Ride: Kuala Lumpur - Koh Lanta, Thailand

Kuala Lumpur - Koh Lanta, Thailand (17/3/2010)

Heyya..

I'd apologize for not updating Globe Ride blog for my recent trip to Koh Lanta, Thailand.. The holiday trip was only for 4 days (3 nights) which happened from 17th - 20th March 2010..

I left Kuala Lumpur as early as 4.00 am and heading to R&R Rawang for the first re-fueling.. it was still pitch black the air was cold.. The ride was long on the boring North Expressway with the average speed of 130 km/h.. Luckily i had my Ipod Nano with me which helps me to stay awake during the ride..






Reached Bukit Kayu Hitam Immigration Checkpoint at 8.30 am after i changed Thailand's Baht currency and bought Thailand vehicle insurance for my KLR 650..




As we entered Dannok, we had a simple fried kuey teow for breakfast at a restaurant opposite of Oliver Hotel..

At 9.40 am, we headed to Koh Lanta via Highway 4... I was very familiar with the Highway 4 as we by-passed Hatyai and Phatthalung.. Then we headed to Trang and the road was marvelous.. it was hilly with uphill and downhill corners, almost like Fraser's Hill road but shorter...

As we reached Koh Klang jetty, we took a barge to cross a channel between Koh Klang and Koh Lanta Noi.. traveling on the barge took only 20 minutes and it costs USD1.50 to cross from Koh Klang - Koh Lanta Noi - Koh Lanta Yai... Arriving at Koh Lanta Noi, i rode for another 10 km to reach another jetty for Koh Lanta Yai barge... the ride on the barge took shorter than the previous, approximately 5-10 minutes..

As we reached Koh Lanta Yai, we were looking for a place to stay and finally checked-in at a beautiful and new constructed 4-star hotel, called Ananda Lanta Hotel... it costs Baht 1,600 per night.. the Hotel has beautiful infinity swimming pool and breakfast is included... also, the hotel is located along Khlong Dao beach, next to Saladan town and there are plenty of shops, 7-Elevens, restaurants, launderettes, etc etc...

Had a simple yet superb lunch at a small restaurant 100 meters away from the hotel... then headed to the beach for a swim till evening and chilled out at a bar @ Maya Lanta Hotel... 

As my head started to feel light, i headed to Prae Ae Beach to witness Sunset... Prae Ae beach is also known as Long Beach as  It is a stunning crescent of sand some 4 kilometres long. The beach is steeper and the water not as sheltered as at Klong Dao which makes for fantastic, safe swimming for adults. I had couple of bottles on beach bed by the Prae Ae beach and the sunset was beautiful... What a perfect holiday for me! :-P

Went back to Ananda hotel, took shower and rode to Saladan town for dinner... After dinner, we bought some souvenirs and headed back to Prae Ae Beach to chill out by the beach again and also bought tickets for Island Hopping tour on the next day...

To summarize the ride, we rode from KL to Koh Lanta Yai for almost 8 hours of ride to cover 800 km of distance...




HooRahh!!

Koh Lanta - Island Hopping (Southern Region)

Ride: Ko Lanta Yai, Thailand (Few hours before departing)

Heyya,

I will be departing to Ko Lanta in about 5 hours from now.. will be departing at 0330 hours... this will be another episode of my 3B's Adventure (Booze, Beach and Bitches)... hahaha :-P

I will be traveling with my mate, Zaharin, who will be my pillion... the trip will be for 4 days and 3 nights.. I'm planning to stay 2 nights in Ko Lanta and 1 night in Hatyai (on the returning trip)..


Anyway, i have packed all my things for this trip... will be plugging my Ipod Nano on my KLR and i'm gonna listen couple of songs on the boring Malaysian Highway...

I will be studying my map soon... then have a good rest for the ride tomorrow..


Ko Lanta, here i come!!



HooRahh!!

Ride: Hatyai, Thailand (Day-2)

Hatyai, Thailand (20/2/2010), Day-2

Heyya..

On 20th February, i decided not to join the rest of the group to travel and stay at Dannok, Thailand... Dannok is a border town of Southern Thailand and located in Sadao Province... The reason being why i di not wanna join them is, i have been to Dannok for countless times... :-P

As the group checked out and we waved goodbyes, i went for a lunch with a friend of mine at Diana Complex... my friend, Nong, who works as a cocktail mixer at Ice Bar where i went for clubbing a night earlier.. then, we decided to go to Samila Beach, which is situated 30 km from Hatyai city centre...

We left the city after lunch (3.00pm) and it took me only 20 minutes to reach Samila Beach...






Once arrived, enjoyed couple bottles of Chang and Leo, then headed straight into the sea...

