Category Archives: Thailand

Aussie catch-up

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Hualamphong Station, Bangkok

Hualamphong Station, Bangkok

Fair bit of travelling since the last post, but I’ll try to breeze through it all. My flight from Yangon to Bangkok was on time, but I had some “fun” at the departure tax kiosk trying to convince them to accept a torn $5 bill and a $1 with the tiniest little rip in it. Two other passengers swapped the bills for me, stating how ridiculous the system was in Mynmar where the condition of the notes is so important. Their own currency can be battered, torn, ripped, covered in grease… and still accepted.

At Bangkok, I hooked up with another guy and two girls and we shared a taxi into the city. The chap and I were both getting off at Hualamphong while the girls were going on to Khao San Road. That involved a lot of haggling with the driver, but overall it worked out at around 50 baht each cheaper than getting the bus, and far faster.

At the train station I loafed in the KFC for an hour or so until my train was ready for boarding. A menu was provided for dinner and breakfast on the train, which would cost me 250 baht in total. You can take your own (non strong-smelling) food on board if you prefer, but the grub on board wasn’t too bad for the price.

The journey was quite long – departing at roughly 3pm and arriving at Butterworth in Malaysia around 2pm the next day (an hour ahead due to the time difference). It’s fairly comfy with large seats for the start of the journey. Around 10pm, the staff wander down and convert the seated areas into berths – one upper, one lower.  The upper ones are slightly cheaper and – apparently – slightly smaller, but certainly not cramped.

I enjoyed some brief conversation on the trip with two Japanese people travelling independantly of each other. I still find it unusual to see Japanese who aren’t on package/coach tours but they’re always very nice to chat with.

No hippies allowed!

No hippies allowed!

The customs stopoff as we crossed the border at Padang Besar was fairly casual, very much like the one coming from Singapore and heading north into Malaysia. However, here there are no x-ray machines. You still have to disembark with all your luggage, stamp out of Thailand, into Malaysia and then open your luggage. The check was cursory and polite with my bag being waved on after a quick prod and a query of “clothes?”

I did spot one sign as I queued at immigration giving details on how to spot a “hippie”. Click the thumbnail for the full details. I’m hoping this dates back to the 60’s and isn’t used these days!

At Butterworth, I haggled my bus fare down from 32RM to 28 (saving about 80p…) but had to find an ATM. If you’re arriving there off the train, go to the end of the platform to the station and look to the right. You’ll see a big glass building – the dental college. It’s about a five minute walk on the other side of the freeway. There are three banks located around the bottom with ATMs.

My 14:30 bus departed at 15:45 which wasn’t great. It was very comfy, though, with fully reclining seats and just the right level of aircon. It took quite some time to get to KL – over five hours – so it was rather late when I arrived.

The stage is set...

The stage is set...

I tried to find my guesthouse – Haven – but couldn’t spot it. As I stood looking puzzled, a man walked up and identified himself as one of the staff. Due to the heavy rain in KL recently, the ceiling had sprung a leak and they’d had to close down for repairs. He then walked me to another hostel nearby where they’d made arrangements for some of their guests to be houses. It was more expensive, but they were covering the difference. Nice place, too. So next time I’m in KL, I will be booking with Haven again and hoping their ceiling’s working!

I didn’t do much in KL apart from use the internet a lot and eat too much McD’s. I had some good company in the hostel, though, with Kiki from Vietnam, a German guy who’s name I didn’t get, James from England and a chap from Sri Lanka (now living in India) who I talked to for ages.

Then the usual Skytrain/bus combo to the airport (another McDs) and late flight to Perth where the lovely Mel picked me up after midnight. Immigration was a little hiccupy as I didn’t know Mel’s address. The usual rule – if it’s got an address space on it, fill it in. Even if you don’t know one, put any old nonsense in. The immigration guy was fine about it, to be fair, but it’s still one of those daft niggles. Back at her place I was introduced to Mason – 11 months old and cute as a button. He wasn’t around the last time I was in Perth!

