Trip to Southern Thailand - Hat Yai to Krabi

So, the next day, we woke up early in the morning, again put it everything our stuffs (mostly its belong to me) in the backpack. Azuar dah survey and surf in internet, how to get the tickets and transportation to Krabi. Everything semua last minute.

Bye hotel cap ayam hehehe, but I found out that ramai juga backpackers yang stay sini.

Then, kami pergi balik Bus station to ask about the tickets. Surveying the prices one by one, from travel agents to ticket counters. Price ranged at TB250-TB350. Mana yang mahalnya, biasa dorang ambil komisyen. Perjalanan ambil masa about 4 to 5 hours. Bila masuk saja dalam van, lagi ramai tourists and backpackers. I jumpa dari Malaysia, Morocco, Spain and the UK. Semua memang excited nak pergi Krabi.

Ada sekali berhenti di RnR Province of Trang. About 2 hours from Hat Yai. Sini pun banyak halal food, toilet bersih dan besar and praying rooms.

Sepanjang perjalanan ke Krabi, rasa memang sangat jauh tapi kami tak rasa pula nak tidur. Dengan driver memang tak bercakap sebab dia pandai cakap siam saje. So banyak guna bahasa isyarat.

Confident lori telur ni. kan...Tak terbang ke telur tu?

Sampai di Krabi dalam jam 1.30 tengahari, perut lapar semua in full package. Van tadi turunkan kami di Karabi town. Tapi Krabi town tak ada apa sangat, yang famous adalah Ao Nang Beach. So, we asked the driver to send us to the beach. Itu pun kami tak tau sangat. The other backpackers yang suggest kan hantar ke Mc Donalds Ao Nang, then baru cari hotel near the place. Tambang dari Krabi town to Ao Nang Beach adalah TB100 seorang. Rupanya beach yang happening tu jauh juga dari town, about 25km, dlm 30 mins juga.

Tibanya di Ao Nang, the first thing buat cari hotel. Kami survey one by one. Again, public holidays, harga hotel banyak mahal and full house. Susah hati juga, dengan penat, lapar, bag berat semua. Luckily, dapatsatu bilik at Ao Nang Easy Room. Memang puas hati bila tengok sendiri. Tiap kali survey hotel, I mesti cakap "May I see the the room, first?". Ikut Azuar dia memang tak kisah, janji tidur, wife dia tak boleh laaa , complicated sikit. So we got the room's price at TB1200, Normally it costs about TB900. 

It was a cozy place seriously. I suka sangat. Semua ada towel, hot shower, free internet dan aircond. Yang peliknya masa dia mula-mula tunjuk the room, I thought it was a display room, sebab dinding dia memang 100% glass. Memang bole tengok orang lalu lalang. Rupanya itu memang concept dia. So bila masuk bilik, tariklah curtain tu, baru privacy. Yang penting, tempat dia sangat dekat to everything. So ramai orang lah kat sini. Hotel ni betul-betul depan Starbucks and McDonalds Ao Nang. Nak pergi beach pun sangat dekat.

Petang tu, dah siap mandi dan solat semua, kami berjalan ke Ao Nang Beach. Sape pernah ke Pantai Kuta, Bali. Ao Nang beach lebih kurang macam tu lah. Tapi lagi banyak tourist mat salleh, nak cari local people mandi kat pantai, tak jumpa pun. Kalau local people area situ pun, yang ada tinggal yang bekerja di situ. Mostly tourists kat sana nak pergi Phi Phi island, James Bond island, Chicken Island dan banyak lagi. Island dia memang sangat cantik, tapi we all tak pergi pun, menyesal juga. So dorang datang Ao nang untuk naik longtail boat untuk ke pulau2 tu, boleh sun bath, swimming, diving and snorkelling. Booth untuk trip snorkelling and diving, mostly their bos pun mat salleh. Agaknya dorng memang betul fall in love dengan the islands, siap datang buat business terus.

Sunset at Ao Nang Beach

Malam tu kami sewa motosikal dalam harga TB200, pandai tokei dah siap isi full tank and mintak caj TB150.

Dinner malam tu, kami makan mee tomyam dan nasi goreng ayam. Food Thailand memang sangat sedap tapi kena beware juga kepedasan dia tu kadang boleh buat ulang toilet. Lepas tu, kami decided untuk berjalan ke Krabi town. Naik motor rasa jauh sangat, dalam 45mins jg, dengan sejuk malamnya.

