No matter how well we plan and organise our itinerary, we still STRUGGLE to get most things done efficiently... Including our Thai visa run. We were coming up to our 30th day in Thailand and needed to do a quick run to Burma to receive another 15 days in Thailand (when arriving by land). When we went to the booking agency in Koh Phangan, we were quickly informed we could not leave the island, do the visa run and get to Bangkok in the next 3 days, it was going to be impossible. Bottom line was that we needed to be in Bangkok to meet Katy by Saturday evening. After weighing a myriad of options we threw money at the problem and booked flights from Krabi to Singapore and then from Singapore to Bangkok, giving us another 30 days in Thailand (when arriving by air).
We ventured a long journey from Koh Phangan to Krabi (taxi, ferry, bus, minibus, minibus, taxi, taxi) FINALLY arriving 8 hours later... We randomly bumped into our friend from home, Sarah, and her two travel friends Abby and Lauren! Talk about small world! We enjoyed a nice "Nova" evening in Krabi, it was great to see people from home!
After an overnight in Krabi we flew to Singapore and during our 4 hour layover decided to double check our accommodation reservation in Bangkok as we'd be arriving a day later due to the visa run. Once we spoke with the hostel we learned that they cancelled our reservation because we did not show up the night before and they were fully booked. We scrambled to find another place to stay but because it was Friday, most places we called were booked through the weekend as well. We expressed our frustration and panic to Lindsey and Beulah (who were already in Bangkok) asking if their accommodation had any availability. They found out that their hotel was ALSO fully booked, but Lindsey and Beulah walked around found us a place - which we are STILL so thankful for, as we arrived on Kosan Road at approximately 1 am!
Saturday, Struggle Cityyy got up and moved hotels because Katy was arriving tonight!!!!! That afternoon, Laura, Alexis, Kerri, Beulah and Lindsey went to JJs market, the biggest market in the WORLD!! We spent a long time shopping and did some budget damage but had a great time bargaining for new items. Around 5pm Struggle Cityyy headed to the airport and Beulah and Lindsey caught the train to Chiang Mai. We excitedly met Katy at yje airport and went back to the hotel to get ready for a big Saturday night out in Bangkok!!
The four of us showered and dressed up before heading to dinner, when we were informed that after 6pm there was no serving or purchasing of alcohol until midnight on Sunday because it was Election Day... Awesome. We had a mediocre dinner and were all a bit tired, so went to bed early.
Sunday we attempted to see some temples but we struggled with the taxi drivers and tuk tuk drivers on negotiating a reasonable price. The answer was clear when it began to rain and we agreed to go shopping at the MBK (a massive indoor marketplace). There we enjoyed an international lunch and Kerri finally got the screen on her iPhone fixed for cheap! We decided to have dinner in Chinatown - which was surprisingly delicious seafood (AND they served us beer before 12!) We went back to the hotel and dressed for a proper night out, and hopped around some bars on Kosan Road - met some ridiculous people, ate a scorpion, danced in the street and may or may not have attended a ping pong show!
Hungover on Monday, we struggled to the Royal Palace and admired the temple and Emerald Buddha for the afternoon. We had a tearful goodbye to Kerri who headed back to Australia and Katy, Lex and Laura started the next leg of the journey to Chiang Mai!!
Much love,
Laura, Kerri, Alexis and Katy
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