Day 10, We left the hotel at about 7am heading to the border. After a quick immigration and customs clearance on both sides. We set off home. The drive back was rather quiet and in reflection of the last 9 days. It has been a long and gruelling (at times) journey but we made it to and back from Chiang Mai !
The trials & tribulations of preparing for this journey played in my mind, when there were times it seemed like this would not happen. Every barrier, pain and misery flashed by, but nothing surpasses the elation of having come thru all of it and finishing the task.
It's Dream's end, one that has brought much joy. Its with this thought that we bring the journey to an end.
"When one journey ends, another is waiting to begin...."
Videos & Pics from Day 10
Tuesday, September 21, 2010
Monday, September 20, 2010
Day 9 - 19th Sept 2010 - Final push to the Border
Day 9, We left Surat Thani in the morning. Stopped for breakfast at the petrol station as the local outlets were not open at 6am. The roads were empty and the weather good, allowing us to trundle along at 70Km/h towards the border. The idea was to get to Songkhla and on route there is a huge lake which we wanted to see as well as photgraph.
So we set the GPS to a town north of the lake and on Route 41. A lesson about GPS's, never ever trust it completely ! We were taken off the highway and thru some inner roads (GPS set to shortest route to destination) therefore we had to rely on the maps to ensure that we were on the correct way. Stressful, although the GPS was taking thru a shorter route, the speeds we managed we much lower thus taking more time than if we had stayed on the highway. So, for all you who believe totally in your GPS, beware !!!
All said and done we were behind our schedule by 2 hours and we reached the Lake town of Lampam. We stopped here to get some rest and allow Venus to cool off before setting off. See pictures taken at the lakeside below.
After a "couple of" beers, we set out to the border. The drive was mostly un-eventful as the sights became the norm for any Thai town. We did spot many classic cars and bikes on the road as it was sunday.
At about 3pm MY time we reached the border. Now, we have another 400Km before this journey ends. But for now, its time to check in and rest. A good lunch, some calls and a nap is in order.
Pics taken on Day 9.
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| Minor starting glitch. A couple of knocks to the starter sorted it ! |
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| Tool of choice ! |
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| Venus taking a break. |
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| The Bar & Venus. |
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| Our Hut. |
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| Charles & The Lake |
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| Lake shore. |
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| Lakeside stopover. |
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| Preffered refreshing beverage, Singha ! Put a Lion in your tank ! |
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| Aaah ! a cool refreshing beverage ! |
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| Nice seats ! |
Friday, September 17, 2010
Day 8 - 17th September 2010
Day 8, started at 4am. Left the hotel at 4:30am after a quick oil level check.
Early starts are good, especially if you are hoping to clear 400+ Km's in an air cooled vehicle.
The drive was relatively fast, we managed 80 Km/h speeds which enabled us to get to Cha am at about 11am. We drove about a trunk road which took us to the beach (see video). It was a nice deserted sandy beach, the water was dirty but the surrounding view was really nice.
We decided to drive a further 68 km to Hua Hin, which is vibrant resort town. We stopped for lunch and some beers. It was a bright, humid and stinging hot day. 3 Jugs of beers later, we decided it was cool enough to go look for a hotel. We found one nearby the restaurant and checked in. A cold shower and a nap later, we were ready to hit the town in the evening.
Hua Hin has very nice restaurants and pubs, it also has a beach front bar scene and a night market. Drinks and food are about KL prices, but the quality is good. The night market is a disappointment, many stall selling the same cheap quality stuff. The Teak wood carvings are good but very pricey.
We had a good dinner and did a walk about, all of one square block. We saw enough convince us that going back to the hotel was a good idea. The humidity was extreme, even at night the heat never leaves the town.
A slow drive back with air con on, and I am working on the blog after a shower. Charles is fast asleep.
Tomorrow will be a push to Surat Thani. This location may change, depending on how the morning goes. We are planning to have an leisurely English breakfast in town before heading out.
Video from Day 8.
Early starts are good, especially if you are hoping to clear 400+ Km's in an air cooled vehicle.
The drive was relatively fast, we managed 80 Km/h speeds which enabled us to get to Cha am at about 11am. We drove about a trunk road which took us to the beach (see video). It was a nice deserted sandy beach, the water was dirty but the surrounding view was really nice.
We decided to drive a further 68 km to Hua Hin, which is vibrant resort town. We stopped for lunch and some beers. It was a bright, humid and stinging hot day. 3 Jugs of beers later, we decided it was cool enough to go look for a hotel. We found one nearby the restaurant and checked in. A cold shower and a nap later, we were ready to hit the town in the evening.
Hua Hin has very nice restaurants and pubs, it also has a beach front bar scene and a night market. Drinks and food are about KL prices, but the quality is good. The night market is a disappointment, many stall selling the same cheap quality stuff. The Teak wood carvings are good but very pricey.
We had a good dinner and did a walk about, all of one square block. We saw enough convince us that going back to the hotel was a good idea. The humidity was extreme, even at night the heat never leaves the town.
