Overland Thailand : Phi Phi Island.

I has long been overdue, I shall continue my Overland Thailand Backpacking stories after stopping at the last post here.

Phi Phi made famous for its sandy beaches, pristine water and it's island geographical. It became the talk about the world when the 2004 Tsunami hits this Island, causing unimaginable death and devastation. I became aware of my surrounding after hearing a first- hand story from a victim . When he retold his story, I can vividly imagine the chaos on the beach that I stood at. My prayers goes to you.

Phi Phi to me is a wonderful island that I would love to return one fine day. The alley that I walked, full of farangs (white people) suddenly become no stranger to me. Yes, Phi Phi Island relies heavily on its tourism. But as you walk further down the street, you will see the local people, some survivors of the 2004 Tsunami. Cooking, chit chatting with their neighbours, slaughtering chicken (oh yes, live!) and people selling food to foreigners. 

Things can be a little bit expensive on the island, but come to think of it, they don't get it produce it here eh? In order to get supplies from the mainland, the either have to take a boat ride about 45 minutes to 1 hour to Ao Nang in Krabi or a boat away from Phuket (Which I believe is even further). 

How expensive can it be? Well, put it this way ; a piece of  roti with nutella is about 20 Baht on mainland, here it can be from 40 Baht to 60 Baht. Food were good when I was there, I had some really good pancake and sweet drinks while watching people at the beach. I also got the halal buffet food provided in the Island Hopping package I took from Boon Rup Travel. 

 

Being a muslim, I've heard/read about the mosque that stood the 200 tsunami when it happened. I went to seek for it and eventually found it behind some rebuild houses and piles of blue giant water tanks. People were friendly there, they gave salam to me knowing that I am Muslim and tried their best to talk to me despite the language barrier. Because of them, I was allowed to also used their bathroom to cleanse myself from all the salt water I got myself into earlier of the day.

If you want something more memorable, may I suggest you to mail yourself and your friends postcards from the island itself? I believe they already know that people wants to do it, they even prepare a special stamp that says Phi Phi Island Post, Thailand. I got my postcards for 5 Baht at Krabi town, postcards were 10 - 20 Baht on the island. 

All in all, it was a great day going for Island Hopping on the Andaman Sea. Phi Phi island being the last island I made the stop was a perfect ending to a perfect day. I think everyone on the boat had a terrific time knowing each other and enjoying the water of Andaman Sea.

I shall return one fine day Phi Phi.  Till Then, keep on traveling peeps! :D

New header and more backpacking stories coming !

So, some of you came to this blog and found it in such a disarray manner. Too bad, you were in the "construction zone". I was fiddling with the html and whatnot with my ungodly hands. Yeah, a perfect recipe for disaster. Nonetheless, it's all coming back together again. Fuhh... 

And am so proud of myself that I self-made my own header! From scratch! The vision came after much disaster beforehand. Not bad actually considering that I only used PhotoScape to do all this. ;)

Okay, enough with the drama of me trying to make this blog looks more "cute" eh? I know that I've been hoarding lots and lots of backpacking and traveling stories. I bet some of you might be a little bit confused with all the mixed/jumbled posting. And am still traveling! Wait till you hear about my "6 month Life-Changing-Plan", you'll shake your head in disbelief. :P

Anyhow, about a week ago, my God-Sister Jard finally "converted" into a backpacker. Now she can ditch her trolly-dolly into the river. And the best part is that she did her first backpacking with me!

But wait till you hear the stories of her losing her stuffs while we backpack, I was the one panicking instead! Now, she's itching to backpack again and maybe I have to padlock her stuffs to her body next time! 

We were actually bound for Chiang Mai but changed plans all the way. We ended up in Krabi then Bangkok, and guess what, Ayuthayya! Epic randomness, well perks being backpacker, you are not constraint to plans. But I have to tell you, this is one probably one of the best backpacking I have ever done. Met lots of amazing and friendly travelers. 

Met this mother and daughter pair from the boat tour in Ayuthayya and we ended up spending some good time having dinner at the night market together.

Oh, this one is special. Why special? He is officially the first stranger I slept with (pun intended). Kidding! We were total strangers and in order to save money, we shared room all the way till Bangkok. And guess what? He followed us back to Malaysia! 

I met Carmen in the same Guesthouse in Ayuthayya, she was borrowing my Lonely Planet and we became friends. She even bought my first "travel laundry kit" so that next time I could roll it out and hang my cloths. 