Again, not a lot to do in Perth except lay back and chill out with Mel, Matt, Mason and Jezza. I bought a bundle of second hand books from an OpShop (charity place) for $4. The bill only came to $2.50 (a pound!) for about 12 books, but I don’t mind giving a charity shop a bit extra. My plan’s not to use aeroplanes so the extra bulk/weight shouldn’t be a problem.

Rocking hard!

Rocking hard!

The guys also had a gig in a nearby bar on Saturday night which I went to. They’re Matt drums, Mel sings and Jezza plays guitar. There’s also a bassist and another vocalist/guitarist who I met. The band’s called Crimson Ink and they’re pretty good! The sound was a little squelchy on their first set, but by the second and third they had a decent sized crowd up and dancing.

After the gig, there was a little altercation outside. Kids who couldn’t hold their beer – same all over the world. I helped break it up and ended up with blood down my arm and on my shirt. Not my blood, I hasten to add! And I don’t even know how it got there as I didn’t see anyone actually bleeding. Still, it all ended more or less peacefully and the venue seemed to like Crimson Ink – with luck it could mean a residency.

And that’s me up to date. I’m currently trying to get a lift to Adelaide ASAP. Failing that I’ll bite the bullet and get a flight. Tiger have one for the ridiculously low sum of $88 at 1:45am on Wednesday although I have to worry about those books. Hum.

Oh, I also have an Aussie mobile. If you need the number, contact me through the link on the right and I’ll give you it. It took me an age to register it as – like in the UK now or soon or planned – you have to register with a valid Australian address. Which is pointless as it’s not checked. The online registration refused to recognise Mel and Matt’s address, so I had to go through the voice recognition system over the phone. In an area with a really dodgy signal. Somehow I got it working though.

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Cambodia, Thailand and Myanmar in one day

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Glitzy tri-shaw

Glitzy tri-shaw

So I just missed an airport bus outside the Sofitel on Silom. As a result, I had to fend off taxi drivers trying to convince me that I wouldn’t want to wait for the next one. One even told me to go drinking with him first! Once he moved onto the “is it a holiday at the temple, so not many buses today” line, I turned my back and walked off.

Fifty minutes later and the Airport Express arrived. I plopped my bum on the 100 baht seat and an hour later I was deposited at the departure terminal. At midnight. With over five hours until my departure gate opened. I was lucky enough to find a row of partially-padded seats I could lie on and managed maybe 2½ hours’ fitful sleep.

As ever with AirAsia, a quick and efficient check-in then on to the gate via Boots for some Immodium as my bum’s been leaking for a few days. Hey, it’s all part of the traveling experience. I live it so you don’t have to.

The flight to Yangon was perhaps half full and I got loads of legroom by the emergency exit. It’s a short flight – around 1 hour and 15 minutes. Myanmar is an unusual 30 minutes behind Thailand (though not as unusual as Nepal’s 15-minutes zone) so clocks were adjusted.

The airport at Yangon – only two years old – is quite clean and modern and certainly capable of handling more flights than it currently gets. Immigration was a breeze with very smiley officials and my bags must have been offloaded by a team of sprinters on speed (likely manufactured for the illicit Chinese drugs market in a small shed somewhere in the north with a share of the profits going to the generals who run Myanmar).

Collecting my luggage, I was approcahed by a man from one of the guest houses in the city, Motherland Inn (2). They offered a free taxi ride into town – normally $6 or $7. This seemed good to me and a minibus shortly appeared, was filled with potential guests and zipped us south.

I managed to get a comfy dorm bed with a cavernous locker underneath for $5 a night, which completely outweighted the potential taxi cost. Bargain. And breakfast on arrival. Double bargain. The staff are awesome and couldn’t have been more helpful.

I buddied up with Peter from South Africa and we went for a walk around just after midday to change currency and see a few sights.

A view of the city

A view of the city

Do note that while in Myanmar I won’t be seeing as many of the “top” sights as I’d like. It’s not the charges, it’s that the lion’s share of the income doesn’t go towards their upkeep. In lines the pockets of the “Generals” who run the country and who live in luxury. Hence, as far as I’m able, I’ll be staying with locals (i.e. not government hotels), at monasteries and using privately-run transport. I would urge anyone visiting to do the same.

