THERE'S NO CLASS LIKE THIRD CLASS- A Train Trip around Thailand's Deep South

.....previous blog post is Vietnam's poster art......

Welcome to our 101st blog post- we hope you can join us for the next 101!!

Happy to leave stifling Penang, we took the commuter train to the Thai border. There was rather a lot of confusion between station staff and fellow train travellers, mainly due to the one hour time difference between Thailand and Malaysia. After waiting for a while, we eventually crossed the low key border into Thailand. Another train, this time a lovely old third class Thai train, took us an hour north of the border to Hat Yai. Our first night there saw us return to the Cathay Hotel- a classic old style traveller's place if ever there was one. Cheap and tatty, basic rooms with squat toilets (very rare in Thai hotels these days), a central location, English speaking staff and Western breakfasts were on offer. It was here we made a plan for our two weeks in the Deep South of Thailand.

Old style Cathay Hotel room, Hat Yai, Thailand

Richard is a such a cheapskate!

Thailand's Deep South is a troubled area, never wanting to be part of Thailand, but reluctantly has been since the 1700s. The culture, religion and people are so obviously different from the rest of the country. There has been a lot of trouble and terrible violence on both sides over the years, as the insurgents fight for separation from Thailand. A level of autonomy would be acceptable to the people of the Deep South, but it's not looking likely as the Thai government continues to dig in it's heels. Security was tight, as would be imaged, and every street leading into every town center had a military checkpoint. Without fail, these soldiers grinned at us and waved as we passed by.

Pattani for peace mural, Pattani, Deep South, Thailand

None of the violence here has been aimed at tourists, however foreigners have stayed away from the entire region for many years now. After assessing the situation, we decided our safety was not in jeopardy, and we wanted to explore this little seen part of the country. As it was, we felt much safer here than we would in many parts of Western Europe at the moment.

Pattani was the first stop, and a place of many markets. The bustling day produce market turned into a food market with tasty offerings in the evenings, and the humongous second hand clothes market was fantastic, but frustrating. We could have gone crazy buying up all sorts of quality clothes items for next to nothing, but we have too much to carry as it is!

Busy Pattani market, Deep South Thailand

Seller of trinkets, Pattani,  Deep South Thailand

Happy little banana lady, Pattani,  Deep South Thailand

Mr Fix-It, Pattani,  Deep South Thailand

A stall with a selection of aphrodisiacs, Pattani,  Deep South Thailand

The other notable thing about Pattani was the fervour with which local residents came out to exercise in the evenings. This is quite a common thing in Thailand, as it's generally too hot to move a lot during the day, but Pattani took it to another level. There was outdoor aerobics going on in one square, next door to a sports field with people doing laps, an exercise park full of equipment (and people!), and the main promenade around the river area. After walking all day in the heat, we were content to sit in the shade with a breeze and watch everyone else slog their guts out.

Pattani was also home to what is the worst hotel we have personally seen in Thailand- and one we'd seen recommended on the usually excellent Travelfish website. Ironically it was named the Palace, but as far away from it's namesake as you could imagine. Deciding it was too revolting even for us, we luckily found another place for pretty much the same price, with a spic and span, quiet room, lovely staff and central location (appropriately name Paradise!).  

Our challenge for one day was to find our way to a beach area know as Haat Talo Kapo. Using a mixture of songtheows (covered pick up trucks), and hitch hiking, we easily made it to our destination, and spend the day walking along the beach and looking for the colourful kaw-lae boats. These traditional boats are stunningly decorated with bright colours and carvings, and quite different from any other boat design we have seen in Thailand. Hitching hiking was ridiculously easy, only having to put our hand out, before a car would stop for us. Mostly it was curious families out for the day themselves, mostly with some English, and it was wonderful to meet them and chat a little while the coastal scenery wizzed by.

