Oh no!

We were finally back in lovely Thailand after our motorcycle travels through Cambodia and South Vietnam. Once we crossed the border it would be about a 2- or 3-day ride back to our boat Sea Turtle down in Phuket...but oops, now quite!

Cruising merrily along the highway, suddenly the bike's rear wheel locked up, leaving a long black strip as Jordan jockeyed it to the side of the road. The chain had jumped the sprocket and jammed.

Mangled sprocket

We were 30 km from a town in a rural area. I stayed with the bike and luggage as Jordan went for help which he found from a couple of considerate men at a house close by.

They didn't speak any English but with a lot of gestures they soon figured out the problem. Right away they took control. Soon the bike was in the back of an old pickup and Jordan and the men were off somewhere as I was left at a house with the other kind-hearted people.

A small motorcycle repair shop was close where it was determined that only new Honda parts could remedy the breakdown. By then, the day was closing down so they collected us and our luggage and took us to a small newish motel not far away leaving us to deal with our predicament in the morning.

The next morning we borrowed a scooter from the motorcycle shop (which we could only use for the 1 day) and headed to the Honda dealer in the big town of Chanthaburi. Unfortunately the parts had to be ordered in with a minimum 4-day wait.

In the meantime, we thought we would go back with a bouquet of flowers as a thank you to the friendly and helpful couple Aom and her husband Pun. Well, they took us under their wing for the next 4 days and catered to our every need - transporting us back and forth to the parts shop 30 km away, having us over to their home for dinner, and even lending us their scooter so we weren't stranded at a hotel.

They happily showed us the sights of the area including impressive beach views, a hike up to stunning Phlio Waterfall with its teeming fish, and an eco walk along the extensive Khun Krabaen Mangrove Trail. Aom and Pun also proudly introduced us to a few of their great friends.

Judy, Pun, Jordan, and Aom at Phlio Waterfall

5-storey high tower with boardwalk below

Unfortunately they could not speak English and we could not speak Thai. But we had some laughs, each using translator apps on our cell phones.

Aom and Pun have a prosperous little wholesale business of delivering fresh noodles at night time to vendors and eateries. Jordan volunteered to go along to help 1 night. He came home around noon the next day, very tired after 14 hours of loading and unloading 7 tons of the wet warm noodles, with only a short nap.

Tons of noodles

To celebrate our 12th anniversary, we rented a room at a cool hotel resort called Peggy's Cove. They did a fine job in architecture and settings to capture the essence of the original Peggy's Cove located in Nova Scotia Canada. We invited Aom and Pun to join us for dinner at Peggy's Cove, having conversation in our usual way!

Iconic Peggy's Cove

After several delays, the parts were finely ready and Jordan was able to fix our motorcycle. We sadly bid our friends Aom and Pun goodbye till we meet again one day...take care and thanks again for everything!