Motorbike Crash #1

Driving a motorbike in Asia is the easiest and funnest– yes I know that’s not a word but it should be — way to get around. It’s super cheap, around 4-6 dollars for a 24 hour rental with a helmet. They are quite easy to learn to ride and once you get the hang of it you will be set for the rest of your trip. I rode one almost everyday for my entire trip and never had any issues until….

My time finally came when I was on the island of Langkawi in Malaysia. While traveling you will consistently see people who have been in an accident with bandages on their knees, but you never think it will happen to you. Well newsflash!  I’m not invincible.

I had been on the island for around a week already and had ridden a motorbike all around with no problems. But on one frightful evening I decided to visit a beach on the other side of the island to watch sunset.  I walked down the road from my hostel to rent a motorbike, but my usual rental place was all sold out. So I walked another 20 minutes until I finally found a place. I had to put a deposit down on the bike to ensure no damages were incurred, which is a pretty normal procedure. So on my way I went to chase the sunset.

The pre-crash sunset

 

After some lovely alone time relaxing and reading, I started to head back to my hostel so I wasn’t driving in the dark. I had both my headphones in jamming out to some tunes while my phone was tucked into my shorts. I was on a main road in the bike lane when a car pulled up next to me and started shouting something. I couldn’t hear what they were saying so they drove a bit closer to me and shouted again. I assumed they were trying to help me since in the past I have had other drivers tell me my kickstand was down or that my lights weren’t turned on. So I kept edging closer and closer to the car to try and find out what they were saying to me. We were eventually too close for comfort so I veered left while still looking at the car on my right and BAM.

In seconds I was thrown off my bike and splayed out on the road. My bike was still running, turned over 5 feet in front of me. My headphones were yanked out of my ears, my phone was launched across the street, and my glasses fell off my face. Once I had time to process what happened, the car that shouted at me had quickly driven away. Guess they weren’t trying to help me after all.

Thankfully, a local riding a motorbike behind me stopped and made sure I was okay. He collected my phone and glasses, turned the bike off and stood it upright. As I went to stand I noticed my whole right leg was covered in road rash and blood. My knees had deep gashes and I had cuts all over my toes (pro tip: don’t ride in flip flops). My hands were bloody from catching my fall but hey, at least my phone didn’t crack. Ha. Ha.

The nice local asked to take me to a hospital but I refused; I didn’t have travel insurance because once again, I thought I was invincible. Also I’m cheap and didn’t want to pay the fees. I thanked the man and assured him I was okay enough to keep riding. A bit shaken, I got back on the bike and drove super slowly home. The wind against my bloody wounds was some of the worst pain I have ever felt. My hands were shaking in agony and I had to clench my shirt in between my teeth to prevent them from cracking with pressure. The blood was beginning to pool in my sandals so I stopped by a roadside fruit stand to ask for napkins. The lady spoke no English but understood I clearly needed help. I put the napkins all over my cuts to stop the bleeding and to prevent the wind from hitting it. Ya…it didn’t work.

I had to drive for another 20 minutes so I sang Bohemian Rhapsody over and over to distract myself from the pain. I realized I only rented the bike for the day so I had to return it by 8 and get my deposit back before I could get bandaged up. When I arrived at the bike shop I tried to hide my bloody legs from the owner. Luckily the place was pretty busy so she didn’t notice my legs…or the scratches on the bike. I quickly grabbed my deposit and limped my way out of there. I then called a Grab (Asia’s Uber) to take me to a pharmacy. The woman who picked me up seemed to really care about my well-being because when I hobbled into the backseat she said “Just don’t get blood on my car.” Sure thing lady. After a quick drive I walked into the pharmacy and the guy at the register gave me the classic ‘up down’ look and silently went to grab all the supplies I would need. Bandages, Iodine, pain medication, and antibiotic ointment.

When I got to my hostel I took around 15 minutes getting up the stairs before I arrived at the doors. When I walked in I immediately found a friend and threw him my bag of pharmacy supplies. He took me into the showers to rinse off the blood, gravel, and napkins stuck to my wounds. Remember when I said the wind hitting my wounds was the worst pain I’d felt? Yeah, scratch that. The water felt WAY worse. It made my whole body go numb and I couldn’t stand up on my own. My friend held me up for a few more seconds until he had enough of my screams. He then took me to the couch and started disinfecting my wounds.

The other guests at the hostel felt bad for me so they bought me shots to numb the pain. There was also an older woman who sat next to me and held my hand while the iodine seared my leg off. She gave me that motherly energy I really needed in that moment. She also fed me fruity Mentos which anyone who knows me, knows I love candy more than anything. So there I sat getting bandaged up by strangers who became friends.

WARNING: gross injury pics ahead