February 11th – Day 5 – Penang to Rayavadee, Krabi

This was the longest day’s drive of the tour so far, with a total distance of 560Kms.

We left our hotel at about 6.45am. First stop was for diesel. Fuel is 50% more expensive in Thailand than Malaysia, so it was well worth filling up before we crossed the border. Once filled, we drove back across the Penang Bridge in the morning rush hour. Our drive then took us more or less due north to the border, about 170 kms from Penang.

Leaving Malaysia.


Crossing borders in non EEC countries is often problematic. Reams of paperwork have to be completed. Umpteen stamps have to be applied to passports, customs declaration forms, entry & exit permits, vehicle carnet, crew lists and passenger lists. The list seems to get greater every time we travel. I suppose it is one way of keeping an army of people in work, just to administer the bureaucracy.

The result for us was that we spent nearly an hour waiting for one official after another stamping the forms and printing off new ones for us to sign. In the end we were waved through into Thailand, the third country of the tour.

Shortly after leaving the border Wendy took this photo through the side window of the car of a giant Buddha.



Like Malaysia the countryside is very green and lush. The initial part of the drive was on modern motorway, but true to form, John Brown’s route took us off the main road onto the most delightful rural road running through small Thai farming villages.


To the west of us were several waterfalls and we decided to go to the one John said was the ‘best of the bunch, Phrai Wan. The waterfall was only about 3 kms off the road. We met up with Paul & Jayne as well as Bob & Thelma and walked up to the falls. It was a very pretty spot, with the falls cascading down for several hundred feet over smooth rocks. Bob climbing up above us at the waterfalls.



When we got back to the car we saw this group of baby chickens following the mother hen.


We moved on and within a few miles came across a group of locals in a field with hundreds of bird cages hanging from a metal framework. Men stood on either side whilst several hundred locals were watching.

Someone in the crowd blew a whistle and the men moved forward and marked a few of the ‘luggage labels’ that were hanging from each cage.

Inside each cage there was one bird which appeared to be of the same species. This went on for the whole time we were there, about 15 minutes.


What they were doing we have no idea. Initially we though they might be selling the birds, but then we wondered if it was some sort of gambling. If anyone can enlighten us please post a comment. We will try and find out whilst we are here.

Soon after we left the birds we caught up with several other cars on the tour, Jeremy and Felicity, Jim and Helen, Simon and Andrew and for about 100kms we went in convoy on lovely wide open roads with little traffic. We eventually arrived back at the coast about 100kms south of our destination. We parked up and I took this group photo on an idyllic Thai beach with islands off shore.


Several cars stayed to have a drink and lunch in one of the beach bars, but we decided to head on. We arrived at the hotel car parking at around 3pm. We had to take a boat to the hotel itself as it is located at the end of a peninsular which is accessible only by sea. I took this photo of or great friends from previous tours, Do and Els Meeus from Holland. We know them as the 'newlyweds', having married only a couple of years ago!

Twenty minutes later we docked at the hotel. A tractor with trailer took us from the boat across the beach, as it was low tide, to the hotel reception. Quite a strange was to arrive at a hotel!


We are at a beautiful location on the Andaman Sea. Two nights here means we can have a good break from five days of driving. I’ll post photos of the hotel tomorrow.