Mobile Phone Overuse, Why? How to Stop Being Addicted to Your Phone

By Yang Yang

One day, I read a popular saying online that went something like this, “The farthest distance in the world isn’t the other side of the world, it’s sitting next to you while you play with your phone.” No matter if you’re on the subway, on the bus, in a restaurant, or on the streets … at any time of the day, you can always find a certain group of people, phubbers. They have a phone, tablet, or some other gadget in their hand as they watch videos, play games, or look at their friend feed, and their members are primarily young people.

As technology has developed, the internet has made our lives much more convenient. People can buy what they want without leaving the house, or they can contact different people without going out. But what is brought about by the convenience of the internet? Let’s take a look at the relevant reports.

Ms. Yue likes to go online. When online shopping emerged as a widespread phenomenon, she spent a lot of time shopping online, often until 1–2 in the morning, sometimes even until 6 in the morning, and when she went to work the next day, she fell asleep at her desk. After chatting software came out, she often chatted into the middle of the night, and even when she was exhausted, her hands were still not idle. Gradually her memory declined significantly, she suffered from a bad neck, and had dark circles under her eyes. Her husband was very dissatisfied with her over this, saying that she had forgotten her aims in life over a toy.

Mr. Wang’s nephew is 14 years old, and he used to be very obedient, but ever since he became obsessed with going online on his mobile phone, it is always in his hand, whether he’s eating or sleeping, the degree of myopia in his eyes has been rising, and he has become absolutely silent. To buy equipment in the game he loves, he used his dad’s credit card twice to charge 10,000 yuan. When his father discovered it, the boy stubbornly refused to admit it.

According to a psychological counseling survey conducted by Capital Normal University, 77% of people have their mobile phones turned on for more than 12 hours a day; 33.55% have them turned on 24 hours a day; 65% say “I feel some anxiety when my mobile phone isn’t next to me,” and more than 90% can’t live without their phones. The first thing phubbers do when they wake up every day is to look at their mobile phones, and they need to check their mobile phones before they go to bed. They spend their days refreshing Weibo, watching their friend feed, and playing online games.

These phubbers are completely immersed in their individual online world. They experience all the sensations the internet brings them as if no one else was there, as if all the people, matters, and things around them no longer exist. Slowly, they lose direction in their lives, and the distance between them and other people grows. They focus solely on phubbing, looking only at their mobile phones while ignoring the people around them, and erecting a thick barrier to prevent exchange between themselves and others. In the long run, although they seem to interact frequently and intensely with their friends on the internet, their relationships with people in real life become ever more narrow and closed off, and their ability to socialize withers, which becomes an obstacle to communication. For example, some children are sluggish when they arrive at school, and have nothing to say to their classmates, but when they turn on their mobile phones, their eyes brighten and their minds become sharp. They have absolutely no interest in learning or their futures, and only care about gaming. Or, some couples typically only care about their work, and only play games or chat online when they have free time. As time goes on, husband and wife no longer share a common language, and they live as strangers under the same roof. Not only that, it also leads to frequent danger. Many people hold mobile phones and tablets while walking, making major accidents due to looking at their phones a common occurrence. For example, one young girl was walking along the street and only looking at her phone, and as a result, she stepped into a hole and got her leg trapped in a well. Helpless, she had to ask the police for help, and a metal saw was required to remove the sewer cover and free her. A young mother stepped into an elevator while looking at her phone instead of her 2-year-old daughter, who fell into the elevator shaft and died. Another young woman was walking along a lake shore while playing with her phone and then fell into the lake…. We can see that phubbing is no ordinary social problem, it’s one that impacts and threatens people’s lives and work, and it’s one that shouldn’t be underestimated. But, the question we should reflect on is that even though many people have already seen, heard, and experienced the hidden dangers of being a phubber, why are they still so obsessed? Why do people choose to be a phubber without a moment of hesitation? If things keep going like this, what will be the consequences?