The beach is shallow but it has huge waves.. I'd reckon is a great place for surfers...

After had a good swim and chill out for almost 2 hours, we decided to leave the beach and went to a light house near the beach as said by my friend.. i took couple of photos on the rock but didn't manage to go to the light house as it was sunset..

i was afraid i could not ride in the dark as i did not bring my helmet's clear visor through out my Cambodia ride.. lesson learnt.. :-P

Had breakfast at my favourite local restaurant in the next morning near Lee Garden Hotel...

Checked out from Florida Hotel and rode to Dannok.. Crossed the border, stamped my passport and returned Custom Declaration Form.. Remember, the form must be returned.. and if not, i will be penalized 2000 Baht when i'll be entering Thailand on the next trip...

Then i met with other bikers at Changlun, Malaysia and rode back to Kuala Lumpur..

That's all for the Cambodia trip.. we've managed to cover the Southcoast and East of Thailand, Siem Reap and Phnom Penh, Kingdom of Cambodia... total mileage is estimated 4,700 km.. total money spent for Petrol, Accommodations, Meals, Souvenirs and Entertainment almost reached RM2,600.00 for 11 days... Simply Amazing!

Come to think about it again, i spent RM2,600 for the 11-days journey which takes me to Surat Thani, Aranya Prathet via Bangkok, Siem Reap, Phnom Penh, Pattaya, Hua Hin and Hatyai... stayed at 3-4 stars hotel, delicious meals, great entertainment, petrol and souvenirs...

if i were traveling by airplane to Siem Reap, i might spend the exact amount but i could be staying in Siem Reap for 3-4 nights without having a chance to visit other cities, sceneries of countryside and tourist spots in Thailand..


HooRahh!!

Ride: Hua Hin - Hatyai, Thailand

Hua Hin - Hatyai, Thailand (19/2/2010)


Heyya..

It is such a shame to stay at beautiful beach town such as Hua Hin only for a night... i love Hua Hin so much.. No worries, i shall visit Hua Hin again when i will be traveling to visit my friend in Khlong Yai.. :wink:

Anyway, our next destination is Hatyai, which is located 750 km to the South of Hua Hin along Route 4 highway...

The night at Hilton Hotel in Hua Hin, me, Doc Holiday and Piee decided to ride in a group and seperated from Zaini's group... we decided to split up with them as we our bikes (KLR650, Versys and DR Big) can do a long range of mileage and left Hua Hin as early as 6.00 am.. we wanted to save our time by doing only 2 stops (300 km intervals) and reach Hatyai at noon so we could spend more time in the city... Hence, our refueling would be done at Chumphon and Wiang Sa..


But the plan of reaching at Hatyai at noon was a failure as Piee's bike broke down at Thap Sakae.. Anyway, we still managed to reach Hatyai at 2.30 pm and still had the time to spend in the city... OooWiee!

We checked in at Florida Hotel, Hatyai which is roughly 1.5 km away from Lee Gardens Hotel Plaza (the heart of Hatyai city).. Florida Hotel has a great location for those who would not wanna stay in the hustle bustle of the city and prefer to take tuk-tuk to the city.. anyway, the hotel is only 1.5 km from the city.. the room costs 550 Baht per night..


I decided to have a full body massage in Hatyai as i've never had one since the day i've left Kuala Lumpur, been reached Thailand and Cambodia..

I had a wonderful lunch with Eddy, Doc Holiday and Piee at thai restaurant, called Kai Tod Daycha.. Eddy, a friend of Doc Holiday who rode from Taiping and joined us in Hatyai, kindly treated us the great lunch... Cheers mate!

Then most of us spent most of the time by ourselves.. i went a walk with Piee around the Florida hotel as there are many sight-seeing places can be done... hehehe.. Piee is such a funny guy!! He's a true, great entertainer!!

The night, i decided to walk around Lee Garden Hotel Plaza.. there were many tourists having street food..

i met a friendly girl who was willing to show me around Hatyai on her motorcycle at night... such a great opportunity for me to become a pillion of someone who knows the city very well...

then we had McDonald's for dinner... why McD? it's because i'm always hooked with fastfood, even in Kuala Lumpur.. I won't be satisfied without fastfood.. hehehe...
Anyway, I simply love McDonald's in Thailand as they serve Triple Cheeseburger.. they were Absolutely Juicy and Yummy!

Later that night, i decided to have fun and experience Hatyai nightclub.. so i went to a club, called Ice Bar, and actually it's a chic funky club..


Therefore, to summarize the ride from Hua Hin to Hatyai, we rode almost 750 km and took my long range group almost 8 hours to reach Hatyai including the time of fixing my friend's bike...


HooRahh!!

Next Ride: Hatyai (Thailand), Day-2