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7 Mar 2018
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From here Faizal drove us to Low Yat Plaza for lunch at the “famous” Nasi Ayam Chee Meng restaurant for Malaysian “chicken and rice”and then some electronic shopping in the 8 story Low Yat. This is the first place we could find reasonably priced and legitimate items we needed to replace like memory cards, external back up memory, and camera batteries.
 Malaysia-81 by Sara & Daniel Pedersen, on Flickr
We spent all evening sorting out all our gear and cleaning everything to ensure it passes thru inspection for New Zealand. There can be no visible dirt or sand.
 Malaysia-97 by Sara & Daniel Pedersen, on Flickr
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7 Mar 2018
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Contributing Member
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Today we were slow getting out of the hotel and we slept in bit and then had an issue getting out of the parking garage until after 945. We had paid a paid ticket from the hotel, but when we got down 4 levels they wanted 2 tickets. We also got stuck in some traffic, but still managed to get the bikes and luggage washed and get 22 km across town to the mechanic only 5 minutes late at just after 11.
 Screen Shot 2018-02-19 at 20.59.31 by Sara & Daniel Pedersen, on Flickr
 IMG_1602 by Sara & Daniel Pedersen, on Flickr
 IMG_1603 by Sara & Daniel Pedersen, on Flickr
Faizal has arranged for our service at his mechanic Motowerks. We have ordered all the parts we need here (chains/sprockets….). We will also have valve check, oil and filter change, wheel and steering head bearing change, spark plugs, properly fix the rock hole in the oil pan on the 650 that we bodged with quick steel in Peru in 2014, and new Beemer buddies. We have had a bit of an issue with warm starts and think the valves are too tight especially onto 650. We have not been able to get the oil filter off the 650 since Tblisi where the mechanic “helper” used a torque wrench to put it on when we were not looking.
 IMG_1621 by Sara & Daniel Pedersen, on Flickr
We also had the suits to deal with today, but dumped the very smelly bags onto Faizal! The bikes will also be detailed here for inspection quality cleaning.
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7 Mar 2018
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Contributing Member
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Now we had to drive 61 km south to the Cargo terminal to discuss the shipping with Faizal’s agent. We have found out that the first estimate for Andy’s bike is it will cost 2000 Euros to Munich!! OUCH. We are really hoping for 1500 USD per bike to Auckland. The agent took our info and we had measured the bikes….within 30 minutes he called us to say it would be 900$ US each!! (or not) The best part this is not crated and no pallet, but roll on roll off as is on Malaysian Airlines! That means we can just ride away from the Airport on arrival. We are flying 16 days from now on Dec 29 and the bikes ship Dec 31. This means we can pick them up Jan 2 with no storage penalty. ( or so we thought). More good news also is the latest estimate for Andy it is down to 1500 E. Dealing with shipping the bike is stressful, confusing, constantly changing, and expensive.
 Screen Shot 2018-02-19 at 21.00.29 by Sara & Daniel Pedersen, on Flickr
 IMG_1607 by Sara & Daniel Pedersen, on Flickr
 IMG_1609 by Sara & Daniel Pedersen, on Flickr
 Malaysia-107 by Sara & Daniel Pedersen, on Flickr
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7 Mar 2018
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We are waiting so long to go to NZ because the flight price for us is half if we go after Christmas. The money we “ saved” we will use to fly to Borcay Philippines to the kite surfing Mecca!
On our day off we decided to visit the Batu caves 25 km north of the city. The cave is one of the most popular Hindu shrines outside India, and is dedicated to Lord Murugan. This is pretty easy to access as you can walk 600m to the metro station and take the train 2 stops to KL Sentral from here you take the commuter train 25 min to the end of the line. The caves are all in a limestone formation just across the parking lot from the station. The first cave you access from nearest the station is Ramayana Cave. There are certainly a lot of monkeys here despite the ‘do not feed the monkeys” signs.
 Screen Shot 2018-02-19 at 21.02.29 by Sara & Daniel Pedersen, on Flickr
“No cave at Batu is more spectacularly embellished than the Ramayana Cave, which boasts psychedelic dioramas of the Indian epic Ramayana.”
 IMG_1630 by Sara & Daniel Pedersen, on Flickr
 IMG_1631 by Sara & Daniel Pedersen, on Flickr
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7 Mar 2018
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You keep walking another 100m and you will see the huge golden statue of Lord Murugan and the 272 steps to the cave. There are more aggressive and larger monkeys here on the stairs that prey on unsuspecting tourists struggling up and down the steep steps. Never carry a plastic bag near a monkey they will steal it to see if there is food in it. You also might be asked to carry a bucket of cement or a few bricks up the stairs to aid the workers in the construction of a new temple in the large cathedral cave.