Just at the moment when I was overcome by this problem, I accepted the work of God. In God’s words, I finally found the answer. God says: “We only wish to talk about the ideas that social trends bring about for people, the way they cause people to conduct themselves in the world, the life goals and outlook that they bring about in people. These are very important; they can control and influence man’s state of mind. One after another, all these trends carry an evil influence that continually degenerates man, causing them to continually lose conscience, humanity and reason, and that lowers their morals and their quality of character more and more, to the extent that we can even say the majority of people now have no integrity, no humanity, neither do they have any conscience, much less any reason. So what are these trends? You cannot see these trends with the naked eye. When the wind of a trend blows through, perhaps only a small number of people will become the trendsetters. They start off doing this kind of thing, accepting this kind of idea or this kind of perspective. The majority of people, however, in the midst of their unawareness, will still be continually infected, assimilated and attracted by this kind of trend, until they all unknowingly and involuntarily accept it, and are all submerged in and controlled by it. For man who is not of sound body and mind, who never knows what is truth, who cannot tell the difference between positive and negative things, these kinds of trends one after another make them all willingly accept these trends, the life view and values that come from Satan. They accept what Satan tells them on how to approach life and the way to live that Satan ‘bestows’ on them. They have not the strength, neither do they have the ability, much less the awareness to resist.”

“Do these social trends have a big influence on people? (Yes.) So do these social trends have a deeply harmful effect on people? (Yes.) A very deeply harmful effect on people. Satan uses one of these social trends after another to corrupt man’s what? (Conscience, reason, humanity, morals.) What else? (Man’s view on life.) Do they cause a gradual degeneration in people? (Yes.) Satan uses these social trends to lure people one step at a time into a nest of devils, so that people caught up in social trends unknowingly advocate money and material desires, as well as advocate wickedness and violence. Once these things have entered man’s heart, what then does man become? Man becomes the devil Satan! This is because of what psychological leaning in the heart of man? What does man advocate? Man begins to like wickedness and violence. They do not like beauty or goodness, much less peace. People are not willing to live the simple life of normal humanity, but instead wish to enjoy high status and great wealth, to revel in the pleasures of the flesh, sparing no effort to satisfy their own flesh, with no restrictions, no bonds to hold them back, in other words doing whatever they desire. So when man has become immersed in these kinds of trends, can the knowledge that you have learned help you get free? Can the traditional culture and superstitions you know help you cast off this dire predicament? Can the traditional morals and traditional ceremony that man comprehends help them exercise restraint? Take the Three Character Classic, for example. Can it help people pull their feet out of the quicksand of[a] these trends? (No, it cannot.) In this way, man becomes more and more evil, arrogant, condescending, selfish, and malicious. There is no longer any affection between people, no longer any love between family members, no longer any understanding between relatives and friends.”

“Satan corrupts man at all times and at all places. Satan makes it impossible for man to defend against this corruption and makes man helpless to it. Satan makes you accept its thoughts, its viewpoints and the evil things that come from it in situations where you are unwitting and when you have no recognition of what’s happening to you. People fully accept these things and take no exception to them. They cherish and hold these things like a treasure, they let these things manipulate them and toy with them, and this is how Satan’s corruption of man becomes deeper and deeper.”

“‘Deception and paralysis’ is that Satan makes up some sweet-sounding statements and ideas that are in concert with people’s conceptions to make it seem as though it is taking people’s flesh into consideration or thinking about their lives and futures, when actually it is just to fool you. It then paralyzes you so that you do not know what is right and what is wrong, so that you are unwittingly tricked and thereby come under its control.” God’s words completely reveal the root cause of how phubbers came into being. This is nothing but a means and method for Satan to deceive and paralyze people! Satan’s mischief is behind the obstinacy of phubbers. Satan often uses social trends to confuse, bind, and numb people, and induce them into debauchery and degeneracy. These evil things occupy people’s minds and trap them deeply and inextricably, such as online games, which we think of as a fashion, but with which we can become obsessed to the point that we lose self-control, both old and young, men and women. Online love destroys many originally happy, stable families. Countless housewives are addicted to online shopping. They immediately fall in love with what they see and buy it, which in turn greatly stimulates people’s extravagant desires, making us unable to stop until we possess things. Our thoughts, morality, insight, and reason are seriously damaged by all these things. The Internet Age given rise to by Satan has become a trend. The whole world has been enveloped by Satan’s evil trends, and we all accept, grasp, and use these things of Satan as positive things. Once we begin following worldly trends and the evil airs of Satan, our lives are naturally impacted. These things have inundated everyone’s hearts, from unacceptance at the start to taking it for granted today, and now our hearts have completely acquiesced. Especially those born in the 80’s, 90’s, and 00’s are hooked on the internet as if it was opium. These things are already firmly in control of our thoughts, and they make it impossible for us to extricate ourselves. The Satan’s deception and temptations are the real reason that phubbers are produced and spread. This kind of evil trend is unquestionably a poison by which we are slowly killing ourselves. One step at a time, it leads us to the abyss and to death.