And then we met Phaisin, my God-Sister's friend who is an Angel! He treated us like Kings, treated us at a fancy restaurant by the Chao Praya River and drove us till 3 am so that we could see the "Real Bangkok".  I owe you a big one, come to Kuala Lumpur and I'll bring you to some really good food here Phaisin. :) 

I had a great backpacking to Ayuthayya, Thailand. Will be sharing all those stories and tips soon. Till then...keep on traveling peeps! :D

LIVE update: Backpacking in progress!

We are on a detour from the actually route, taking a break to rest a little and seeing the sea tomorrow! That's the beauty of backpacking, you are not constraint to plans. ^^

psst: We are in Krabi now and leaving for Bangkok tomorrow to the undecided destination. Till then...keep on traveling peeps! :D

Ramadhan Backpacking.

Hello, been a while since I last went for a backpacking trip overseas.  So, this Ramadhan with the spirit of musafir (traveler) I am planning for another trip. This time around, am not going solo tho, I have 2 passionate travel bloggers who (forced)^^ me to take them along.  Welcome onboard Jard and Thristhan! ;)

We are planning on doing overland Thailand all the way up to Northern Thailand. The route is as follows:

Kuala Lumpur- Hatyai- Surat Thani-Bangkok-Chiang Mai

As usual, me being the cheapskate backpacker, am aiming on spending not more than RM 400 (USD 126) for about 7 days of traveling. I might just keep traveling for here on, like work here and there, and move? Any donation is welcome! ^^

Besides that, I really forward to this trip because of Ramadhan. Imagine traveling, walking, taking train/bus for hours without eating and drinking! Breaking fast (buka puasa) in  a foreign land! Money can't buy experience! :)

This time around, I am opening this trip for sponsorship. I would love to carry your name and brands. This includes physical advertising, social media blast and blogging! Do contact me at r.haries.er@gmail.com. Cheers!

till then...keep on traveling peeps!

Overland Trip Thailand: Andaman Sea Island Hopping 1.

Warghhhh.... I had to wake up early! And I still can't believe that I'm in THAILAND! My Island Hopping tour starts at 8 am and missing this will cost me 1050 Baht! LOL

So, the night before I managed to secure a package for Island Hopping at Boon Rub Travel and Tour, 101, Utarakit Road, Mueang Krabi, Krabi, 81000. Honestly, it was a great deal! Well, I think Patty and Jenny likes me! Because when I asked everyone else, they said they paid a different price. Lucky me! 

The van picked me up with Taka-San and and Ikuei at Pak Up Hostel.  It seems that we are sharing boats with other travelers from other tour agencies. They code share their services. This is when I get to know how much other paid and some paid up to 2000 Baht for the exact same thing! 

It was breathtaking view when we arrived at Ao Nang Beach, Krabi.  I kept pinching myself! Still can't believe it that I made it here ALONE! We all gathered there to be divided into boats and I found Malaysians on the same boat! Eira, Herman and Akim drove all the way from Kuala Kedah Port to Ao Nang, Krabi! 

Okay, do ignore my face. That is a face forced to wake up early! haha.. But it was all worth it! The journey on Andaman Sea was simply amazing; I am rather speechless. 

Though I almost threw up due to Sea Sickness, I manage to calm myself down and enjoy the trip. Self reminder: Don't sit at the front section of the boat unless you wanna have puke fiesta!  :P

The boat made its first stop at Railey Beach to pick up people from this small island for the same tour. I was already excited when I saw how clear the water was! It's so beautiful ; I have never seen anything like this in my life. 

Our first destination was Koh Mai Pai or rather known as Bamboo Island.  The sea was a lil bit choppy the day I was there, so the waves were rough a lil. Nonetheless, I enjoyed the sun and water! Splendid experience! 

Can you believe the water was so clear? And I was in the middle of the Andaman Sea! People told me it's called Emerald Crystal Clear water. And I have to agree. It did look Emerald much.

We spent about 1 hour here and we were off to other Islands.  It was truly great experience for me.  

And the best part is that I did it SOLO! More stories about my backpacking coming up in next posts. Till then, keep on traveling peeps! :D

Overland Trip Thailand: Sawadee krup Krabi!