It’s also possible to dodge the entry taxes and permit offices in many places. If you can skip them… do it. Checks after the sale point are vitually unheard of, and even if it happens, nothing will be done to you. In any other country I’d be telling you to do the opposite and ensure you support the upkeep of the monuments you’re visiting. But as long as the local people themselves are saying “don’t pay”, I’d recommend listening to them.

If I do stay with any locals, or if any give me advice on how to dodge anything then their details will not be on here. I don’t want to risk getting them into trouble.

So. Anyway. The streets of Yangon are a curious mixture of old and new (well, old and really old) with some exteriors in a horrendous state of disrepair, A shame as you can clearly see how good they’d look with some spit, polish and paint.

As far as the people go, I got the impression of a mixture of South East and South Asia. Where Kuala Lumpur and Singapore have their respective Little Indias and Chinatowns, Yangon is a complete mash-up of them. There are people who look Indian, and Thai, and something in between. Food on the street varies from samosas to noodles.

We walked down pot-holed streets pas a myriad of stall-holders looking for the indoor market. We’d been told not to change cash with anyone on the street as they may gave poor rates, or slip in dodgy notes. It’s best to use a jeweller’s or similar inside the market. Again, it’s black market even though everyone does it (like in Nigeria) so I won’t say who we changed with but he was very pleasant and didn’t complain in the slightest as we counted and checked every single bill.

Don’t use a bank, either. The exchange rate will be poor. And for heaven’s sake definitely don’t change your money at the airport where you’ll get the “official” exchange rate of around 5.7 Kyats (pronounced “chats”)to the US Dollar. In town, we got 1040K to a $ for our $100 bills and a straight 1000K per dollar for the rest. Just a bit of a difference, eh?

Good old British architecture

Good old British architecture

I also bought a $5 FEC for face value. These used to be the only currency that tourists could spend, and only certain places were licensed to accept them. This meant that the government could control who you could buy from, fix prices and ensure they kept virtually all of the cash coming in from tourism. Nowadays anyone bringing in large quantities of money (mainly businesses and NGOs) must still convert to FECs… and then on the sly to Kyats. Thus they lose two times on conversion charges.

Our next stop was the Sakura Tower. It’s one of the tallest building in town and has a bistro on the top floor from where you can get a good view. They don’t seem to mind people walking in, taking photos and leaving – which is good as the food’s pretty expensive.

Back at street level, we picked up some veggie samosas with our new kyat. It was more difficult than we’d anticipated as 1000K is actually quite an amount.

“3 for 200”
“OK… 3 please”

These three were bagged up and handed to Peter who passed over 1000K. The vendor started asking around for change.

“Wait. Make it 6”

Another three were bagged up, change handed to Peter and we started to walk off. Only to have the guy run after us and shove another couple in the bag as we’d been under-changed!

We ambled around fairly aimlessly and stopped for some sugar-cane juice by the park (at 400K for a large glass), and then some chai on little stools on the street. The tea cost about 200K and is followed by as much green tea as you can drink for free. We were served by a couple of boys in AC Milan shirts who were befuddled then overjoyed at their huge unexpected tip when Peter let them keep the change from a 1000.

Do note that a lot of children work in Myanmar. This is a completely different case from Vietnam where parents need the money coming in so much that the extra pairs of hands are indespensible. Here, schools cost money and a lot of people simply can’t afford the fees. There is next to no free schooling in Myanmar, a sorry state of affairs. But then, educated people are a threat as well as a resource and the government is short-sighted in wanting to ensure it stays at the top (wallowing in cash) for as long as possible.

Fifteen minutes or so later we found ourselves down at one of the docs as the sun set. We watched two games of football being played and shook the hand of one man who thanked us profusely for visiting his country.

The nearby 50th Street Bar and Grill was our beer stop for a whileas we worked through two jugs of Tiger at happy hour prices ($3.50 each).