A slow drive back with air con on, and I am working on the blog after a shower. Charles is fast asleep.
Tomorrow will be a push to Surat Thani. This location may change, depending on how the morning goes. We are planning to have an leisurely English breakfast in town before heading out.
Video from Day 8.
Pics from Day 8
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| Dinner at Hua Hin |
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| Hua Hin Town |
Day 7 - 16th September 2010
Day 7, was the day after. The adrenalin drain was complete, after a night of blissful sleep. The morning started with a good breakfast at a nearby hotel & some time spent looking for phones to make calls. For those of you who intend to do road trips here remember that most hotels (budget or otherwise) don't have IDD phone call facilities !
You need to get an IDD card and a IDD phone card. The IDD phone card can be used only on IDD Public phones (the yellow ones). Another thing you'd want to remember is that all messages that appear on these public (filthy) phones are in Thai !!!
We drove to a spare part shop in town and bought an oil filter and engine oil. The shop keeper told us that there is a mechanic shop nearby that would change the oil for us.
We spent a total of 2 hours at the mechanic shop for the oil to be changed, before we set on our way.
The target was Nakhon Sawan, a town some 400 km's from Chiang Mai. We decide to push on back as Chiang Mai was wet and rainy. There wasn't much we could do as we were also running out of time.
After about 7 hours of driving we reached Nakhon Sawan at about 10pm. We managed to find hotel, and all we wanted to do was to sleep off. In preparation of tomorrow's push to Cha am.
Sleep came easy, we were just too damn tired.
Pics from Day 7
You need to get an IDD card and a IDD phone card. The IDD phone card can be used only on IDD Public phones (the yellow ones). Another thing you'd want to remember is that all messages that appear on these public (filthy) phones are in Thai !!!
We drove to a spare part shop in town and bought an oil filter and engine oil. The shop keeper told us that there is a mechanic shop nearby that would change the oil for us.
We spent a total of 2 hours at the mechanic shop for the oil to be changed, before we set on our way.
The target was Nakhon Sawan, a town some 400 km's from Chiang Mai. We decide to push on back as Chiang Mai was wet and rainy. There wasn't much we could do as we were also running out of time.
After about 7 hours of driving we reached Nakhon Sawan at about 10pm. We managed to find hotel, and all we wanted to do was to sleep off. In preparation of tomorrow's push to Cha am.
Sleep came easy, we were just too damn tired.
Pics from Day 7
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| Oil Change being done |
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| A good wash, before we set out home |
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| Bridge at Tak |
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| Chao Phrya river crossing at Tak |
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| Leaving Tak for Nakhon Sawan |
Wednesday, September 15, 2010
Day 6 - 15th Sept 2010 - The Final Push to Chiang Mai
Day 6 started at 4am MY time, got ready and left the hotel at 4.45am. We loaded up Venus (who had a full tank of petrol the night before at RM3.40 per litre !!!), checked engine oil level & off we went.
The morning drive allowed us to to catch up on distance as the engine temp was lower in the cool morning air. We managed speeds of up to 80Km/h at times and with the roads empty, it was a smooth and relatively fast drive (by Kombi standards la !!!).
We swapped drive seats every 3 hours, which allowed us to nap briefly and also to continue driving so as to not lose time. We had breaks for coffee & Swiss rolls, lunch was one whole kampung chicken (shared) with Coke. We stopped 2 other times for toilet breaks and refreshments.
We covered a total distance of 780 Km today to get to Chiang Mai. Total driving 11 hours.
The First Pic for this Blog is .........
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| At Chiang Mai border line. |
12 years since the idea, 6 years of planning & restoring Venus. At 3.20pm MY Time the dream was realised.
See video (taken with phone, music is the Theme from Da Vincci Code)
More Pics from Day 6.
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| Approaching Chiang Mai |
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| Road to Chiang Mai |
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| Approaching Chiang Mai, note the low clouds. |
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| Yes, we made it !!! |
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| Yes !!! |
Tuesday, September 14, 2010
Day 5 - 14th Sept 2010
Day 5, R & R day. We toured Ayutthaya in a Tuk Tuk that cost us RM60 for 5 sites. We spent the better part of the morning looking at ruins in various state.
Came back to hotel, showered and had lunch. After which we took a Tuk Tuk to a shopping centre in town. When we got there we had dessert, banana split & nutty banana ! Our first indulgence since we left KL 4 days ago.
We bought a memory card reader and then browsed the racks, nothing caught our eye so we split the scene !
Came back to hotel, worked on the blog while having some cocktails !
Just came back from dinner in another quaint, laid back diner. Venus got some interesting looks, as usual !
Time to call it a night. Early start to tomorrow 3.30am to Chiang Mai.
Pictures from Day 5.
Came back to hotel, showered and had lunch. After which we took a Tuk Tuk to a shopping centre in town. When we got there we had dessert, banana split & nutty banana ! Our first indulgence since we left KL 4 days ago.
We bought a memory card reader and then browsed the racks, nothing caught our eye so we split the scene !
Came back to hotel, worked on the blog while having some cocktails !
