WOW. That is the most difficult part. Firstly the language difference makes it almost impossible to explain to locals what & where you want to go. At hotels it’s OK, but from hotels to other main routes & place is expensive via hotel shuttle. Once they drop you off at a public bus stop, the picture changes. Buses of all shapes & sizes come rushing past. Who knows which ones to stop? Who knows where the end up. We are aware of one thing & that is that the taxis are expensive & everywhere you go, the drivers rush out to offer friendly advice & of course convince you to drive with them. We want to travel like the locals do as much as possible. Little trucks with “cattle rail type sides” & open roofs are great, cheap & a nice way to meet the locals. These are called Songthaews & are a great way to meet the locals & other backpackers.
Our first of many Songthaew trips. Cheap & cools with airflow helping in the sweltering Thailand heat.
There are millions of automatic motorbikes on the roads. It looks as if they are driving with no concern for roadsafety, but that’s where we are all wrong. I ride a 1000cc Kawasaki back home and have been doing so for many years, yet I am a terrible passenger. Yet yesterday, myself & Janneke took a lift from a young Tai who wanted to earn a few Baht. ME & JANNEKE. THREE UP from Phuket to Rawai as we missed the last songthaews on a Sunday evening. I kid you not!! No helmets, bikes, cars & all shapes & size vehicles milling in & among one another. Guess what? We felt as safe & as confident as is possible under the circumstances. Even enjoyed it. What fun & another 1st. 🙂
Now we have rented our own one for a few days to get along Phuket Island’s Western beaches.
Baggage & all fit nicely on this. At less than 200 Baht/day (+-R78), we think we’ll use this locally once we are exploring a region.