 IMG_1637 by Sara & Daniel Pedersen, on Flickr
 IMG_1641 by Sara & Daniel Pedersen, on Flickr
 IMG_1645 by Sara & Daniel Pedersen, on Flickr
 IMG_1646 by Sara & Daniel Pedersen, on Flickr
 IMG_1647 by Sara & Daniel Pedersen, on Flickr
 IMG_1649 by Sara & Daniel Pedersen, on Flickr
 IMG_1650 by Sara & Daniel Pedersen, on Flickr
 IMG_1651 by Sara & Daniel Pedersen, on Flickr
 IMG_1657 by Sara & Daniel Pedersen, on Flickr
https://youtu.be/8qeySGN6jtg
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7 Mar 2018
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7 Mar 2018
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The trip to Boracay is a bit of a jaunt.
 Screen Shot 2017-12-15 at 17.54.49 by Sara & Daniel Pedersen, on Flickr
We left the hotel at 730 and walked 600m to the subway, took this 2 stops to KL “Sentral" station, and then boarded the KLIA express train for the 30 min ride to KLIA 2. Here you have to walk 15 min to the gates, but first you must exit Malaysian immigration and go thru customs X-ray inspection. The real security screening is just before the gate area.
Our flight was 45 min late and very turbulent for most of the 4 hours to Kalibo Philippines on Panay island. Here you clear immigration and then customs after filling out all the appropriate forms. Next you exit the airport and are inundated with touts, which is why we had the hotel prearrange our transfer.
 Screen Shot 2017-12-15 at 17.57.04 by Sara & Daniel Pedersen, on Flickr
We went to the west coast taxi desk and were given our tickets and taken to a very new luxury bus for the 2 hour/68 km drive (big bus, narrow road, lots of traffic, slow moving moto- taxis) to the ferry dock at Caticlan Jetty Port (mad house of traffic and confusion), then the 1.8 km high speed boat ride to the Cagban Jetty Port and finally the 4.5 km mini van ride to the apartment we had rented for the 12 days here.
 Screen Shot 2017-12-15 at 17.57.27 by Sara & Daniel Pedersen, on Flickr
There is a typhoon expected here in 2 days time, but that left at least one day for some great kiting. The island is only 800 m wide here and it is windy with kiting on one side and calm with a beautiful white sand beach on the other.
 IMG_1690 by Sara & Daniel Pedersen, on Flickr
 Boracay-25 by Sara & Daniel Pedersen, on Flickr
 Boracay-22 by Sara & Daniel Pedersen, on Flickr
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7 Mar 2018
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7 Mar 2018
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Contributing Member
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7 Mar 2018
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Contributing Member
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We have to head back to KL and it is an all day affair and we left the hotel at 1030 am. First we are driven in a mini van to the ferry dock and we enter the secure ferry dock building and wait for our boat. The fast ferry holds about 30 people and takes about 15 min to cross the channel.
The bus stop is just outside the ferry terminal and it is a very hot and humid 45 min to wait. The air-conditioned bus ride is just about 2 hours to the Kalibo airport. Our plane is late, which is apparently the norm for this flight and is now an hour late. It is chaos at the airport as there are 3 flights to China leaving at the same time.
You have to line up to pay the tourist exit fee of 15 USD per person and then line up in a massive crowd that is not cueing, but funneling to get your fee ticket checked and then enter a roped off line to get your passport stamp. Last of course is a line for security. We had a pretty turbulent 4 hour flight and arrived back to KL and to the airport hotel just after 2130.
 IMG_1726 by Sara & Daniel Pedersen, on Flickr
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8 Mar 2018
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Today we need to get the bikes sorted to fly and we got a Grab cab for the 22 km drive back to Motowerks. Here the service was done (or so we thought), except the oil filter issue. The shop guys had all the plastics off for a super clean. This left some time for us to get some lunch and run some errands. Nearly every time we got back in the car Dan made for the left “passenger” seat.
Screen Shot 2018-02-19 at 20.59.31 by Sara & Daniel Pedersen, on Flickr
 Malaysia-91 by Sara & Daniel Pedersen, on Flickr
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8 Mar 2018
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We headed over to Faizal’s house for some rest before meeting the Swede downtown for some tapas and then a visit to the Whisky bar KL.
 IMG_2038 by Sara & Daniel Pedersen, on Flickr
 IMG_2043 by Sara & Daniel Pedersen, on Flickr
 IMG_2042 by Sara & Daniel Pedersen, on Flickr
After the fact we found a number of things were not done or were not done properly at Motowerk. If the small stuff was messed up then what about the valves!!! The 650 still seems to have a stutter on start, but it is too late now we will have to deal with this in NZ.
We also found out today that despite the promise of a booking on Dec 31 on MA we do not as there is no Cargo space until Feb 1. The options are 9000 Ringet per bike to send the bikes Dec 29, 4500 Ringet to take the bikes out to MAS cargo and leave them open ended and hope they get on, or find another airline. This was a very stressful day as we already have flights booked Dec 29. In the end we managed to get them on a Thai air flight from KL to Bangkok and then from there to Auckland for 3500 Ringet per bike, BUT now they have to be crated.