Just came back from dinner in another quaint, laid back diner. Venus got some interesting looks, as usual !
Time to call it a night. Early start to tomorrow 3.30am to Chiang Mai.
Pictures from Day 5.
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| Ruins & Temple |
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| Ruins & Temple |
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| Chao Phraya river |
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| Errrmmm... Charles. |
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| Ruins |
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| Ruins |
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| Tree around Buddha bust. |
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| Ruins & Temple |
Day 4 - 13th Sept 2010
Day 4, the longest route in our itinerary. 725km of driving, that at 60+Km/h.
We left our motel at 6am and drove to Chumpon, where we needed to change money. Took us 2 hours to get there and the banks will only open at 10am. Its 8am ! So we waited around Carre Four to open at 9am, hit the bakery and drinks section, bought sausage buns, donuts, chicken puffs & cream puffs. We wolfed down the sausage buns and donuts, washed them down with good local coffee. The cream cone and chicken puff were left for lunch.
Got money changed and drove out of Chumpon at 11am heading to Ayutthaya. The weather was hot and humid, so had to keep an eye on the engine temp to ensure we didn't abuse it. Abusing an air -cooled engine is not wise.
Stopped in Cha am for our picnic lunch, what a great decision !!! See seaside pics below.
After 12 hrs of driving with short stops in between, we reached Ayutthaya at 11pm. Found a nice hotel (RM60), with hot water and nice beds. We had dinner at a restaurant 5 mins away, a good hot meal washed down with Singha beer was awesome. It was a tiring run but one that was welcome because now we are 751 km away from completing a dream that began 12 yrs ago.
Tomorrow is a rest day, we plan to sleep in, get a good breakfast & lunch, Thai massage and more sleep in the evening.
Pictures from Day 4
We left our motel at 6am and drove to Chumpon, where we needed to change money. Took us 2 hours to get there and the banks will only open at 10am. Its 8am ! So we waited around Carre Four to open at 9am, hit the bakery and drinks section, bought sausage buns, donuts, chicken puffs & cream puffs. We wolfed down the sausage buns and donuts, washed them down with good local coffee. The cream cone and chicken puff were left for lunch.
Got money changed and drove out of Chumpon at 11am heading to Ayutthaya. The weather was hot and humid, so had to keep an eye on the engine temp to ensure we didn't abuse it. Abusing an air -cooled engine is not wise.
Stopped in Cha am for our picnic lunch, what a great decision !!! See seaside pics below.
After 12 hrs of driving with short stops in between, we reached Ayutthaya at 11pm. Found a nice hotel (RM60), with hot water and nice beds. We had dinner at a restaurant 5 mins away, a good hot meal washed down with Singha beer was awesome. It was a tiring run but one that was welcome because now we are 751 km away from completing a dream that began 12 yrs ago.
Tomorrow is a rest day, we plan to sleep in, get a good breakfast & lunch, Thai massage and more sleep in the evening.
Pictures from Day 4
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| Heading out of Chumpon |
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| Road to Cha am town |
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| 1st Camp site |
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| Monkeys and peanuts seller. Its a scam ! |
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| Venus & Me ! |
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| 2nd Camp Site |
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| 2nd Camp site |
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| Lunch & Chiller full of juices/isotonic drinks !!! |
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| Further down the coast, what a view. Vanagon Country ! |
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| Vanagon Country ! |
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| Perfect Storm ! We were driving into it, 2 brave souls in one tough VW ! |
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| Are we there yet ? |
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| At last !!! |
Day 3 - 12th Sept 2010
Day 3, we spent the night before across the border. It was too warm and we were very tired to camp in the van. We decided to check in and get a good night sleep.
Got up and got ready to move, it was 7am TH time. After breakfast at the hotel, we pushed off to Hatyai which is an hour away. We lost some time in Hatyai looking for a money changer, We managed to get some RM changed and move north to Surat Thani. We left Hatyai at 11am for Surat Thani.
We reached Surat Thani at about 9pm, checked into a truck stop as it was the first place we found. Showered, changed and headed to town for dinner. We chanced upon a quaint diner, where the owner/DJ played all our fav songs without us making a request. Dinner was good too.
We drove back and crashed, into bed that is.
Pictures from Day 3
Got up and got ready to move, it was 7am TH time. After breakfast at the hotel, we pushed off to Hatyai which is an hour away. We lost some time in Hatyai looking for a money changer, We managed to get some RM changed and move north to Surat Thani. We left Hatyai at 11am for Surat Thani.
We reached Surat Thani at about 9pm, checked into a truck stop as it was the first place we found. Showered, changed and headed to town for dinner. We chanced upon a quaint diner, where the owner/DJ played all our fav songs without us making a request. Dinner was good too.
We drove back and crashed, into bed that is.
Pictures from Day 3
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| Just leaving hotel |
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| First temple, 10 mins drive from border |
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| This is what a typical Thai town looks like |
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| Rest stop along the way. |
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| Reaching Surat Thani |
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| Diner, DJ at the far corner |
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| After dinner beer ! |
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| Wrong T-Shirt day |
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