Outlet Village Krabi

Most items discounts at 20%-50%, tapi barang tak cantik sangat. Tapi Speedo swimming cap Adam boleh dapat dalam TB150 (RM15), murahkan! So we all ke sana just nak kenal tempat.

Tesco Lotus Thailand

Mostly kedai tutup dalam jam 10pm, kami sampai pun dah lewat. So, kami balik round tengok night life di Ao Nang. Fuhhhh siap ada cabaret show, bising jugalah area hotel kami.

Lepas round round area beach, kami pulang hotel. Esok berfikir mana nak berjalan lagi...

Trip to Southern Thailand - Sungai Golok to Hat Yai

This is the last minute plan. Crazy! Sekejap jadi, sekejap tak jadi since both of parents memang tak kasi green light langsung. I never think about the negative sides  hahahaha. Ayah cakap boleh pergi but kena naik plane. But both of us, nak sangat roadtrip, nak tengok kampung, scenary and everything. Kalau naik plane, zapp dah sampai. So considered as the first time, we keluar Semenanjung Msia by road. Sangat berbahaya to travel across the Southern Thai, wilayah bergolak. But but Insyaallah selamat...

Since this was a last minute plan and a budget travel, we change RM to Thai Bath about RM1000 for 4 days and 3 nights to Hatyai and Krabi. Tukar duit pun a day before, cari backpack, toiletries travel size pun kelam kabut. Print out everything the map, the road, interest places, do and dont and everything. Pap pap pap they fit in our 2 medium size backpacks.

Image goggled 

So, pagi tu bangun awal jam 6 pagi selepas solat subuh di Rantau Panjang, kami berdua dah terkedek berjalan lepas border Malaysia. Sampai border immigration, cop passport and fill forms semua. Tersenget senget my bahu. I said to Azuar "Papa, at last dah lepas border nih!".

Image googled

Sampai Sg Golok, kami terus cari  transport to Hat Yai. Kami naik van tersebut dengan harga TB200 seorang ke Hatyai dalam 3 jam perjalanan. Van sangat selesa aircond sejuk, fits for 14 people. Mostly kalau nak travel by road di Thailand, memang they provide van macam ni. I cant sleep all along the way, sibuk nak tengok luar. By road, we cross Narathiwat, Yala and Pattani. I heard yang wilayah Yala selalu dok bertembak-tembak, takut juga. The van stop at RnR in Pattani, so people can go to toilet and get some foods.

Over decoration of toilets

The pit-stop

Dalam jam 10, kami dah sampai sana. The first thing yang we all buat, we get Thai sim card, nak guna no sini. Azuar nak surf internet on the road, senang nak cari apa-apa.

The boss sampai senget bahu kiri kanan, I memang terus dah tak larat nak sandang bag lagi. Azuar cakap if I yang carry the bag, lagi lambat berjalan. Dari bus stop, kami nak ke Hat Yai Central dengan menaiki tuk-tuk untuk cari hotel. Kami pilih hotel yang dekat dengan Lee Garden Hotel, since its in the central. Tuk tuk charged about TB30 per person for the distance.

First timer

Sekitar Lee Garden Hotel, kami cari hotel at reasonable price since our main priority is to Krabi. Hat yai just nak kenal tempat. Kami dapat hotel dalam harga TB400 per night, close to everything. Gambar hotel cap ayam tak ambil tapi its still okay for me, i cant give any comment, aircond pun ada, cuma buruk je, an old hotel.

Letak bag, solat segala, then kami keluar cari makan. It easy to get Halal food here, dont worry. We choose to have lunch at Hamid Restaurant, in front of Lee Garden Hotel. Tak sedap and mahal but we had no choice darling.

Tengah survey muslim restaurant pun jumpa macam-macam restaurant. Roasted pork.

Lepas makan, baru we all berjalan sakan, perut penuh, hati pun senang.

Lee Garden Hotel and Mall

The street

Central mall

Bos letih sangat

Awek siam

Then, malam tu, kami bersiap untuk ke Khlong Hae Floating Market. Dari central to the place, about 10kms macam tu. Kalau naik tuk-tuk, it cost TB400, sekali pergi balik, mahal juga dalam RM40, tp boleh fits smpai 6 people macam tu. Macam kami berdua saje, terasa lah mahal, since kat sana jual food murah sangat, sangat tak berbaloi kan. But its okay for experience.