Only God is concerned for and loves mankind, and without God’s protection and care, we can never escape being toyed with and harmed by Satan, and finally being swallowed up against our will by tide after tide of evil. Just as God’s word says, “I am mankind’s only salvation. I am mankind’s only hope and, even more, I am He on whom the existence of all mankind rests. Without Me, mankind will immediately come to a complete standstill. Without Me, mankind will suffer catastrophe and be trodden down by all manner of ghosts, even though no one takes heed of Me.” Mankind was created by God, and God gives mankind sunshine, air, food, and all the other things that mankind needs to survive. At the same time, God has been working among people, speaking to provide for people, saving people, and teaching people how to live, how to behave, how to worship God, and many other aspects of the truth in the hope that we can accept everything from God, so that we mankind can dwell and live normally on the earth, live out a true human likeness, and live out lives blessed by God. God says: “I urge the people of all nations, countries, and even industries to listen to the voice of God, to behold the work of God, to pay attention to the fate of mankind, thus making God the most holy, the most honorable, the highest, and the only object of worship among mankind, and allowing the whole of mankind to live under the blessing of God, just as the descendants of Abraham lived under the promise of Jehovah, and just as Adam and Eve, who were originally made by God, lived in the Garden of Eden.” God cares for us mankind, who He personally created, and is concerned about us mankind trampled upon by Satan. He hopes that the lost can become aware of their confusion and return, and come before Him and accept His salvation as soon as possible.

Why Are People Addicted to Their Phones?

 One day, I read a popular saying online that went something like this, “The farthest distance in the world isn’t the other side of the world, it’s sitting next to you while you play with your phone.” No matter if you’re on the subway, on the bus, in a restaurant, or on the streets … at any time of the day, you can always find a certain group of people, phubbers. They have a phone, tablet, or some other gadget in their hand as they watch videos, play games, or look at their friend feed, and their members are primarily young people.

As technology has developed, the internet has made our lives much more convenient. People can buy what they want without leaving the house, or they can contact different people without going out. But what is brought about by the convenience of the internet? Let’s take a look at the relevant reports.

Ms. Yue likes to go online. When online shopping emerged as a widespread phenomenon, she spent a lot of time shopping online, often until 1–2 in the morning, sometimes even until 6 in the morning, and when she went to work the next day, she fell asleep at her desk. After chatting software came out, she often chatted into the middle of the night, and even when she was exhausted, her hands were still not idle. Gradually her memory declined significantly, she suffered from a bad neck, and had dark circles under her eyes. Her husband was very dissatisfied with her over this, saying that she had forgotten her aims in life over a toy.

Mr. Wang’s nephew is 14 years old, and he used to be very obedient, but ever since he became obsessed with going online on his mobile phone, it is always in his hand, whether he’s eating or sleeping, the degree of myopia in his eyes has been rising, and he has become absolutely silent. To buy equipment in the game he loves, he used his dad’s credit card twice to charge 10,000 yuan. When his father discovered it, the boy stubbornly refused to admit it.

According to a psychological counseling survey conducted by Capital Normal University, 77% of people have their mobile phones turned on for more than 12 hours a day; 33.55% have them turned on 24 hours a day; 65% say “I feel some anxiety when my mobile phone isn’t next to me,” and more than 90% can’t live without their phones. The first thing phubbers do when they wake up every day is to look at their mobile phones, and they need to check their mobile phones before they go to bed. They spend their days refreshing Weibo, watching their friend feed, and playing online games.