Burmese people can't look tough

Burmese people can't look tough

Heading home, we were a little disoriented as the streets to the east of the centre start to meander slightly. A young couple, who looked like they lived on the street corner where we were examining our Lonely Planet map, read the business card we had from the hostel and offered to walk us back. Sign language is useful! Accompanied by their beautiful babe-in-arms, who I was allowed to hold for a short while, we were back at the guest house in short order.

By the time we got back, I’d finally decided how I’d tackle Myanmar. First, north to Kalaw to do a 2-day hike to Inle Lake. Across to Bagan, north-east to Mandalay and finally the overnight bus back to Yangon.

I booked my first bus ticket – just in time. Bookings are best made a day in advance, but I got my 16,000K seat sorted for the trip to Kalaw the next day.

Before sleeping I got talking to a guy in the dorm who works for an NGO in the far north of the country, right by the Chinese border. He told me a lot about how the country functions (or doesn’t) and how much you can get away with,m being a foreigner. I’d love to say more about his job and so forth, but I’d not want to risk pointing a finger somehow towards his NGO and causing them trouble. Yes, you really do get this paranoid in this country.

Some things he did tell me were that:

Sai-kas (cyclos where the pedaller is beside the passenger) are banned from certain roads in Yangon during daytime hours
Motorcycles are banned outright for no readily apparent reason
Nobody ever checks your permits/passes after you’ve bought them
You only need to see the Shwe Dagon Pagoda in Yangon and then forget all the others in the country – it’s by far the most spectacular

A friend of his bought a sai-ka and they took it for a spin in the town. During the day. On the main roads. The police blew whistles… then realised it was two foreigners and studiously ignored them. Locals took photos – it certainly gave them a laugh!

And finally bed-time. Comfy beds, too…

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Back (again!) to Bangkok

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You know, I really have to go through this blog sometime and figure out how many times I’ve passed through Bangkok in the course of this journey. If I was to hazard a guess, I’d say ten times. Not bad given I’d not even set foot in Asia before March 14th 2006. Is it really almost three year?

The trip was pretty smooth. As agreed, I crawled down the stairs to reception before 7am to await the share taxi. He arrived around 15 minutes later and I was told to take one of the back seats. “Three people, back seat”. No problem. We then drove around Battambong to pick up those three people, and one more for the front seat – a businessman with a laptop who’d paid extra to be the only non-sardine other than the driver. Yeah, when they said “three”, I thought they’d meant three including me.

We made it to the border in good time, and our driver obviously knew what he was doing. If ever there was a hint of a police presence at the roadside, he’d wait for a bus to overtake then sit very close behind it. By the time the police saw the taxi, we were way past them. Not that the driver was dong anything wrong but the police in Cambodia can be somewhat… “inventive” with the offences they charge fines for.

I was dropped right at the border point at Poipet around 10:10 – much better than catching the bus which wouldn’t even leave Battambang until after midday. If I could get a seat.

Getting stamped out of Cambodia and into Thailand was a cinch. Join a queue at one side to exit Cambodia. Pass through the “no man’s land” using the left-hand path and into immigration. Grab a form sat on counter number 6, fill it in, go through the routine passport check and exit from the other side. Doddle.

Once in Aranyaprathet, a short walk leads to a sign telling all tourists and foreigners to turn right. Within 20m of this point, I’d already has one person approach me with an offer of a bus ticket to Bangkok. As it worked out, it was a good deal. 300 baht, double decker, air-con, express (4 hours), free water and leaving soon. As a bonus, it would stop opposite Hualamphong saving me getting there from Mo Chit.

There are cheaper, indirect, buses from the station in town but by the time I’d have paid for a motorcycle to get there it simply wouldn’t have been worth it. There is also a train for around 70 baht, but it’s 6 hours and there are only two a day. If you’re looking, the company is the first on the left after you pass the baggage check area.

As an aside, the toasties from the sandwich stand aren’t bad (and are cheap) and the large bank on the corner does a good exchange rate.

A little over four hours later – just after 3pm, and I was disembarking at the central train station. As the advance ticket office closes at 4pm and certain routes book up early, I had to be here to ensure I could organise my ticket for the first leg to Kuala Lumpur so I knew I’d be able to get down there once I got back from Myanmar.