Designs in the sand, Pattani, Deep South, Thailand

Close up of colourful boat designs, Pattani, Deep South, Thailand

Kaw-lae boats lined up on the beach, Pattani, Deep South, Thailand

Kaw-lae boat coming in, Pattani, Deep South, Thailand

It was nearly lovely, apart from all the rubbish outside the fishing village

We were reluctantly adopted in Pattani by a very kind, but slightly over the top local woman who had some connections with Australia, and who could speak a little bit of English. We enjoyed having the intensified interaction with a local (not usual in Thailand), and she was very generous taking us out to eat and around town in her car. We were, however, quite overwhelmed when she visited our hotel room at night to see where we were, and was waiting for us first thing in the morning when we came down to the foyer! It must be said, after a few days, we felt a sense of relief when she put us on the bus to Yala, waving madly and with tears running down her cheeks! Despite this, Pattani was our favourite of the three deep south towns we visited.

Yala was smaller than Pattani, and to be frank the sights were a bit thin on the ground. However, we had come here to experience normal life in the town, so we were happy to wander around getting a feel for the place. The market was a special spot, not so much for the goods, but for the amazing people who were so kind and generous- one woman gave us an enormous bag of bananas for free we then had to lug around for the whole day!!

Two chairs growing old together, Yala, Deep South, Thailand

Halal butcher in the market, Yala, Deep South, Thailand

Groovy looking chap (on the left!), Yala, Deep South, Thailand

Browsing, Yala, Deep South, Thailand

The chicken man, Yala, Deep South, Thailand

Our Yala hotel was a touch bizarre, with every wall covered in signs (in Thai), a few of which we deciphered.

We could work that one out

No weapons, including hand grenades, apparently

Self explanatory 

Hotel reception, Yala, Deep South Thailand

We had our second challenge when we wanted to get to Wat Na Tham, a Buddhist cave temple 8 kms out of town, and although there was absolutely no information on-line and no English speakers in the vicinity, amazingly, we quite easily found the correct songtheow and set off.

The cave temple was simply incredible, and much more impressive than we had been expecting. After climbing up some steps, we were met with a huge statue of an ogre-like guardian at the entrance of a vast cave, filled with Buddhas and other images (some of which we had never seen), with enough natural light coming in to create a wonderful atmosphere. (We really didn't want to put any more Buddha images on this blog- there has been rather a lot recently, but hopefully you'll forgive us- it was too captivating!!)

Sorry!

Hair of the Buddha, Wat Na Tham, Yala, Deep South, Thailand

So many Buddhas!, Wat Na Tham, Yala, Deep South, Thailand

Wat Na Tham, Yala, Deep South, Thailand

Giant asleep, Wat Na Tham, Yala, Deep South, Thailand

Sal dwarfed inside Wat Na Tham, Yala, Deep South, Thailand

Little offering, Wat Na Tham, Yala, Deep South, Thailand

Afterwards, we were lucky to hook up with a small group from Bangkok, and join them on a tour through a cave complex, lead by a chubby monk with a serene face (and his happy dogs). Lit only by head torches, the glittering, dripping rock formations shone, and little bats flew around our heads. By the time the hour of so tour had finished, Sal was quite happy to leave the suffocating atmosphere and breathe in some fresh air again.

Elephant rock inside Wat Na Tham, Yala, Deep South Thailand

Inside the cave, Yala, Deep South, Thailand

Rich nearly lent on this viper!! 

We finished off the excursion with lunch at a typical Thai style eatery. You would never imagine the divine food cooked inside these modest looking stalls, with their displays of two minute noodles and one tomato in a glass case out the front.

A feast of pad see you noodles with crispy pork and prawns, young coconut and complimentary rambutans!!

Finding no public transport back to town, we again hitch hiked- this time with two women who had seen us eating lunch, and wanted to meet us. We were laughing during the 5 minute wait for a lift on the road, realizing that Yala probably doesn't see many hitch hikers, and it's probably only mad farang that would even think about it!!

The entry into Narathiwat was once again a breeze thanks to the helpful handsome newly wed on the train with excellent English, and the confident English speaking youngsters on the songtheow, who all helped us to get to our accommodation.