These phubbers are completely immersed in their individual online world. They experience all the sensations the internet brings them as if no one else was there, as if all the people, matters, and things around them no longer exist. Slowly, they lose direction in their lives, and the distance between them and other people grows. They focus solely on phubbing, looking only at their mobile phones while ignoring the people around them, and erecting a thick barrier to prevent exchange between themselves and others. In the long run, although they seem to interact frequently and intensely with their friends on the internet, their relationships with people in real life become ever more narrow and closed off, and their ability to socialize withers, which becomes an obstacle to communication. For example, some children are sluggish when they arrive at school, and have nothing to say to their classmates, but when they turn on their mobile phones, their eyes brighten and their minds become sharp. They have absolutely no interest in learning or their futures, and only care about gaming. Or, some couples typically only care about their work, and only play games or chat online when they have free time. As time goes on, husband and wife no longer share a common language, and they live as strangers under the same roof. Not only that, it also leads to frequent danger. Many people hold mobile phones and tablets while walking, making major accidents due to looking at their phones a common occurrence. For example, one young girl was walking along the street and only looking at her phone, and as a result, she stepped into a hole and got her leg trapped in a well. Helpless, she had to ask the police for help, and a metal saw was required to remove the sewer cover and free her. A young mother stepped into an elevator while looking at her phone instead of her 2-year-old daughter, who fell into the elevator shaft and died. Another young woman was walking along a lake shore while playing with her phone and then fell into the lake…. We can see that phubbing is no ordinary social problem, it’s one that impacts and threatens people’s lives and work, and it’s one that shouldn’t be underestimated. But, the question we should reflect on is that even though many people have already seen, heard, and experienced the hidden dangers of being a phubber, why are they still so obsessed? Why do people choose to be a phubber without a moment of hesitation? If things keep going like this, what will be the consequences?

Just at the moment when I was overcome by this problem, I accepted the work of God. In God’s words, I finally found the answer. God says: “We only wish to talk about the ideas that social trends bring about for people, the way they cause people to conduct themselves in the world, the life goals and outlook that they bring about in people. These are very important; they can control and influence man’s state of mind. One after another, all these trends carry an evil influence that continually degenerates man, causing them to continually lose conscience, humanity and reason, and that lowers their morals and their quality of character more and more, to the extent that we can even say the majority of people now have no integrity, no humanity, neither do they have any conscience, much less any reason. So what are these trends? You cannot see these trends with the naked eye. When the wind of a trend blows through, perhaps only a small number of people will become the trendsetters. They start off doing this kind of thing, accepting this kind of idea or this kind of perspective. The majority of people, however, in the midst of their unawareness, will still be continually infected, assimilated and attracted by this kind of trend, until they all unknowingly and involuntarily accept it, and are all submerged in and controlled by it. For man who is not of sound body and mind, who never knows what is truth, who cannot tell the difference between positive and negative things, these kinds of trends one after another make them all willingly accept these trends, the life view and values that come from Satan. They accept what Satan tells them on how to approach life and the way to live that Satan ‘bestows’ on them. They have not the strength, neither do they have the ability, much less the awareness to resist.”

“Do these social trends have a big influence on people? (Yes.) So do these social trends have a deeply harmful effect on people? (Yes.) A very deeply harmful effect on people. Satan uses one of these social trends after another to corrupt man’s what? (Conscience, reason, humanity, morals.) What else? (Man’s view on life.) Do they cause a gradual degeneration in people? (Yes.) Satan uses these social trends to lure people one step at a time into a nest of devils, so that people caught up in social trends unknowingly advocate money and material desires, as well as advocate wickedness and violence. Once these things have entered man’s heart, what then does man become? Man becomes the devil Satan! This is because of what psychological leaning in the heart of man? What does man advocate? Man begins to like wickedness and violence. They do not like beauty or goodness, much less peace. People are not willing to live the simple life of normal humanity, but instead wish to enjoy high status and great wealth, to revel in the pleasures of the flesh, sparing no effort to satisfy their own flesh, with no restrictions, no bonds to hold them back, in other words doing whatever they desire. So when man has become immersed in these kinds of trends, can the knowledge that you have learned help you get free? Can the traditional culture and superstitions you know help you cast off this dire predicament? Can the traditional morals and traditional ceremony that man comprehends help them exercise restraint? Take the Three Character Classic, for example. Can it help people pull their feet out of the quicksand of[a] these trends? (No, it cannot.) In this way, man becomes more and more evil, arrogant, condescending, selfish, and malicious. There is no longer any affection between people, no longer any love between family members, no longer any understanding between relatives and friends.”