The helpful staff at the information desk escorted me to the right queue and ensured I booked the ticket correctly. 1120 baht gets me from Bangkok to Butterworth, overnight in an air-con bunk with meals (I think – I’ll check that!). For 90 baht more you can have a lower bunk which I think just gives you a little more space.

All sorted, I got the MRT to Silom and walked down the road. Lunch in McDs and then into the Duke of Wellington to use the free wi-fi. I’m sat here now, typing this up. On my 2-and-a-half’th Tiger and with some very good potato skins with cheese and bacon in my belly. Frankly, I’m stuffed. The “free” wi-fi has cost me about a tenner, but I’ve caught up on a lot and the live music’s superb.

And with that, I shall sign off. I’m intending to catch the 10pm-ish airport express. I’ll sleep at the airport itself as my check-in is at 5:15am. The first bus from Bangkok leaves at 5am so there’s no point in even trying to catch that.

There may be a delay in posts as I gather that the internet in Myanmar is not that good. Normal posting will be resumed once I get to Kuala Lumpur around the 24th or 25th!

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Holiday in Cambodia

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Hat Lek / Krong Koh Kong

Hat Lek / Krong Koh Kong

I don’t know what it is, but still whenever I think about Cambodia a certain Dead Kennedys song goes through my head. Weird. Today would be my third visit to the country and my first to the south-west.

Although I’d planned to get up early, that didn’t quite work as I decided I just had to watch the last two episodes of last season’s Spooks before I packed up. Woah, what an ending! I won’t spoil it for you… This meant I headed out to get breakfast at around 10:30. I picked up chicken and rice from the same place as yesterday and also checked on the transportation to Hat Lek (or Had Lek). This is obtainable from the “bus station” around the back of the market, on the other side from Sukhumvit Road.

Buses are frequent and I managed to get the times from a very helpful lady. Between her broken English and my broken Thai, I deciphered the times and that for 60 baht I would be taken to Hat Lek, then for a further 50 baht another sawngthaew would carry me to the border checkpoint. The name “sawngthaew” literally means “two rows” and refers to the benches bolted into the back of a regular truck. There’s usually a roof (hand made, of course) over the top as well.

I thanked Mama Jame who recommended a place to stay in Krong Koh Kong, and walked back round to the bus station. Bang on time, I was ushered onto my awaiting steed, crammed in with 7 non-English speaking Thais and we set off.

After around twenty minutes, the truck pulled over and two little old ladies got on. We made room for one and I volunteered to stand so that the other could sit – I was nearest the entrance/exit/step so it made sense. After maybe 15 minutes of being a passenger in a fashion that would have the Health and Safety munchkins in the UK’s heads exploding (oh, what a joyous thought), both ladies departed and I regained my seat.

A few more passengers got on and off, including one woman with a small child (who got a smack off his dad for running across the road) and a basket full of puppies. Just what you see every day. Well, here anyway. Roughly ninety minutes after we left town, we pulled into Hat Lek and I was shuffled onto another sawngthaew along with the puppy lady and her son. Half an hour later we were at the border. I could have told you this by the sudden gaggle of madmen asking me if I needed visa, ticket, hotel and so on. Here we go again.

I dodged them all, confusing many by saying I wasn’t going to Sihanoukville, Phnom Penh or Siem Reap. Which was true – not until the next day anyway. Checking out of Thailand took two minutes in an orderly queue (where I spotted that if you enter the country by land, you only get a 15-day visa, not 30 as from the airports) while I joined a veritable melée outside the immigration office on the Cambodian side.

My eVisa didn’t really speed things up, but it did save me some cash going by the complaints from the surrounding tourists. If you arrive with one of these, you still have to fill in an immigration form and ensure you keep one of the copies of your visa tucked into your passport as it’s the only thing you’ll have with your visa number on. You’ll need this to check into hotels and so on. The only real downside is that you don’t get one of the nice, big, green stickers in your passport as a souvenir – just a regular stamp.

