2 weeks all my gear was washed, the bike packed and I said goodbye to this great city. I took a taxi to the airport, where I was on a plane to Australia.
Another big chapter in my journey ends with it. I really enjoyed the time in Asia. Now I long for loneliness. Asia is densely populated. I miss lonely areas where I can just be alone.
Malaysia and Singapore were the perfect end to me in Asia. I will definitely come back one day. The diversity of cultures and landscapes makes this continent so fascinating for me.