TRAVELLERS’ tales, especially those whose journeys take them off the beaten tracks, never failed to amaze me. Last week, over several cups of tea at Makan Café in Portobello Market, London, four young travellers met up, some for the first time, but most of them had known and followed each other on Facebook and Instagram, the way young people do nowadays.
Remy Ayob, 25, from Ulu Langat, Selangor, who had biked across 20 countries from Malaysia since March last year, met fellow cyclist Mohamad Fazlee Abd Hamid, 26, in Lille, France. Fazlee, who goes by the name Mohamad Paddle on social media, got on his bike in April last year after reading Violet Biru’s account in her Facebook, accounts of a Malaysian woman making it solo on a bicycle.
Last week, the three cyclists, with backpacker Mohamad Faizul Abdul Malek, 26, who travelled overland on foot, by car, buses and trains, across 13 countries “and counting”, they compared notes which took them to familiar territories and shared experiences.
From accounts of the routes they took, the sceneries they enjoyed and the hospitality and challenges they faced, it was as if they had convoyed together. However, what spurred them on couldn’t be more different, especially for Remy.
The one-time diver, who was more familiar with sceneries and creatures in the deep blue sea, Remy had taken the very bold decision after a tragic incident which almost cost him his life. He took to cycling not just to see the world, but also as a means of “exorcising” the nitrogen in his body.
It was during one diving assignment in Teluk Sepanggar, Sabah, early last year that his breathing apparatus leaked and he suffered from what is known as diver decompression sickness. Treatment would have cost him RM16,000, which he could ill afford.
Along his journey, he had endured high fever, vomiting, nose bleeds and muscle cramps — all effects of the untreated condition, but with every pedal, he knew the nitrogen count is decreasing.
“I would like to see a negative reading. Now, arriving in London, although I have not done any test yet, I think the level had gone down to single digit,” said Remy of the condition that had taken him to several clinics along the way.
It is of no surprise that his WhatsApp messages are flooded with messages of concern from his parents and relatives, who followed his journey on his Facebook.
“I decided to take the route of self recovery by cycling and ridding the body of nitrogen,” added Remy.
Violet Biru, the 31-year-old engineer, whose love for travel and photography had initially taken her to New Zealand, felt that travelling by plane was too conventional and expensive.
“I feel cycling is not only cheap, but it puts me in control and as a nature lover, I love being able to stop and appreciate nature as I go along,” says Violet, whose real name is Maslinda Supandi.
She worked in a bicycle shop before embarking on her journey and learnt the skills of repairing bikes and had not looked back since. Her homecoming this week will also see her planning for her next adventure, although her beloved and trusty machine is left in Italy for the time being.
For Fazlee, travelling wasn’t something new because as an aid worker, he was used to delivering aid to places like Kampung Cham in Cambodia and in disaster-struck areas in the Philippines. But it was Violet’s feat as a solo woman biker that challenged him to get on his bike.
“Coming from a family of 10, they are used to my absence,” he said laughingly.
For Faizul, who goes under the name of Iggy Malique on FB, it was also the call of adventure and the string network of backpackers that lured him to uncharted territories.
While working on a potato farm in north Germany would count as something exciting, sharing a car with a man whose mental state was in serious doubt could go down in his journal as one of the scariest ones.
“He lives in his car, and his life was so disorganised after his father died. He drove me to the woods and one of the scariest moments was seeing him watch on YouTube on how to murder someone,” said Faizul.
The cyclists were not short of scary or memorable moments. Being a solo female cyclist, Violet has plenty which she would rather not WhatsApp back to her parents. Suffice to say, a firm “No”, a fierce glare, a stick and a loud scream would do to thwart unwanted advances. In one incident, pots and pans came in handy, too.
For Remy, while pots could be a good deterrent to scare wolves away from his tent, none could be found when an Iranian long-haul truck driver, who had kindly given him a lift, made some unwanted advances. Quick thinking and white lies came in handy just as they approached Marand in Iran. He escaped with his honour intact.
Fazlee had an encounter of a different kind in Marand where he was invited to a wedding celebration, and was asked to dance, which he gladly did to the tune of Gangnam Style. Little did he know that behind the curtain that divided the dance hall were some pretty women in veil, taking a close interest in him. It was the night that he learnt the meaning of the word “mut’ah”.
That was when he knew he should pedal for his life into Turkey.
In general, people they met had been kind; inviting total strangers into their homes, giving out cups of tea along the way. But for Remy, one act of kindness would remain with him all his life.
It was in The Hague, the Netherlands, that he was introduced to a Mr Khoo, a Malaysian who had been living there for almost 30 years and owns two restaurants.
After hearing that Remy wanted to come to London and planned to find work to pay for his flight ticket home to Malaysia, Khoo kindly offered to help.
“I have no use for money. I have been given a second chance to live, and I want to help someone who needs help,” said Khoo, who paid for Remy’s flight ticket home.
Thousands of miles away from home, the two souls had found something in common; Khoo had had his brain tumour removed and he understood Remy’s quest to conquer the life threatening condition that he has.
So it is true; it is not the destination that matters, it is the journey that is most important, especially for these travellers.