“Satan corrupts man at all times and at all places. Satan makes it impossible for man to defend against this corruption and makes man helpless to it. Satan makes you accept its thoughts, its viewpoints and the evil things that come from it in situations where you are unwitting and when you have no recognition of what’s happening to you. People fully accept these things and take no exception to them. They cherish and hold these things like a treasure, they let these things manipulate them and toy with them, and this is how Satan’s corruption of man becomes deeper and deeper.”

“‘Deception and paralysis’ is that Satan makes up some sweet-sounding statements and ideas that are in concert with people’s conceptions to make it seem as though it is taking people’s flesh into consideration or thinking about their lives and futures, when actually it is just to fool you. It then paralyzes you so that you do not know what is right and what is wrong, so that you are unwittingly tricked and thereby come under its control.” God’s words completely reveal the root cause of how phubbers came into being. This is nothing but a means and method for Satan to deceive and paralyze people! Satan’s mischief is behind the obstinacy of phubbers. Satan often uses social trends to confuse, bind, and numb people, and induce them into debauchery and degeneracy. These evil things occupy people’s minds and trap them deeply and inextricably, such as online games, which we think of as a fashion, but with which we can become obsessed to the point that we lose self-control, both old and young, men and women. Online love destroys many originally happy, stable families. Countless housewives are addicted to online shopping. They immediately fall in love with what they see and buy it, which in turn greatly stimulates people’s extravagant desires, making us unable to stop until we possess things. Our thoughts, morality, insight, and reason are seriously damaged by all these things. The Internet Age given rise to by Satan has become a trend. The whole world has been enveloped by Satan’s evil trends, and we all accept, grasp, and use these things of Satan as positive things. Once we begin following worldly trends and the evil airs of Satan, our lives are naturally impacted. These things have inundated everyone’s hearts, from unacceptance at the start to taking it for granted today, and now our hearts have completely acquiesced. Especially those born in the 80’s, 90’s, and 00’s are hooked on the internet as if it was opium. These things are already firmly in control of our thoughts, and they make it impossible for us to extricate ourselves. The Satan’s deception and temptations are the real reason that phubbers are produced and spread. This kind of evil trend is unquestionably a poison by which we are slowly killing ourselves. One step at a time, it leads us to the abyss and to death.

Only God is concerned for and loves mankind, and without God’s protection and care, we can never escape being toyed with and harmed by Satan, and finally being swallowed up against our will by tide after tide of evil. Just as God’s word says, “I am mankind’s only salvation. I am mankind’s only hope and, even more, I am He on whom the existence of all mankind rests. Without Me, mankind will immediately come to a complete standstill. Without Me, mankind will suffer catastrophe and be trodden down by all manner of ghosts, even though no one takes heed of Me.” Mankind was created by God, and God gives mankind sunshine, air, food, and all the other things that mankind needs to survive. At the same time, God has been working among people, speaking to provide for people, saving people, and teaching people how to live, how to behave, how to worship God, and many other aspects of the truth in the hope that we can accept everything from God, so that we mankind can dwell and live normally on the earth, live out a true human likeness, and live out lives blessed by God. God says: “I urge the people of all nations, countries, and even industries to listen to the voice of God, to behold the work of God, to pay attention to the fate of mankind, thus making God the most holy, the most honorable, the highest, and the only object of worship among mankind, and allowing the whole of mankind to live under the blessing of God, just as the descendants of Abraham lived under the promise of Jehovah, and just as Adam and Eve, who were originally made by God, lived in the Garden of Eden.” God cares for us mankind, who He personally created, and is concerned about us mankind trampled upon by Satan. He hopes that the lost can become aware of their confusion and return, and come before Him and accept His salvation as soon as possible.

Footnotes:

a. The original text does not contain the phrase “the quicksand of.”

The long way home: Cycling from Kuala Lumpur to Penang

Bent over my bike’s handlebars, I pedal along a narrow countryside lane connecting clusters of small Malay villages. Tall, swaying coconut trees flank my path.

“Shall we make a stop?” My riding partner Dinesh Thangaveloo asks. A tall, sinewy Malaysian with a thick moustache, the 33-year-old Penangite moved to Kuala Lumpur for work eight years ago and, despite living in Malaysia’s most congested metropolis, fell in love with the great outdoors and long-distance cycle touring.