In the queue I got talking to a Danish family (mum, dad, 3 kids) a girl from Sweden and Claire from London. There was another chap, but we lost track of him so I can only tell you he was British. As we all had separate plans, Claire, Swedish Girl and English Guy and I all ended up in one taxi. English Guy had “agreed” to a 300 baht fare without haggling so we were stuck. But on we went.

As an aside, yes – baht. Around the border area and in the town, baht is readily accepted along with US dollars and the native riel. Handy if you need to cash up as there is only one ATM at the border and none in Krong Koh Kong, although the banks there will accept Visa for cash advances.

Sunset

Sunset

As we drove, our first hint that our cab driver was trying it on was when we arrived at a toll gate. He demanded 11 baht from each of us for the toll despite a large sign next to the booth clarly stating that cars were 4000 riel ($1, 38 baht). Despite English Guy being ready to cough up, we stopped him and stood our ground. Or sat in or seats. We were already paying too much for the ride and he was trying to screw us for an extra 44 baht.

Eventually he caved, insisting we would pay him when we reached town. Then he started to sulk. We’d asked to be taken to the guest house, although English Guy and Swedish Girl wanted to check out the chance of a taxi to Phnom Penh. After the diversion resulted in them refusing the 4000 baht asking price we ended up at a bus ticket sales office.

We argued and demanded he take is to the guest house which he’d earlier said he knew, but he suddenly declared he didn’t know where it was. So we got out. Claire and I decided he could make do with 200 baht for the fare instead of the 300 he’d asked for as he’d not taken us to the correct destination. Swedish Girl, I think, gave him too much so he probably got close to his 300 anyway.

English Guy gave in and got back into the cab – fool – and us three got another one which looked at the card Mama Jame had given me and agreed to take us there for 50 baht each. It was five minutes’ drive away and, on arriving, was obviously not the place on the card. Similar name, different telephone numbers. Still, the rooms looked OK and were 100 baht each so we took them. Amusingly, English Guy had arrived at the same place ahead of us (with the taxi driver who “didn’t know where this place was”) and was on his way elsewhere as he wanted somewhere more upmarket.

The Danish family had also beaten us there and booked into one room with two beds for 150 baht. Bargain for five people! The staff were pleasant and the obligatory cute infant was running around so we felt fine there.

Thing is, I’d by now run out of cash as I had thought there was an ATM in town. There isn’t. Claire, however, had plenty and kindly offered to spot me until we got to Sihanoukville. At the time of writing I owe her for my bus ticket (500 baht or $15), dinner (95 baht) a beer (80 baht) and half a banana pancake (no idea). In case she reads this – a huge public “thank you” for helping me out and you should have the cash by now!

After dinner, we took a quick walk onto the river to snap some sunset pics then down the road for internet (60 baht an hour in each place we found and very slow indeedy). We also located the Koh Konh Guest House which is where we’d wanted to go in the first place. The staff there were also lovely, the rooms nicer (but pricier) and the food much better, bigger portions and cheaper! We told them about the taxi drivers and they got a little annoyed. I hope they sort it out.

We settled down and had the aforementioned beer and pancake while we talked to a few lads who were watching the footie on telly. All too soon, Claire decided to call it a night and I decided to head back as well. It’s pretty dark around here at night so I couldn’t let her walk back by herself.

Back at the guest house I had a quick, cold, shower. Despite having an electric shower on the wall, it didn’t work. Strong jet of water, luke warm. Still, I had that for over three weeks in Bali. It’s just annoying as we’d taken the rooms partly as we’d expected warm water. Well, I had.

I took a quick walk over the road, too, where I got a bottle of water for 25 baht. It was meant to be 25, but I was all out. The little old lady there very kindly said I could have a 1 baht discount. If I remember in the morning, I’ll try to scrounge a coin from Claire and run over with it. 1 baht to me is nothing. To them it’s actually worth something.

And now I’m finished typing, I’m going to start on the final season of The Shield. I will try to get some sleep tonight…

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Day trip to Koh Chang

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Couldn't have been pinker...

