Posts Tagged ‘Similaju’

Day 352. 144km. Similaju – Miri

Posted: April 23, 2016 in Cycling, Malaysia
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‘What is this smoke?’
‘It’s for the economy. They are burning here to plant palm oil plantations.’ The young man smiled with pride.
We passed a plantation that was younger – the trees were below eye level, and I could see the extent of it all. As far as the eye could see – a monoculture of the tree.

Palm plantations

Palm plantations

The road was straight, flat, and mostly through palm plantation. The parts between the plantations were smoky – preparing to join their neighbours.

Cycling into Miri we met a lovely guy that invited us to his place to stay. There is clearly money here – luxury apartment blocks, restaurants and shops everywhere. Miri is the border town with the ultra-rich country of Brunei. Our host, Charles, is a business man himself, and he told stories of the development of Sarawak province, and the new self-made millionaires.
Tomorrow is a rest day before heading on into country number 32 – Brunei.

Day 351. 99km. Selitut – Similaju

Posted: April 22, 2016 in Cycling, Malaysia
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‘Hey! You’re the 3 people cycling from Europe to Australia to promote saving water and using less plastic bottles!’
We had stopped in a truckie’s stop in the palm oil plantations. ‘You’re on the radio.’ I have no idea where that all came from.
The now famous Europeans are living it up in a dormitory settlement ‘Home away from home,’ for the local aluminium smelter workers. Air-con, a canteen, a shower and a pub with pool and beer. This is the life!

Green desert outpost

Green desert outpost

Today we were caught unawares. The rolling hills through the Iban people’s lands with many long houses and lots of food and water opportunities was suddenly replaced with a freeway through endless palm oil plantations. Cycling through the undulating landscape in the blistering heat with no shade found us running out of water. There was only the occasional tin lean-to with a security guard and nothing else. A green, hot desert where once there was tropical forest. Google sattelite view is depressing. Rows and rows of orderly lines. Rows and rows forming blocks and blocks, covering the landscape from the hills to the shore, and one wide freeway, plied by palm oil trucks, snaking its way to infinity in the heat.

We were helped by a very kind man from South Africa, working at the South African magnesium smelter which is being built. Fleeing from South Africa for the safety of him and his family, we heard stories from South Africa to curdle the blood. We also heard about the magnesium smelter here, which will process South African raw materials using subsidised electricity from the Malaysian government. Situated in the middle of this hot, green desert, the smelter will join the aluminium smelter and the village made from air-conditioned container buildings for the workers.
Will and I enjoyed an evening in this place with a frontier atmosphere, dining on the canteen food, playing pool and drinking a beer in the air-conditioned bar. The night-time heat hits you like a hammer when you leave the air-conditioning, though. We asked ourselves, how did we cycle 100km in today’s 47C heat?

Pool in the miner's township

Pool in the miner’s township