Dinesh cycles by a Malay home on the backroads of Sekinchan

An adventurous plan

I glance at my watch. It’s only 10.30am – the tropical sun is still bearable and, more importantly, we still have a long way to go: four days in the saddle and 320km, to be exact. “Keep moving,” I call to him. We left Kuala Lumpur yesterday and are headed to Penang, 400km from the capital to the north.

Are we crazy to make this journey on two wheels? Maybe.

Or maybe not. I’m taking the long route back to my home base in Penang, to both honour the promise I made to Dinesh – to accompany him on a long-distance cycling trip – and to test if doing this in Malaysia is as impossible as many of my local friends claim when they scoff at our adventurous plan. While I am moderately fit, I have no formal training and don’t cycle all that regularly.

The beautiful Lake Gardens justify Taiping’s recognition as the world’s third-most sustainable city according to the Sustainable Top 100 Destination Awards 2019

“I do see people doing inter-city cycling, but they are mostly foreigners and, I assume, tourists,” Nadhrah A Kadir, a Malay lecturer at Penang’s Universiti Sains Malaysia told us recently. Nadhrah fell in love with cycling as a foreign student at Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University in the US, convinced by her course mates that biking to campus was the best way to overcome the city’s limited public transportation system. Once back in Penang and appalled by its traffic, Nadhrah became a cycling and healthy lifestyle advocate, and is currently the spokeswoman for Bike on Friday. This Penang-based cycling community, which started in July 2015 as a governmental effort to make the island greener and cleaner, organises weekly Friday morning rides with the hope of raising awareness about the island’s comprehensive network of cycle lanes.

We discover what feels like a hidden, forgotten Malaysia

“But I’m not sure I’d consider long-distance cycling a trend among locals just yet,” Nadhrah continued. “I guess the main challenge is safety, as most roads in Malaysia are only designed to cater to motor vehicles.”

Traditional Malay houses with large courtyards dotted with flowers line the backroads to Kuala Selangor

I also spoke to Sin Tai Lim, a Malaysian-Chinese cyclist who works with Kuala Lumpur-based tour company Mike Bikes and loves to bring his folding bike to nearby towns like the Unesco-listed Melaka. He has a different opinion on inter-city cycling in Malaysia. “The country might not have proper cycle paths like South Korea or Taiwan,” he admitted. “But the web of smaller village and trunk roads are a joy to ride.”

Sin also believes that, given the increasing number of bicycles of all kinds being imported from as far as Japan and the UK and sold on the Malaysian market in recent years, long-distance cycling is certainly on the rise. “For instance, I was asked by some clients to consider doing a tour from Kuala Lumpur to Melaka and Singapore, returning by coach, but we haven’t started offering it as of yet.”

Pedalling under swaying coconut trees on the village road that flanks Malaysia’s highway 5 between Sekinchan and Sabak

Taking tips from Sin, we left Kuala Lumpur yesterday, a Saturday morning, at 7am. It was a bit of a nightmare as it’s not possible to bring regular-sized bikes on the local trains that travel from the city’s centre to the outskirts. We had to cycle across town in heavy traffic before following the two-lane expressway towards Kuala Selangor, our first stop. Some 25km later, we reached Sungai Buloh and the high-rises thinned out, replaced by flat, verdant fields. After a series of low hills, we took a long lunch break to stay out of the blistering midday sun. We reached Kuala Selangor by 4pm and spent the rest of our first day exploring the town, famous for the scenic Malawati Hill. At night, we slept extra soundly.

The slow back route

This morning, we’ve been on the road since 7am, enjoying the serene village back lanes that extend all the way along the Straits of Malacca to the town of Sabak. We discover what feels like a hidden, forgotten Malaysia: wooden houses on stilts stand cheek-by-jowl with colourful Chinese temples set along a coastal stretch of empty sand and sea. By pedalling, we have chosen to take a slow backroute that most travellers completely bypass as they speed between cities on the North-South Expressway. In contrast, we make frequent stops at the many coffee shops and simple streetside eateries that make the task of long-distance cycling that much more pleasant.

A Chinese temple along the Perak River in Sabak town

“Inter-city cycling doesn’t need to be challenging,” Joseph SK Tan said when I contacted him several weeks before to ask whether he thought a long-distance cycling trip in Malaysia was feasible. The sixtysomething blogger started cycling only seven years ago but in less than a decade, has travelled on two wheels in over 20 countries. Tan, who writes about his trips under the moniker Ah Pek Biker (“old man” in Hokkien), never rushes his own long-distance adventures, only covering between 50 to 80km per day. “Riding at a slower pace is best to enjoy each place and savour every moment,” he declared.

