Kal El

Didn't do much this morning except for packing our things and have our last breakfast in Phuket. The hotel called for our airport transfer and we arrived at Phuket International about noon.

Thanks to Air Asia we were deprived of having a good half day upon arrival 3 days ago - the flight from Bangkok was delayed for almost 3 hours and we arrived in Phuket after night fall.

Whatever it is we had a really good time in beautiful Phuket and we really hope to come back real soon.

Good bye Phuket!

Started early - waited for the pick up and he was late - some German toursits were missing in action. Luckily we managed to arrive on time and saw that the jetty was very crowded.

Had a picturesque journey to Phi Phi Island on top of the deck of the boat. Took many pictures although got really wet but it was worth it. Spent an hour in the waters snorkeling. Had to pay some fees for the snorkel gear. The waters were deep and the snorkel was not that great compared to some places i've been to but still the experience was wonderful.

Headed back to Phuket Island in the evening and headed straight to the beach for some more water experince. In the late evening, walked along Patong Road and we had dinner at the same seafood restaurant we went to on the fist night in Phuket.

Tomorrow will be a sad day as we're leaving Phuket for home... :-(

Went to the beach first thing in the morning. Took us about 10 minutes walk to reach the beach. Saw traces of mother nature running amok in the Tsunami incident in 2004 - some resorts we just built, some still in states of damage. There were warning signages erected pointing to the safe direction if and when Tsunami hits again.

Took the tuk-tuk to Phuket town - bought some clothes and visited the gem showroom as well as the bird's nest restaurant before returning to Patong for another beach visit. Had subway sandwhich for lunch.

At night we had dinner at the same place as last's but a restaurant next door. We ate the very same things we had the night before. Decided to go snorkle the next morning so we purchased a snorkle tour from a Muslim vendor on Patong Road. Stroll along Patong Road as there were stalls all night long - however did not shop much in Phuket as we've gotten most of the stuf we need in Bangkok.

Sat at one of the bars before returning to the hotel. Early day tomorrow!

Woke up real early on our final day in Bangkok. Really looking forward to leave the busy city and head to a beach vacation in Phuket.

Didn;t do much after breakfast. Pack and headed to the Bangkok Domestic Terminal via Ambassador Hotel's Airport transfer in a volvo 940. Arrived at Bangkok Airport around 1pm and the flight was delayed for 2 and a half hours. Wasted alot of time waiting for Air Asia Thailand domestic flight to Phuket. Instead of the opportunity to spend half a day in sunny Phuket, we arived after night falls... :-(

Goodnye Bangkok!

After the flight delay in Bangkok we finally arrived in Phuket at 7:30pm - sun was down and nothing much to see. The journey fom the airport to our all men hotel in patong complex takes about 45 minutes.

We were greeted by friednly Aquariuos hotel (highly recommended - they're nice, clean and very civilised people). Since we're Asians, I especially look like a local - there were some gazes from tourists and locals alike.

Upon arrival, we checked into out James Deam suite and immediately went out to look for dinner. Of course, we went just accros patong main road to the famous seafood place.

I bought corn on the cob - a gigantic one. And foresee eating it for the next 3 nights and i knew i'm going to miss it after leaving Phuket. At the seafood outlet I tried BBQ cockles, tom yum kung, kerabu mango and som tham - all very delicious and fiery!

Went to the patong complex before returning to the hotel - this coming weekend would be the Gay Parade therefore there are many baby dolls around.

Woke up early to visit the art center in Silom. Shops were still closed when we arived so took some interesting photos of the wood crafts at the center. Walked to the place from our Silom Hotel.

Today we will be transferring to a one night stay at Ambassador Hotel. The plan is to cover the Suckhumvit area. After checking in Ambassador we took a cab to cruise Chao Phraya river and was hoping to see a floating market in action. The river cruise was dull and only two market vendors were seen. But the experience cruising along the longest river and seeing many Wats along the way was just breathtaking.

At night we went to the market for more shopping. Took a taxi home and the taxi got lost - the driver did not know where Ambasador Hotel. Afraid being lost farther, we asked to be stoppped somewhere i could recognize a way back to the hotel.

We had to walk for half and hour back to the hotel and on the way found a stall selling edible insects - spiders, cricket and a lot more other exotic 'food' of the locals! Yummm!

Visited Chatuchak again today for more shopping. In the evening did more shoppig at Siam area. Went to Hard Rock Cafe to shop for memorabilia. Again at 6pm we esperience the wold stopping moment. This time we were more prepared and actually waited to film the moment hoping to show our friends how the Thais respect their national anthem.

We also saw a Roti Boy Bakery in Thailand (Roti Boy originates from Malaysia). In Bangkok people queue for hours to buy the delicious bread. If course, the fre smelll 'Famous Amous' style would attract any passers-by.

Woke up early to see the Thailand sunrise. Still on board the train. Had breakfast on the buffet coach while enjoying siamese operatic songs and the beautiful morning scenery along the way.

Arrived Bangkok Hua Lampong's Station at noon. Met a very friendly local, a fellow Muslim who snapped our first picture in Thailand. Took the BTS to Silom where we will stay for 2 nights at Tower Inn Hotel. A good bargain, but rather old hotel. Huge room with fridge, TV, phone, hot shower, L-shaped sofa and tea making facilities.

Visited Chatuchak (only open on weekends) via BTS to meet a couple of Malaysian friends there. Had a couple of the best young coconut i've ever had in my entire life there. At 6pm the market went to a standstill. Felt funny at first because the world actually stopped. Nobody moved. Only later did i realize that everyday at 6pm, the Thailand national anthem is publicly aired and the Thai's really respect their national song.

At night visited Patpong and shop somemore! Had McDonald for dinner - one funny incident was when i ordered apple pie.They do not have that in Bangkok, so i ordered Pineapple Pie - the girl at the counter said they do not serve Pineapple pie but they only have Pine Apple pie... damn! I nearly had a fight with the McD girl

Arrived Butterworth at 5:45am. Decided to rent a room at a local budget hotel before boarding a train to Bangkok at 2:45pm. Had breakfast oppsite the Butterworth Railway Station. Called a cab to take us to the nearest budget hotel. the cabbie promised to pick us up at noon to the railway station.

Found a room for day use at RM60. Decent with TV and air conditioning plus water heater. Slept until noon, packed and headed to a nearby nasi kandar restaurant for lunch.

The cabbie didn't turn up and when called he was stuck in a traffic jam near the airport. We decided to take a public bus to the railway station for RM0.60 per person.

Arrived at the station about 1:30pm and the train to Bangkok was delayed. The rail journey started at 3:30pm on board an economy berth. Quite reasonably priced, decent, considerably clean although the interior was quite old-fashioned.

Stopped at the Padang Besar station for immigration check and to have our passports stamped. Entering Thailand is visa-free for Malaysians as both are members of Asean.

At night about 9pm, the railway staff will convert the seating cabin to a berth. There was also a buffet train on board serving dinner, breakfast and lunch. Food could be ordered and sent to the coach.

Took the night train to Butterworth on an economy berth. There are two types of berth onboard KTM; the 1st class and the economy class. The 1st class berth was fully booked since this was a long holiday (Chinese New Year and Federal Territory Day) so we had to settle for the economy class but had a satisfied trip; there was lots of privacy and the berth was clean.