Well we done the 16 hour trip to BKK arriving early in the morning. We used a tour company for that one http://www.sombattour.com/ Had two days and 1 night there before boarding another 12 hour overnight bus to Hat Yai - I'll explain in a bit! Used the river boat in BKK which was great fun, they don't hang about. Trouble is the water - I think the canals are used as the sewers (it certainly smells like it) and we'd heard a story of a girl who got splashed on the lip and spent 3 months in hospital with a severe form of dysentery. Popped down to Siam Square for some shopping and navigated the city using the government buses which are much cheaper than any other form of transport. I think the most expensive bus was 16B (25p ish).
We actually got an honest taxi there too! All cabs in BKK are supposed to be metered but rarely do they use them for tourists. Our taxi to the new Southern bus station was an honest man who even tuned the radio to a western speaking station for us. That new Bus terminal is great - more like an airport terminal. Around a hundred gates with buses leaving for destinations all over southern Thailand. Our first class air conditioned bus was 713B each for a 12 hour trip.
So, yes Hat Yai. We checked out other routes and the original plan to do a visa extension in Krabi was rejected as the charge had gone up from 500B to 1900B for a 10 day extension. We also decided against doing a visa run to Ranong to get a new 30 day visa as Lee & Lex didn't want to see much over that side and I can do it all on my back to BKK. So another night bus - great! We were the only farang (European foreigners) on the bus. In fact we've been the only farang on all the night buses we've travelled on. We literally arrived in Hat Yai at 8am, had some brekkie and got a bus from there to Satun for 67B (80km). Was a good bus. 8 speakers and 2 sub woofers and friendly Thai's. From Satun town, a swangthaew to the ferry port and ferry over to Paulu Langkawi in Malaysia. New language and new money (6 ringgit to the pound or there abouts) which makes a ringgit about 10 baht or 16 pence.
Langkawi is beautiful. The largest island of a bunch of around a hundred. Locals all seem to speak English to some degree which makes life easier especially when trying to get them to teach you the native tongue. We were sitting in the Submarine bar last night watching sheet lightening illuminate the night sky for split seconds at a time - awesome. Accommodation & food are a bit more expensive here. In fact accommodation is really pricey compared with Thai but we managed to find some bungalows away from the beach for about 6 quid a night. Cigarettes cost the same as a can of coke, 1.5 R or 25 pence! Langkawi is a duty free island although it's becoming dominated by package tourists who, if coming from the UK pay about 3 thousand for a two week holiday. We got here for no more than 20 quid from BKK and will organise our own accommodation & food. This kind of travelling opens your eyes as to what can be achieved on a budget.
Best thing about Langkawi is no dogs!! Thailand is full of them, roaming in packs and occasionally getting too close for comfort. On occasion we've had to arm ourselves with a "Dog stick" or a handful of stones. Soppong was probably the place we came closest to having to defend ourselves but fortunately no animals were harmed yet!
So we'll stay here for a few days before getting a boat over to Penang.
We actually got an honest taxi there too! All cabs in BKK are supposed to be metered but rarely do they use them for tourists. Our taxi to the new Southern bus station was an honest man who even tuned the radio to a western speaking station for us. That new Bus terminal is great - more like an airport terminal. Around a hundred gates with buses leaving for destinations all over southern Thailand. Our first class air conditioned bus was 713B each for a 12 hour trip.
So, yes Hat Yai. We checked out other routes and the original plan to do a visa extension in Krabi was rejected as the charge had gone up from 500B to 1900B for a 10 day extension. We also decided against doing a visa run to Ranong to get a new 30 day visa as Lee & Lex didn't want to see much over that side and I can do it all on my back to BKK. So another night bus - great! We were the only farang (European foreigners) on the bus. In fact we've been the only farang on all the night buses we've travelled on. We literally arrived in Hat Yai at 8am, had some brekkie and got a bus from there to Satun for 67B (80km). Was a good bus. 8 speakers and 2 sub woofers and friendly Thai's. From Satun town, a swangthaew to the ferry port and ferry over to Paulu Langkawi in Malaysia. New language and new money (6 ringgit to the pound or there abouts) which makes a ringgit about 10 baht or 16 pence.
Langkawi is beautiful. The largest island of a bunch of around a hundred. Locals all seem to speak English to some degree which makes life easier especially when trying to get them to teach you the native tongue. We were sitting in the Submarine bar last night watching sheet lightening illuminate the night sky for split seconds at a time - awesome. Accommodation & food are a bit more expensive here. In fact accommodation is really pricey compared with Thai but we managed to find some bungalows away from the beach for about 6 quid a night. Cigarettes cost the same as a can of coke, 1.5 R or 25 pence! Langkawi is a duty free island although it's becoming dominated by package tourists who, if coming from the UK pay about 3 thousand for a two week holiday. We got here for no more than 20 quid from BKK and will organise our own accommodation & food. This kind of travelling opens your eyes as to what can be achieved on a budget.
Best thing about Langkawi is no dogs!! Thailand is full of them, roaming in packs and occasionally getting too close for comfort. On occasion we've had to arm ourselves with a "Dog stick" or a handful of stones. Soppong was probably the place we came closest to having to defend ourselves but fortunately no animals were harmed yet!
So we'll stay here for a few days before getting a boat over to Penang.
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