Floating market ini dibuka pada hari Jumaat, Sabtu dan Ahad at 3pm-8pm. Food kat sini sangat sedap and mostly Muslim yang menjual. Harga pun sangat murah about TB20-40. Boleh try macam-macam. I found many Malaysians here since from Padang Besar border to Hatyai only 1 hour. Barang-barang at their night market pun murah and I bought palazzo about TB 220, rsnya sini dalam RM40+.

We end up our day with foot massage. Battery camery terus mati. Harga massage pun sangat murah di Thailand and I got twice in Hat Yai and Krabi. Foot massage about TB200 per hour. Harga range from TB200 to TB500, so boleh buat macam-macam. They really have the massage skills, Azuar siap burp tak cover, memang tak malu.

Malam tu, we slept early for a long journey to Krabi tomorrow, about 4 hours.

Pulau Pangkor, Perak

This was supposed to be our weekend getaway. For short holidays. Kami ke sana selama 3 hari 2 mlm. Cukup cukup dah, lama sangat nanti boring. Perjalanan dari KL took almost 4 hours to Jeti Lumut. Rasa macam lama sangat nak sampai di Lumut. Asyik berkicau dengan Azuar, bila nak sampai bila nak sampai. Dia ada trick, " Lagi 10 mins lagi yang...". Tapi tak sampai juga.

Jeti Lumut

Sampai Jeti, terus beli tiket about RM 10 (return), considered dah murah since perjalanan naik feri took 25mins macam tu. 

Sampai di Jeti Pangkor, kami terus cari Pangkor's trademark, their pink van.

Pink vans, image goggled.

The pink van charged us about RM15 to Pantai Teluk Nipah. We choose to stay at Nipah Guesthouse in Pangkor. If you ask me, it will be a biased answer. For me, Pulau Pangkor biasa-biasa saja since I dah pernah sampai Pulau Perhentian and Pulau Redang. Dont expect any crystal clear water and air menghijau itu semua hihihi. But its still enough for a short vacation. Enjoy juga main dekat pantai tu. Takkan nak pi Port Dickson, saje kan, boring juga...

I love the guest house. The accommodation itu yang I dok bising tak sabar nak pergi Pangkor. We found it in website of TripAdvisor and it received awards in 2012 and 2013. Go Google it! I fall in love with its A-frame cottage, and yes we got it.

 

So, they rate was about RM150 per day during peak days. Normally it costs RM90, when I check it in Agoda. Rasanya boleh dapat low rate. Biasanya guest house, they don't provide any breakfast, but the guesthouse come out with something different, DIY breakfast. We woke up early in the morning to cook the breakfast. I masak pancake and scramble eggs for the two boys. Bancuhan pancake dah siap, you just pour it in the pan. Tadaaa siap! They provide bread, jam, butter spread, pancake, fruits, eggs, tea, and coffee. Kat sini, customers mostly Mat Salleh, so I nak masak konon western breakfast pun segan, takut salah kan... Cuba suruh masak nasi goreng depan dorang, sure I memang confident level tinggi menggunung...

Lepas dah siap makan makan, we went to the beach, dalam 400m dari the guest house. 

My two boys.

Bermulalah aktiviti pantai kami. Adam is a happy child as always. Seronok lah dia.

 Kami juga sewa motor, membonceng pusing satu pulau. Harga sewa pun still acceptable RM20 per day.

Teluk Dalam

Horn bills are everywhere and you just feed them to make them come closer.

Petang sikit, kami ikut boat tour and snorkelling, dapat at good price juga, about RM 50 satu family dan tiada had masa. Snorkeling and swimming sampai puas, letih baru panggil boat datang ambil.

Aktiviti sama berulang untuk dua hari. Waktu sebelah malam, tak ada aktiviti sangat, just keluar jalan-jalan cari makan. Banyak kedai seafood, ikan bakar semua tapi kami datang waktu public holidays, semua tempat penuh dan mahal di sekitar Pantai Teluk Nipah. Jadi we choose to have dinner at their town. Janji kenyang, tidur lena.

That was a start for our family's holiday in this year. Seronok, priceless and as expected, SUNBURN.