MollyMac

On the final day in Prachuap Khiri Khan, Thailand, I bought tickets (@ 750 Baht each) on an overnight train to Hat Yai, Thailand. We were supposed to leave at 8:00 pm, but as usual the train was an hour late. Unfortunately, the lower beds were already taken so Macayla and I were stuck in top bunks. They are quite small but adequate. There are two straps that keep you from falling out of the bunk, thank goodness. I was excited because I thought the train would lull me to sleep but that was not how it worked. Sometimes the train would jerk violently and other floor which dumps all of the waste onto the tracks below. Very sanitary!! It is an odd sensation while sitting on the pot to have air blowing up onto your ... read more

We finally left Thailand to make a quick side trip to Cambodia to see the famous Angkor Wat. I figured we were too close not to go and see the world's largest religious site. Anyway, the decision was made to take the third class train to the border mainly because it was inexpensive. It was nice to ride the train with the windows down and air blowing in but when the train slowed down the heat could be a bit unbearable. Plus, the train picked up passengers along the way and it could get very cramped at certain times during the ride with so many people squashed inside. I was happy once the six (+) hour ride ended. We shared a tuk-tuk with a couple to the border and went through immigration. I was so proud ... read more

On Friday afternoon, we purchased tickets to Bangkok by bus. We spent the extra money for the VIP bus service which was supposed to be more comfortable with more leg room, etc. Each seat had its own monitor to view movies but there were none available in English, so Macayla watched Step Up Revolution in Thai three times in a row. I am not sure how she did it. Around 11pm, we stopped at a "rest area" and I noticed that I was not feeling so great; sore throat, headache, etc. The entire trip lasted about 12 hours and was fairly miserable. No matter how many times I do this type of long-distance trip, I can never get comfortable and the seats can recline to a horizontal position and it would make no difference. We arrived ... read more

On Monday we left Pulau Langkawi and took a ferry headed to Satun, Thailand. While waiting for the ferry to leave, we decided to try some local fruit that we had never tasted before. The first fruit we tried was Durian. I had heard of this fruit before and knew that it was known for its "stinky cheese" odor. The man who sold me the fruit told me that Durian is the king of all fruits in this part of the world and it is only in season for a few months (June - August). How could we not try the king of all fruit? Macayla had to really try hard to swallow her bite of the fruit. She definitely did not appreciate the pungent taste and odor. I did not mind the taste and it ... read more

It seems like we have been on the move since the day our flight landed. So, we decided to take a break at a beautiful island, of course. Pulau Langkawi! We are very excited about this island and hope that it fits the bill. Picking up where I left off before.....on the second day in Kuala Lumpur we chose to make a trip to FRIM (Forestry Research Institute of Malaysia) which boasted a canopy walkway in the jungle park and waterfalls. The travel guide said that the falls did not close until 2:30pm, but it closed a 1:30pm instead. I was very disappointed that we missed the canopy walk, but decided to stay since it did cost to get in. We started walking to the waterfalls but never made it there. We took a wrong turn ... read more