Couldn't have been pinker...

It seems most people who visit Koh Chang these days do it for a whole holiday, or at the very least a few days on a resort. Me being me, though, decided to just troll around the place for a say and see what the fuss is about.

I woke up early-ish to say goodbye to Gunther who was off to another island. Breakfast was chicken and rice from the market and then Mama Jame (I have no idea what she’s called, but I like “Mama Jame”) walked me to a barber shop from where I could hire a motorbike. Before we’d left, a chap I’d not met before gave me a map of the island and some instructions which basically narrowed down to “be careful on the roads”.

The bike rental was 200 baht for the day with a full tank, to be returned in the same condition. It was an automatic, which made it much easier to get going than the evil manuals we’d had in Hoi An last year. I had more chance of starting up and going without the bike getting away from me and giving someone a faceful of Dunlop.

For those planning this trip, you want to head for the Centre Point ferry pier. The one directly south of Trat is for foot passengers only. I actually missed the turning for Centre Point in the first instance, but it was worth it. Head out of Trat and keep going in a straight line. If you reach a beautiful lighthouse and a jetty, you’ve gone too far. Circle the lighthouse, double back and take a left at the traffic lights about 200m back up the road. As I said, worth overshooting for the photo op.

Along the road I should have gone along, you want to keep going for around 8km. There’s a fairly noticeable left turn for the ferry, and the terminal itself is maybe 1km or so down that road. If you’re low on fuel, there’s a little petrol station on the left before the junction which charges reasonable prices. It’s currently 30 baht a litre from the small vendors on Koh Chang, and almost 10 baht less on the mainland.

The ferry was very cheap – 60 baht for me and 20 baht for the bike, each way. It’s easier to just buy your return tickets when you get there. They’re “open” so even if you’re staying a couple of days you can use them to get back. I arrives in good time to just drive onto a waiting vessel, though during the busy season you’ll generally not wait more than half an hour to board a boat for the 25-minute journey.

Thai light house

Thai light house

As I clambered up the stairs to get a seat, several young Thai men in red t-shirts flashed cameras in my face. Like a rollercoaster, you can opt to buy these photos later as a souvenir. I can’t help but think they should be doing this for people *leaving* rather than arriving. That’s the time for souvenirs like that – once you’ve had a good time and want a nice momento. Of course, you may be all spent up by then.

The crossing passed quickly and all too soon I was zipping back off onto dry land to face the windy roads of Koh Chang. And windy they were. And steep. Going up is fun, coming down some of them reminds me of The Big One in Blackpool. Only I have brakes I can control. Regardless, doing 80 (k’s not m’s) on two wheels seems a lot faster than doing it on four.

Oh, and assuming you don’t drive like a trucker with one arm out of the window you tend not to get sunburnt in a car either. Oops.

The weather was lovely, hence the redness on my arms and thighs now, and the roads were fine apart from the scary bits. A lot of falang were nipping about on scooters with a few preferring air-con luxury and a driver. My original plan had been to near-circle the island (the road doesn’t connect at the bottom so it’s an incomplete ring) seeing both sides, but I ran out of time just doing the west coast.

This one’s mainly all resorts which makes it hard to get to the beach unless you’re staying in one of them. Or you bluff it like I did at Hua Hin what seems an eternity ago. I skipped it apart from a very brief stop for a Coke at tiny bar right near the bottom of the island.

I’d headed south virtually non-stop apart from the occasional photo-op. On the return leg, I paid a short visit to Bang Bao and its very long shop-laden pier. There are several dive shops here with their boats moored at the end, and another nice lighthouse. This one’s very much a Thai design and can be climbed up. I think it’s pretty much decorative rather than useful but I’ve not been there at night so I can’t say for sure.

On the way north again, I kept my eyes open for the road to the Klong Plu waterfall. I found it and turned off right. After a kilometre or so I ignored the “PARK HERE” sign asking for 10 or 20 baht for safe bike/car storage and drove right into the National Park area. Where a nice ranger told me to park up by the office. For free. Mind you, at 200 baht entry fee (foreign adult) they shouldn’t be charging for parking.

