Today sort of worked as a cycle touring day.  We got up at 5 and left by 6am, when it was just still dark.  It was largely flat riding today – lots of roads where we could see for miles – and some mountain scenery at the side. Roads quiet and beautiful.

We cycled until 98km until about 12.30am, when we arrived at our destination, a town called Chaiya.  It is described as “sleepy” in the Guidebook and I can see why.  But we found a cheap but clean hotel and dived into an air conditioned room (cost £10 for the night) and had a snooze.

At 4pm we went out on our bikes to look at some famous Buddhist wats (i.e. temples and monastic centres) which were hugely impressive and had a contemplative feel about them.  We then did some shopping (sorry for the garish shirt that will come up in future photos), planned the next few days and then had dinner with a fellow cyclist who was staying the same hotel.  We exchanged views on cycling, travelling, life the universe and everything and, perhaps inevitably, on Covid-19.  She had been on the road for 8 months in a variety of places including China.  It was an unexpected and fascinating evening to round off a really excellent day – even if one where there is not a vast amount to report.

The rest of the day can be shown by pictures and videos – far better than words.