Dinesh and I couldn’t agree more. By mid-morning on our third day, we are crisscrossing through Perak state between Teluk Intan and Batu Gajah, completely sold on this more sedate mode of transport. Fresh headwinds caress us, carrying the smell of grass and trees with them. We pedal across a landscape dotted with lakes, coconut trees and paddy fields where water buffaloes graze. Mesmerised by the rural beauty, we wonder why more travellers don’t consider cycling as a means to explore Malaysia.

Mighty Menara Condong in Teluk Intan, Asia’s lesser-known leaning tower

“Many local cycling groups organise rides to other cities and states, which is proving to be increasingly popular,” Elena Shim has told me. A keen cyclist, Shim has explored the backroads of her native Kuala Lumpur and immediate surroundings, which led to the creation of tour service Bike with Elena, offering guided cycling and walking tours of the city’s less-known nooks and crannies. “Bike tourism has big potential in Malaysia, but we still need better infrastructure, such as proper cycle paths, more bike repair shops and bike-friendly cafés and accommodation.”

A forgotten history

Indeed, on our fourth morning, we set off at dawn on the quiet inner road to Taiping along interstate 73, a beautiful road that nevertheless has nothing to support cyclists in terms of dedicated lanes or convenient places to stop. The road skirts a bend of the Perak River for about 2km after Parit village, and then turns west, cutting through plantations to the small town of Beruas. Approaching it at mid-morning, we roll past the fenced enclosure of Beruas’ old village. It’s a vestige of the Malayan Emergency, a guerrilla war fought between 1948 and 1960, when the British controlled many of the Chinese villages in the interior of Perak, fencing them off to cut support to the communist rebels hiding in the surrounding jungles. Today’s Beruas town developed from that old protected enclosure.

This intriguing part of history, however, seems forgotten by most visitors, who often skip over the region, heading straight for Penang’s George Town. But even Penang has a 200km-long network of cycling lanes, and its residents think of it as Malaysia’s “first cycling state”. Bike on Fridays is just one of many local cycling groups to take advantage of this perk.

Sunset over the Selangor river in Kuala Selangor

“The local cycling groups are our main supporters,” said a representative of the City Council of Penang Island, which curated the cycling lanes. “But in June this year, the Bridge2Bridge Ride will kickstart a series of initiatives to promote Penang’s current commitment to boost cycling state-wide.”

On the fifth day, as we climb one last highway bridge to board the Penang Ferry in Butterworth, we are filled with a sense of accomplishment. Yet, there are no medals or recognition waiting for us – only bored commuters.

It’s a pity to be concluding our trip just when my body is starting to adjust to the long hours in the saddle. Ending it here, on a ferry to Penang, feels a bit too ironic. I wish we had another 10 days or so to keep cycling. Clearly, I’m not alone in my longing. Glancing over with a wry smile, Dinesh asks, “When are we doing this again?”

SEE ALSO: Neighbourhood Spotlight: Damansara Heights, Kuala Lumpur

This article was originally published in the June 2019 issue of Silkwinds magazine

The post The long way home: Cycling from Kuala Lumpur to Penang appeared first on SilverKris.

HMCS Goose Bay was tied up at Dieppe Park near the memorial to the Royal Canadian Navy and the Canadian Merchant Navy in Windsor during the Great Lakes Deployment on 3 June 2017. Photo by Ian Shalapata.

(WINDSOR, ON) – Windsor residents welcomed HMCS Goose Bay to Dieppe Park, on Saturday, as the ship continued with the 2017 Great Lakes Deployment. There was much anticipation as a long line developed as people waited to tour the Maritime Coastal Defence Vessel during her time alongside.

Members of HMCS Hunter provided the tour guides, taking groups of visitors around the smallish, but very versatile ship. Each of the reserve personnel have served aboard the Goose Bay or her Kingston-class sister coastal defence vessels.