The walk to the waterfall is 500m and easily achievable wearing sandals, flip-flops or thongs. I’d recommend going barefoot once you reach the waterfall itself, though. The rocks are easier to navigate that way specially if you get your feet wet. The pools there can be swum in – it’s not too cold – and you can get right up to the bottom of the fall itself. Apparently two kings have signed their names somewhere but I couldn’t find them.

Klong Plu Waterfall

Klong Plu Waterfall

I doubled back to the visitor centre where there is a large map. It showed the route around the park as circular yet I’d not seen any way to progress after the waterfall. So instead looked for the other end of the loop, up the side of the rangers’ office. Just behind there, there’s a road leading left and off that is an obvious (ish) stairway.

I clambered up there and started trekking. This is where decent footwear would come in handy. To begin with it’s not too bad but as you go on, your feet will get sweaty and therefore start sliding on your footwear. Not ideal. You don’t need hiking boots – a half-decent pair of trainers would be fine.

On a few occassions I lost track of the trail. This section has not been very well maintained. In fairness some areas are blocked by recently-fallen trees, but others have been obscured by much older obstacles. I clambered around and over them and kept managing to pick up the path again. The simple trick is to look for anything vaguely artificial – stones making steps, an area that’s far too clear and so on.

Finally I reached an opening where there was water flowing. And nothing else. No signs, nothing. The way down to the rocks was partially barred by some yellow string, but it seemed more a warning to take one path over another than a “do not continue”. So I continued.

Eventually I found a path on the other side of the rocks (opposite where I’d appeared, opposite side of the rocks, about 10m along). The table and chairs hidden in a small clearing gave the game away that this was actually a trail. A fair bit further and I reached one of the ranger signs. This one declaring the “end of the trail”. Although someone had scored out the word “end” and replaced it with an arrow pointing to where I’d just come from. So, obviously, I needed to continue in the other direction. So I did.

Sunset from the ferry

Sunset from the ferry

Finally, again, I reached more rocks. And water. And the top of the waterfall. I didn’t go too close to the edge, but tried my best to get a couple of photos before locating another cleared path and making my way downwards. This was where the decent footwear would really have come in handy. Around fifteen minutes later – at a guess – I popped back out at ground level and figured out where the paths connected.

Right on the other side of a “Do Not Enter” sign.

Just before you reach the waterfall is a large wooden sign telling you what it is. a couple of metres before that is another sign warning you not to climb into the forest. The path is up here. I didn’t go past any warnings coming the other direction!

I headed back to my bike – a good hour later than I’d intended on being – and zipped back to the ferry. I had a few minutes to wait so I enjoyed a fresh orange shake before the ship turned up and we were herded aboard.

The sun was setting as I reached the mainland, which was a little annoying. I’d hoped to make it back to Trat in daylight for a couple of reasons. The lighting isn’t that good along the roads and the only glasses I had to protect my eyes are my sunglasses. When you’re pelting along at 60kph, you do tend to get the occasional wayward bug heading faceward. As night approaches, you get more of them.

I lasted for half the journey with my sunglasses on then had to give up as I couldn’t see the road. Partly due to gloom, partly due to the colony of squished insects adhered to the specs. Instead I squinted and gritted my teeth under the barrage. Lowering my head helped as the helmet had a small lip, though I was often hit by insect shrapnel as they made a bee-line (ha!) for the headlamp and ricocheted up off it.

I arrived back the the hire shop/barber’s around 7pm via a petrol station to top up the tank as requested. In all, the fuel expenditure for the day was around 75 baht – less than 2 pounds. Pretty cheap all in all.

As you may have noticed if you didn’t get bored, I kind of missed lunch. This was due to my extended walk in the woods which I’d not planned on. Instead, I decided to treat myself to a KFC. But by the time I’d finished typing up the blog for the day, the place had closed! Argh! Back to the market for chicken noodle soup.

Oh, and here’s a vid of a couple of sights on the island. Apologies for crap sound – the microphone doesn’t seem as good as the one in my old camera:

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