Lovely chatty man, train to Narathiwat, Deep South, Thailand

When we did arrive, we wondered if we really wanted to stay there! The Narathiwat Hotel is apparently quite a famous place, but on arrival, all we could see was the obvious brothel area, and ladies swanning around in various states of undress. There was a communication problem with the staff, so we decided to sit and have a couple of beers, and see what happened. Things sorted themselves out eventually, after a woman arrived (the madam?) and we were shown an absolutely charming room over the river in a completely different part of the hotel, with no one else staying. We did have to walk through the brothel part in order to enter our area, and it was a bit strange to see the ladies in their rooms with the doors open eating, on their phones, changing their clothes, or entertaining men as we walked through. They were lovely, though, and all smiled at the weird farang staying in their place and said sawadee kah (hello).

The famous (infamous?) Hotel Narathiwat

A short video of our Narathiwat accommodation

The town beach in Narathiwat was surprisingly pleasant and good quality, although no one was swimming when we visited. The scruffy, yet photogenic adjoining fishing village was a touch intimidating, what with the piles of rubbish strewn all over and the shady characters sitting around. Cats and sheep outnumbered the human visitors at the beach, and the humidity and heat kept all who were there in the shade- except us! The Thai's really do think we are quite mad, walking around in the heat of the day, and when we arrive sweat soaked, exhausted and stinky back to our guesthouse to shower and collapse onto the bed for the afternoon, we think they are probably correct!!

Empty in the heat of the day, Narathiwat's town beach, Deep South, Thailand

Fishing village, Narathiwat, Deep South, Thailand

Could he get any cuter? Narathiwat, Deep South, Thailand

Old wrecked boat, Narathiwat, Deep South, Thailand

Close up detail on kaw-lae boat, Narathiwat, Deep South, Thailand

Colourful boats, Narathiwat, Deep South, Thailand

Fishing village with mosque in background, Narathiwat, Deep South, Thailand

We embarked on what was to become a drawn out, sweltering walk to the TAT office (yes, they have a tourist office in Narathiwat!), not knowing how far it was (outskirts of town), or that there was no shade. We were spurred along when a Muslim lady from a stall gave us an cold iced lemon tea on the house, and on arrival at the office we were given a map and a little information by the bewildered single worker in the building.

Rusty gate, Narathiwat, Deep South, Thailand

Random parade down Narathiwat street, Deep South, Thailand

Our day trip special was supposed to be by songtheow down the coast to a town called Tak Bai, with beaches and islands, but we were actually taken to the Malaysian border at Taba, further along the coast. After establishing where the hell we were, we had a look around the busy border town before a young man offered to take us back to Tak Bai on his motorbike. By this time, we were boiling, so only managed a walk over a bridge to Ko Yao island and finding the songtheow back to Narathiwat  again.

Boats at the Taba border

Narathiwat family, Deep South, Thailand

Other times in Narathiwat, we hung out on the verandah, enjoying watching the boats on the river, or the pouring rain late most afternoons. Heavenly!

Narathiwat Hotel

A massive travel day from Narathiwat on motorbike taxis, buses, songtheows and trains saw us crossing the border back into Malaysia, and onto the railway town of Pasir Mas. It was a supremely disappointing place to us, as our reason to be there (apart from catching a train back to Kuala Lumpur), was to enjoy a lovely meal for Sal's birthday before embarking on the overnight trip back to KL. The unappetizing options at the various manky eateries around the train station were not inspiring, so we picked around a plate of rice and chicken, and hopped on the train. The train was also a bit disappointing- old, dirty and late, but it got us back to the big city, which seemed positively manic after where'd we'd spent the last two weeks.

The so called Jungle Railway from Pasir Mas to Gemas, Malaysia

Not the best toilet we've seen on a train!

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Our trip down south was entirely on rickety old third class trains, and rickety old buses or songtheows to and from the trains stations. Trains are obviously our favourite mode of transport here in Thailand, as with wherever we go!! We love the fresh air from open windows, the peace apart from the clickety clack of the train on the rails, the lack of loud music or TVs, the room to spread out, and most importantly, no crazy drivers. They're the perfect way to get around. The cheap fares help too, with the most expensive one on this trip being 23 baht/AU$0.93. Scenery from the trains was tropical pastoral with all the usual suspects growing- predominantly bananas, rubber, coconut palms and cassava. It was very peaceful to stick our heads out and breathe in the air- that is when we weren't in a conversation with a friendly local. The ticket collectors were accompanied by a few plain clothed security men and the trains were patrolled (as were the towns) by machine gun toting soldiers in camouflage gear.