Prior to opening the ship for tours, members of the Bkejwanong Territory welcomed the HMCS Goose Bay to Windsor during the Great Lakes Deployment on 3 June 2017. (L to R) PO2 Davenport, Edwin Taylor, Lyle Johnson, Sgt Sparks, LCdr Tucker, PO1 Hanson, A/SLt Moore. Photo by Ian Shalapata.

Once the jetty was in place, but before tours began, there was a short ceremony held as members from the Bkejwanong Territory welcomed LCdr Robert Tucker of the Goose Bay.

“We’re here to welcome HMCS Goose Bay to our territorial waters,” said Edwin Taylor. “This country that we live in is a beautiful place that was given to us and a lot of our people have served in the military; who wouldn’t want to defend their homeland?”

At each port during the Great Lakes Deployment, meetings with native leaders and smudging ceremonies are an important part of the festivities.

“We certainly appreciate their recognition of our territory,” said Lyle Johnson. “That was a big part of us being here.”

(L to R) LS Bratt, LS Ayala, LS Rasouli, and OS Smith were just a few of the members of HMCS Hunter who acted as tour guides on board HMCS Goose Bay in Windsor during the Great Lakes Deployment on 3 June 2017. Photo by Ian Shalapata.

The GLD has a goal of fostering a better understanding of the Royal Canadian Navy amongst Canadians, who are not regularly aware of the Navy’s mandate, capabilities, and deployments. As well, the deployment hopes to attract talented individuals and provide insight into the RCN and Naval Reserves.

“This is an opportunity for us to hit our outreach targets and get the citizens of Windsor on a warship,” said LCdr Robert Head. “It gives them an opportunity to see what the sailors and the reservists are actually doing.”

The Goose Bay  and her compliment of 45 will continue to receive visitors Sunday morning before leaving for Cobourg and then Kingston. Once the GLD is completed, HMCS Goose Bay will be part of a sovereignty patrol in the Canadian arctic.

#gallery-0-4 { margin: auto; } #gallery-0-4 .gallery-item { float: left; margin-top: 10px; text-align: center; width: 100%; } #gallery-0-4 img { border: 2px solid #cfcfcf; } #gallery-0-4 .gallery-caption { margin-left: 0; } /* see gallery_shortcode() in wp-includes/media.php */

The crew of the HMCS Goose Bay prepared to “WELCOME” visitors on board the ship while in Windsor during the Great Lakes Deployment on 3 June 2017. Photo by Ian Shalapata.

The crew of the HMCS Goose Bay was a flurry of activity to prepare the ship for visitors during the Great Lakes Deployment on 3 June 2017. Photo by Ian Shalapata.

A crew member of HMCS Goose Bay ties off a line while the ship was in Windsor during the Great Lakes Deployment on 3 June 2017. Photo by Ian Shalapata.

HMCS Goose Bay was nestled in alongside Dieppe Park in Windsor during the Great Lakes Deployment on 3 June 2017. Photo by Ian Shalapata.

Naval members with HMCS Goose Bay had much to do to prepare for visitors while the ship was in Windsor during the Great Lakes Deployment on 3 June 2017. Photo by Ian Shalapata.

The bridge of the HMCS Goose Bay was outfitted with bilingual interpretation placards for visitors while in Windsor during the Great Lakes Deployment on 3 June 2017. Photo by Ian Shalapata.

The weapons control centre (left) and the diesel electric propulsion system helm of HMCS Goose Bay. The ship was in Windsor during the Great Lakes Deployment on 3 June 2017. Photo by Ian Shalapata.

A member of HMCS Hunter (left) leads visitors through HMCS Goose Bay while LS Cottingham (bottom) waits patiently for the writer during a tour of the ship when is was alongside in Windsor during the Great Lakes Deployment on 3 June 2017. Photo by Ian Shalapata.

An unmanned surface drone called the Humpback provides HMCS Goose Bay with fore-ship sonar. Additionally, plans are underway to equip the Humpback with electronic jamming equipment which could be used to protect Canadian frigates from anti-ship missiles. HMCS Goose Bay was in Windsor during the Great Lakes Deployment on 3 June 2017. Photo by Ian Shalapata.

HMCS Goose Bay Alongside In Windsor #Canada150 #RCNavy @RCN_MRC (WINDSOR, ON) – Windsor residents welcomed HMCS Goose Bay to Dieppe Park, on Saturday, as the ship continued with the 2017 Great Lakes Deployment.