Hat Yai Trip - Day 1

Sawatdee kaa ~

We just came back from Hat Yai 2 days ago ... actually we didn't really plan for this trip, so that made it more adventurous as we did not know what to expect when we set our foot there. And just a week prior to the trip, we were informed that Hat Yai has experienced the worst flood in years. And one of the most affected area is the commercial and business center in the town area. We had qualms about the trip, but since Air Asia did not make any flight cancellations, so with doa + positive minds, we just proceed.

waiting to board

The journey to Hat Yai via airplane took about 75 minutes and the local time is 1 hour behind Malaysia. When we arrived, the sun was bright but we could see black clouds were forming as a sign of an impending heavy downpour.

As we scouted for drivers to take us to the city centre, a malaysian uncle approached us and invited us to share a cab with him and his friend from India. Fyi, the fare is 300-350 Baht per car.

Uncle tu baik sangat, he even recommended us Mayflower hotel. Katanya, hotel tu bagus, dia dah banyak kali stay sana, so he is a regular there. regular in hat yai?!! ha ha. cuba baca between the lines. tapi tak baik bersangka buruk okeh so pwincess tarik balik kata-kata itu.

Masa sampai di Mayflower, we were informed that all the rooms were fully booked. and by the way, in Thailand, it is recommended that tourists book their hotel rooms through agents rather than walk-in. in other words, walk-in rates are much more expensive compared to agents' rates. These are some of the agents that you can ask for quotations, nak beli tiket bas pun boleh, nak tukar duit kat sini boleh, nak book transport for songkhla tour/koh samui/phuket suma pun boleh diuruskan di sini.

This is our hotel but we managed to book for one night only as it was fully booked. Otel-otel lain kebanyakannya ditutup lagi untuk keje-keje pembersihan.

Rate here per night is 900 Baht and I personally love the hotel. The room is clean, the facilities are new, free-wifi, strategic location (halal eateries, shopping complexes, hair salons and massage parlours are nearby)

After we checked-in, perut dah tak tahan sangat lapar ... seb baik restauran halal yang hangat diperkatakan itu adalah di seberang jalan saje.

Staff kat salma halal restaurant ni boleh bercakap melayu. they even bagi salam pada kita bile kita nak masuk kedai dia. sejuk ati dengar.


prince ordered nasi goreng daging merah. sedap sangat tapi sikit. dahla perut tgh growling with hunger.

pwincess ordered koay teow tom yum. I wanted to taste authentic thai cooking while in thailand and yes! tom yum dia sangat sedap! kalau makan, memang berpeluh-peluh, and by the time you finished it, your lips would be swollen....terasa macam angelina jolie sekejap....pergh~

seafood koay teow tom yum as in the picture is about 70 Baht and the asam buoy drink is 35 Baht (spelling ikut menu dia). Oh ya, kalau kat salma, masakan goreng-goreng dia sedap, tapi kalau lauk pauk khabarnya tak tasty so simpanlah duit anda.

This is another halal restaurant yang famous di kalangan malaysians. unfortunately, the restaurant is still closed, tak dapek kitaorg nak rasa kesedapan makan kat situ.

Lepas makan, kitaorang jalan-jalan just to explore the city. The town in in the midst of recovery, damaged goods were gathered in one place while goods that can still be used but a bit spoilt due to the flood dijual secara lambak atau lelong di tepi kaki lima.

jualan lelong

the ubiquitous tuk-tuk - 20Baht/person

Pulut mangga depan Lee Garden Plaza - serious sedap gile sehingga menjilat plastik

oh oh ... true enough, heavy downpour on that evening! so we returned to our hotels, had our massage in the room for 2 hours. don't forget to ask for not-so-pretty masseurs for your massage, apart from safety measure (if u travel with your husband), apparently these ladies massage better compared to the ones with pretty faces. the massage was good, we even add-on aromateraphy massage and habis angin-angin dalam badan semua dipecahkan oleh tukang urut ni.

wanna hear a funny story? the Indian friend of the kind Uncle also had massage in his room, and the lady asked him whether he wanted 'extra services' ... tapi pasal tatau nak sebut dalam english, so she showed some gestures and said, 'ping pong'? paham-paham la kan....amende. tapi this mister pulak lurus bendul, he answered, "well ... sure. but where's the bat, table and ball to play ping pong?" lawak betul la....hehe.