Third class carriage, Thai train

Beautiful wood seats in Yala train station, Deep South Thailand

Buses to Yala, Deep South Thailand

Rich on little old bus, Pattani, Deep South Thailand

Language was a delight in these parts. To the little bit of essential Thai we know (mostly food related!), we were able to add a little Malay. As well as Thai, the people down here speak a very similar version of Melayu as what is spoken in Malaysia, but it's written in the Jawi alphabet which is Arabic in form, instead of Latin letters. We loved answering the question “Pai nai?” (Thai for where are you going- we get asked that several times a day in Thailand- it's like an ice breaker for them), with “Jalan jalan” (Malay for walking around)!! Many more people seemed to speak English here than in other parts of Thailand, but this could be simply that they are more outgoing and less shy.

Signs showing Thai, English and Jawi, Pattani, Deep South Thailand

Food was, as usual, excellent, although slightly different flavours in this part of Thailand. Added to the delicious Thai style stir fries and noodle dishes were Muslim style curries of many varieties, roti stalls and many stalls selling what looked to us like tripe soup- apparently quite popular. It had to be said we ate prawns nearly everyday, taking advantage of the freshness, delicious taste and low prices. We always thought seafood was haram (forbidden) to Muslims, but apparently the point is quite flexible, and at least some Muslims in Thailand definitely eat prawns. Yala and Narathiwat were a bit of a disappointment, neither having a central food night market (perhaps to do with the troubles), but after a few days, we found enough places to try yummy food and plan our days around where we would eat!!
The two fruits in season and in massive quantities were rambutans and mangosteens, and we took full advantage in eating them everyday. At between 10 and 25 baht/AU0.40-$1 a kilo, we really couldn't say no!
We tried to minimize our food intake during this trip, in preparation for what we know will be major pig outs when we get to the UK!!!

Roti in the shape of murtabak, Narathiwat, Deep South, Thailand

Rambutan

The magical mangosteen

There are many Muslims in all of Southern Thailand, and over the years we have become accustomed to some of their habits and culture. Pattani, Yala and Narathiwat have a much higher Muslim population than anywhere els in Thailand, although we couldn't find out the exact percentage of the population. One (Buddhist) local put it to us that there were 10-20% "Thai" people and 80-90% "Muslim".
We loved the clothes people wore. People dressed based on the Islamic ideas of modesty with loose fitting garments that cover much of the body. Many men dressed in lungis and long white robes, with small hats or white scarves tied around their heads. Women wore a wide variety of Muslim garb. I had to look up the names, as there are so many garments! A few wore the niqab with only their eyes showing, but mostly it was variations on the theme of the hijab.

A handy guide to Muslim head coverings

Pattani woman in market, Deep South Thailand

Funky man opposite Pattani mosque, Deep South Thailand

Smiley faces, Narathiwat, Deep South, Thailand

The mosques were packed on Fridays and Saturdays with men and women sitting inside or in the shade listening to sermons. We found the mosques quite unobtrusive in these parts, with the call to prayer at a reasonable volume, and mostly quite melodic.

Pattani Central Mosque, Deep South, Thailand

Could the people of the Deep South of Thailand be the friendliest in Thailand? They certainly made a good attempt at the title! Perhaps it's the complete absence of tourists that makes them so smiley and curious, or maybe it's the fact that the region is majority Muslim. In our experience travelling around, Islamic countries are the friendliest, in general. Whatever the reason, despite the lack of tourist infrastructure (or maybe because of it), it was great having such a completely contrasting Thai experience to our usual visits. We loved the smiley friendliness of the people wherever we went- just a little comment in Thai, Malay or English, or a sign language joke- usually about Richard's beard. Sometimes we were even able to engage in a proper conversation, and learn a little of the culture. It certainly won't be the last time we visit!

Deaf man, Pattani, Deep South, Thailand

.....onto West Sumatra......