After the grueling traveling overland all the way from the heart of Kuala Lumpur, am finally here in Krabi, Thailand! Woot2! Took me almost 20 hours ( 2 days) from a train ride from KL Sentral to Hat Yai, and bus ride from Hat Yai to Krabi. Jauh perjalanan membawa diri eh rayyan? haha :D

Yours truly, with heavy backpacks! =.="

So, I stayed at Pak Up Hostel, Utarakit Rd. It's situated in Krabi town, very quiet and peaceful town. It's not expensive. I paid 220 Baht per nite in air-condition room! Though no breakfast is included, you'll have easy access to food. Everything is just  walking distance.  Even makanan halal pon dekat. Riverside lagi! ;) 

The room, I took the lower bunk and yeah the messiest one. haha

The common room with bean bags! me want one!

Honestly, this hostel is not bad. Boleh kata semua tip top and I seriously recommend to fellow backpackers and backpacker wannabe! 

Yummy mini crispy pancake! rinduuuu..

So untuk dinner malam tu, I headed to the riverside to experience real thai food! And seriously one of the best I have ever had. And they serve halal food! Makanan kat krabi riverside ni tak mahal, between 5Baht to 60Baht.

Roti canai thai, no curry2 okay! haha...sweet nutella! Kelas ko jah,tepi jalan pakai nutella. 

After dinner, misi mencari package Krabi Island hopping termurah ter-cheapskate pon bermula. Sebab memang peak season, farangs flocking Thailand, alkisahnya all packages became very very very lah expensive! T_T

Last2 dah pusing jumpa minah dua orang ni! Dah lah super friendly, Jenny and Patty gave me the best rate in Krabi. Island Hoping around Andaman Sea for me was only 1050 Baht! Wuhuuuuuuuuu.... bila sembang2 with other backpackers semua kena over 1200 Baht! erkk... some even paid up to 2000 Baht for the same trip. Homaigod kan?

Ni lah diorang siap suruh duk sana kerja ngan diorang coz I speak good english and malay!LOL

Malam tak buat apa2 sangat, boleh tak aku dpt super duper nightmare sampai jerit2 dalam dorm tu! =.=" hilang machooooo... habis semua orang terjaga. Everyone asked me if I'm okay and aku dengan segannya turun gi common hall..haha. 


It was 3am and well bangun terus lapar beb! Gi 7-11 and ada makanan halal! Yeah!!! Lega gila boleh mamam ayam + pulut and instant noodle pagi2 tu..hehe

So nanti kita sambung lagi eh backpacking stories on the Overland Trip Thailand! Keep traveling peeps! :D

Overland Trip Thailand: Getting from Hat Yai to Krabi.

And am back! Sorry for the hiatus, been lazying around doing nothing.haha... Taklah, aku serious kemalasan melampau and busy attending ABAF ASIA, ngan adik aku accident lagi, and kakak aku accident kat Australia!Tu belum part aku sakit2..ish3.... Perghhh.... dugaan sungguh!

So back to backpacking!, today am gonna share with you how to get from Hat Yai to Krabi by Thailand local bus! Sangat2 adventurous! :D

For all kaki backpacking like me, route Hat Ya-Krabi ni is easy and safe. I survived to tell the tale. ;)

Akhbar and Zulia, newly wed couple on their way to Krabi! Ni lah the random people I travelled with.hehe

Oh dear God, see how Fat I was! looks like bloob of fatttt... T_T 

The journey from Hat Yai Junction train station to Hat Yai Bus Station took about 20 minutes. And yeah, the tuk tuk or songtheaw does look like "lorry sayur" a bit. haha...thanks anon! ;)

We took something like this but without the cover. 

Once we arrived, I went straight to the information counter. Remember, don't buy ticket from people/the touts, go to the counter and get your ticket ! ;)

Official government ticket counter. Plus these kakak2 are super friendly..hihi 

The ticket from Hat Yai - Krabi was about 164 Baht, well cheaper than what I research for, it was 2nd class. Am not sure about the classes but I bet it's the duration of the travel. Sebab my time, they journey took almost 6 hours as the bus made a lot of stops. 

Zaituna from Kazah, Julia and yours truly....

Time ni dah rasa macam Amazing Race lak...haha... Honestly I don't have any plan whatsoever when I landed myself in Thailand. Voila, there I was standing with strangers and having the chance to travel with them! 

Zaituna from Kazakhstan is an AIESEC who was on her trip in SEA. Cikgu minah ni...hehe...special edu teacher! Salute2!  

Ni lah Cha Yen pertama di bumi Thai ni... perghh...akak ni buat Cha Yen pakai mesin espresso beb!

See...terliur tak...slurpsss....

Ni lah the bus I took to krabi, bound for Phuket actually....

The condition in the bus, not bad...not bad for 164 Baht!

