After three days in Koh Kao , I took the ferry across to Koh Phangan which is famous for the Full Moon parties.
No Parties
I checked into a hostel that was recommended as a “party place”, in the knowledge that there would be no parties when I was there as a result of the time in the lunar calendar. As expected I was the only person in the place.
It is owned by a German bloke. It was interesting to talk to him about his life in Thailand – politics and business in the country, the behavior of his customers at ‘party’ time and the looming challenges of bring up his daughter in such an environment. His hot tip is the Burma will be a happening place.
I would not suggest Koh Phangan over Koh Tao, Koh Samui or the places on the west coast (e.g. Ao Nang,) unless you are into Full Moon ‘piss-up parties’.
Train from Surat Thani
I had a couple of days in Chaweng on Koh Samui before heading across the Surat Thani to catch the train south to Butterworth. I have been to Koh Samui and couple of times and like it.
The train from Surat Thani heading south was scheduled to leave at 1.23 a.m. As I have posted before, trains leave Bangkok on time, but that is the last time they are on schedule.
I checked into the Queens Hotel at about 6.00 p.m. to get some rest before the train was due to depart. At THB 200 (AUD 7), I think I was overcharged.
I went to the station at 1.15 a.m. to find, as expected, the train was delayed. The board detailing the delays and the revised ETD’s of the trains contained some interesting arithmetic. Check out the Flickr pics.
The train finally arrived at about 2.30 a.m. I found my berth in the ‘superior’ carriage. It was very comfortable. The only issue is that the train ‘rocked and rolled’ due to the track.
Crossing border and into Butterworth
The train crossed the border into Malaysia at about 9.00 a.m. There was a fair bit of mucking around with passport control and customs. Clearly there is a long way to go before Thais and other nationals are able to quickly cross into Malaysia at border point.
Once over the border the track completely changed. The Malaysians are clearly spending heaps of their rail network. The track is very new with high ballast and concrete sleepers. They must be preparing to run Very Fast Trains.
Penang
I arrived in Butterworth in the late afternoon and caught to ferry across to Georgetown. I checked into the Old Georgetown Hotel in the ‘heritage area’ of the town.
Clearly the local government sees the benefit of preserving this area, with its colonial architecture. They do not want to make the same mistake that Singapore made by knocking down too many of these buildings. The problem appears to be that a lot of the shops and residences are empty or very run down. It will take a will to get the place thriving as a commercial and residential area. At least they are having a go.
I had a great meal from a street stall washed down with a freezing cold bottle of Guinness. I remember being introduced to Malaysia Guinness in 1988. It goes really well with the food.
WWII Museum
Next day I took, what turned out to be a very long bus ride out to the WWII War Museum. It was the main British Artillery defence complex built to defend Penang and the Straits of Malacca. The place is also used as a ‘paintball’ war games site.
It is a bit tacky, but you can see past that into the history of the original British Army facility. It is quite amazing that despite all the fortifications in Malaysia and Singapore and larger forces, the British and Allies were beaten by the Japanese in late 1941 and early 1942. A little leadership incompetence goes a long way.
History recalls that the defences were designed to repel attacks from the sea. The Japanese attached on the land with air support. The British didn’t have many planes and were not experienced in jungle warfare. The officers were good at drinking gin and tonic.
There were lots of school kids at the museum when I was there. I wondered what their thoughts are on this piece of history.
Bus to the beach
Next day, I decided to go and check out the beach resort area of the island – Batu Ferringhi. It was remarkably quiet.
There is a lot of new development all the way up that part of the coast. I am not sure if I would like to live there.
When I got back to Georgetown I had another great meal from a street stall.
Train to KL
The train from Butterworth to KL , left at 8.00 a.m. This meant a fairly early wake up and trip on the ferry from Penang.
I was travelling First Class for MYR 60 (AUD 20). I got air-conditioning in First Class. I should have travelled Second Class. It was freezing. Every 30 minutes I had to leave the carriage and stand on the plate between the carriage and the buffet carriage to warm up.
I arrived in KL the late afternoon.
Flickr Link
billrider2013 