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Check the RAW segments; Grant, your HU host is on every month!
Episodes below to listen to while you, err, pretend to do something or other...
2020 Edition of Chris Scott's Adventure Motorcycling Handbook.
"Ultimate global guide for red-blooded bikers planning overseas exploration. Covers choice & preparation of best bike, shipping overseas, baggage design, riding techniques, travel health, visas, documentation, safety and useful addresses." Recommended. (Grant)
Ripcord Rescue Travel Insurance™ combines into a single integrated program the best evacuation and rescue with the premier travel insurance coverages designed for adventurers.
Led by special operations veterans, Stanford Medicine affiliated physicians, paramedics and other travel experts, Ripcord is perfect for adventure seekers, climbers, skiers, sports enthusiasts, hunters, international travelers, humanitarian efforts, expeditions and more.
Ripcord travel protection is now available for ALL nationalities, and travel is covered on motorcycles of all sizes!
What others say about HU...
"This site is the BIBLE for international bike travelers." Greg, Australia
"Thank you! The web site, The travels, The insight, The inspiration, Everything, just thanks." Colin, UK
"My friend and I are planning a trip from Singapore to England... We found (the HU) site invaluable as an aid to planning and have based a lot of our purchases (bikes, riding gear, etc.) on what we have learned from this site." Phil, Australia
"I for one always had an adventurous spirit, but you and Susan lit the fire for my trip and I'll be forever grateful for what you two do to inspire others to just do it." Brent, USA
"Your website is a mecca of valuable information and the (video) series is informative, entertaining, and inspiring!" Jennifer, Canada
"Your worldwide organisation and events are the Go To places to for all serious touring and aspiring touring bikers." Trevor, South Africa
"This is the answer to all my questions." Haydn, Australia
"Keep going the excellent work you are doing for Horizons Unlimited - I love it!" Thomas, Germany
Lots more comments here!
Diaries of a compulsive traveller
by Graham Field
Book, eBook, Audiobook
"A compelling, honest, inspiring and entertaining writing style with a built-in feel-good factor" Get them NOW from the authors' website and Amazon.com, Amazon.ca, Amazon.co.uk.
Back Road Map Books and Backroad GPS Maps for all of Canada - a must have!
New to Horizons Unlimited?
New to motorcycle travelling? New to the HU site? Confused? Too many options? It's really very simple - just 4 easy steps!
Horizons Unlimited was founded in 1997 by Grant and Susan Johnson following their journey around the world on a BMW R80G/S.
Read more about Grant & Susan's story
Membership - help keep us going!
Horizons Unlimited is not a big multi-national company, just two people who love motorcycle travel and have grown what started as a hobby in 1997 into a full time job (usually 8-10 hours per day and 7 days a week) and a labour of love. To keep it going and a roof over our heads, we run events all over the world with the help of volunteers; we sell inspirational and informative DVDs; we have a few selected advertisers; and we make a small amount from memberships.
You don't have to be a Member to come to an HU meeting, access the website, or ask questions on the HUBB. What you get for your membership contribution is our sincere gratitude, good karma and knowing that you're helping to keep the motorcycle travel dream alive. Contributing Members and Gold Members do get additional features on the HUBB. Here's a list of all the Member benefits on the HUBB.
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helps answer the question - Why Go? Inspirational stories by veteran travellers Greg Frazier (5 times RTW), Peter and Kay Forwood (193 countries), Tiffany Coates (Mongolia Mayhem) and Rene Cormier (University of Gravel Roads).
Get Ready! covers planning, paperwork, medical and many other topics! "Inspirational and Awesome!" See the trailer here!
What stuff do I need - riding gear, clothing, camping gear, first aid kit, tires, maps and GPS? What don't I need? How do I pack it all in? Lots of opinions from over 150 travellers!
break down language barriers, overcome culture shock, ship the bike and deal with breakdowns and emergencies."Just makes me want to pack up and go!" See the trailer here!
Grant demystifies the black art of Tire Changing and Repair to help you STAY on the road! "Very informative and practical." See the trailer here!
Ladies on the Loose! For the first time ever, a motorcycle travel DVD made for women, by women! These intrepid women share their tips to help you plan your own motorcycle adventure. They also answer the women-only questions, and entertain you with amazing tales from the road! Presented by Lois Pryce, veteran solo traveller through South America and Africa and author of 'Lois on the Loose', and 'Red Tape and White Knuckles.'
Cotton or synth sweat-wicking t-shirts with the cool Horizons Unlimited graphic on the front and a snappy slogan (changing every year) on the back.
Show your route on your panniers. Great conversation starter when you meet people on the road!
Motorcycle and travel books to inspire and inform you!
The definitive guide to planning your motorcycle adventure! This insanely ambitious 2-year project has produced an informative and entertaining 5-part, 18 hour video series. "The ultimate round the world rider's how-to!" MCN UK.
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