30days30years

Rainbows

I woke up this morning feeling a little crook. It’s the first time I have felt this way since Mongolia, I reckon. I wanted to hit the road at 6am in an attempt to get as many kms out the way as possible. I leave Taiwan on Friday and want to at least get a day in shopping for some cheap sailing gear before I head back to the States.

I finally crawled out of bed about 8am and was on the road by 8.30. It rained so heavily today that not even my super poncho could help me. The four layers I had underneath were dripping wet by lunch time as well as my phone, camera and wallet. Super.

Dolly Parton has that saying: “The way I see it, if you want the rainbow, you gotta put up with the rain.” It’s a nice sentiment but seriously I don’t care about the rainbows! I just want one day without rain! By early afternoon I was so wet I started praying for just an hour without rain. Even 10 minutes would have been good.

The rain gods delivered because the heavens stopped for a good part of the afternoon meaning I could actually stop and take a picture or two. I randomly came across the Tropic of Cancer marker so I had a bit of a sticky beak there.

For reasons passing understanding today actually turned out to be my most favourite riding day to date. I seemed to have my Forrest Gump on because I just wanted to keep cycling. And cycling. So I did. I did just shy of 120km and am now in a dot of a town called Shinshe.

I’m about 45km from Hualien but the next town between the two is quite far away so I’ve opted to stay here. The local primary school has kindly given me shelter in their kindergarten room, which like most kindys is built for little people. Little tables, little miniature chairs, which I have my wet clothes all draped over. Helena the teacher has hooked me up with some blankets and they have given me a little food too which is so generous of them – a baked sweet potato, some fresh steamed buns, kiwi fruit and almond milk. And a long, hot shower.

Now I just have to survive the night with mosquitoes the size of bees. :$