saddlesores

some love it, some hate it. i'm afraid you'd really hate it. there are
cultural differences here that can drive a person insane, so many little
things that can build up until you explode. even though it's "worng,"
you just have to accept that's the way it is; you canna change it.

hardest thing for a cyclist is that the drivers are so so so very bad!
they've downloaded the traffic regs from the western world, but have
failed to implement them. driving twice the speed limit on the freeway
while tailgating a meter behind other vehicles, driving the wrong way
if it's convenient, passing/driving on the shoulder, driving drunk. they
employ the buddhist mentality of karma, that if it's your time to have an
accident and die, it's just your time. bus drivers often flea the scene,
leaving dying passengers. i've read of motorcyclists who have survived,
up until the other guy backs over them intentionally then drives off.

police are more interested in making "tea money" so no enforcement of
the written laws. thailand is #1 in the world for traffic fatalities....BUT...
they only count if you die at the scene. die in the ambulance or hospital,
and they're not counted in the traffic statistics.

china will drive you nuts if you're just moderately tall. kids like to sneak up
behind you in packs, one or two of them will jump and try to get his hand to
just above your head. gosh, it's cute, it's harmless, but sooooo annoying.
no concept of personal space. men will sit next to you on a bus, start
stroking the hair on your arm or leg. sometimes when standing on a
crowded bus, an old lady will grab your junk and say "it's twoo, it's twoo!"

you will enjoy europe.