Dah lah aku tak suka naik bus long-haul ni, tido ngan buat tarapapa lah dalam bus. Chit-Chat ngan diorang ni pastu lentok habis. I think I woke when the made a stop at the rest area. 

Lega giler bila tau stop ni ada makanan halal! Masakan Muslim area tuuu...pergh..memang aku melantak tak hinggat lah..haha... ye lah, my logic nanti susah nak dapat makanan halal dah.. hihi

The town we passed by along the journey.

You'll see a lot of this, people selling "holy flowers" to drivers on the highway.

Benda ni aku panggil lok lok, tah betul tah tak..haha... dah lah murah dari 5Baht to 15Baht yg paling mahal pon.

No worry, di sahkan halal on Jakim..hikhik...yo2 jer jakim tu rayyan oi..hihii

Route Hat Yai-Krabi ni easy peasy lah, I mean, not much harm done except that you have to avoid the touts at the train station. Other than that, I think you can do it! Gamateh ne!

When you arrive in Krabi, well not exactly Krabi lah, about 20 minutes away, make sure you take the Songtheaw/tuk tuk from the roadside, never ever ever take the one that is near to where your bus stop. They will charge you like crazy! 

It's 20 Baht from bus station to Utarakit Rd, the Krabi town and 50- 60 Baht to Ao Nang, the beach side. Make sure you agree with the driver first before boarding. 

Apa lagi eh, tunggu lah next entry boleh? haha... I stayed at Pak Up Hostel in Utarakit Rd, Krabi. Not bad lah...tunggguuu... haha

p/s: Sorry again for the long long hiatus.... ^^

Overland Trip Thailand: The Departure.

So, like I said previously exactly after I came back from Singapore, 24 hours after that terus cabut gi Thailand. Well, I had to comeback to KL to listen to all the bullshits that my college have to say and take my dismissal from college officially. Thus this post came into picture- My failure bought me a ticket around the world!

Went to KLSentral to lepak and figure out my next move. Boleh kan terjumpa this backpacker Anna from London, she asked whether our tap water is safe or not. We talked and I was inspired to follow her route, getting to Krabi, Phi Phi Island and all...

Well, eventually I bought 1 way ticket to Hadyai, Thailand and changed my remaining SGD to Baht. Went home, unpacked and repacked. Most importantly get my debit card authorize for international transaction. Basically just wanting to try do Overland Trip Thailand. 

Beautiful view along the 13 hours train ride to Hadyai. Aku rasa ni time kat Kedah.

Tell me not to fall in love with this view. 

Paddy Field before approaching the border of Padang Besar.

The train took about 12 hours to reach Padang Besar Border. Rasanya dah delay lama gak tu. Plus, it took sometimes at the Immigration as we collide with the people on the train that was heading for Bangkok. So, double amount of people at immigration.

Buat apa lagi, tunggu jer lah. This might sound funny but I actually started to randomly talked to people hoping that I strike a luck that they might be heading to Krabi, well I guess my luck worked.haha... Jumpa satu couple ni nak gi honeymoon at Ao Nang and diorang pon tak sure nak gi Krabi camna. 

Thank God I found out from Dr Shahrul's blog that there's local bus leaves every hour from Hadyai bus station to Krabi bus station. So we promised to stay on together till we get to Krabi. 

The only food shop here, hell, like paying at the airport.shucks!=.="

This cost me RM 8 bucks! My first 80 Baht burned for this meal, complain2 pon telan gak kan.. :P

It took another hour to actually sampai Hadyai Junction station. Hah, adventure begins here actually! Believe me when I say that you'll be taunted by all these touts, man it was nightmare! Diorang will actually pull you into their shop and literally forced you to buy ticket from them. 

Glad aku dah tau ticket should only cost about 216 Baht, they wanted us to pay a freaking 800 Baht! Crazy, and I had to literally helped the couple out of the shop. 

Takut gak lah, funny but adventurous running from the touts dengan menjerit2 "me dai, me dai" (in which I assume means NO at that time.) haha... what a drama queen start! 

Welcome to Thailand Rayyan! :')

We hailed a tuk tuk and agreed on 20 Baht each to get to the bus station. With no map, no idea of the location, berserah je kat driver tuk tuk tu. Well, guess the atok and opah driver sincerely sent us the bus station where we got out tickets to Krabi. Fuhhh....

In case you need to know, harga ticket KTM from Kuala Lumpur to Hadyai was RM 60 for lower berth.   

p/s: Shall continue the journey from Hadyai-Krabi by local bus later..till then keep traveling! ;)