Day 1 - Singapore to Hatyai

I met up with Jimmy at our usual coffee shop joint at 10pm on Friday night. We had been very busy at work all day and didn't get any rest prior to the ride. After some drinks and well wishes from friends, we left for Johore Bahru to begin our 23 day adventure.

We set off from Johore Bahru 0001hr at a steady pace of 85km/h. We already envisioned it to be a boring ride as we have rode the North South Highway many times before. But we were proven wrong..

During the first150km of riding (Johore  Bahru to Pagoh RNR), it was very obvious that we are both very tired. We simply cannot concentrate on riding and started drifting and falling asleep during the ride.

It got so bad that we both decided to get off the highway at the 200km mark (Ayer Keroh RNR) to get some much needed rest. We parked at the side of the petrol kiosk and 'slept' from 0330hrs to 0530hrs. Oh boy it was a cold night.

We never seem to recover much from the fatigue. After the nap, we stopped every 60-80km to rest and reconcile our physical and mental well-being. We joked that this is very amateurish and not our usual standard of a rest stop for every 150-200km of riding. And so we kept pushing on with plenty of breaks in between.

We were lucky that we had good weather throughout the whole ride. Had it been raining, I think we would had checked in to a hotel somewhere to sleep instead.

At 1600 hr (after 16 hours on the road), we finally made it to Bukit Kayu Hitam (815km). After spending about 45 minutes getting through Thai immigrations and customs, we bought vehicle insurance for our bikes at 350B for 1 month of 3rd party insurance coverage.

Once that was done, we rushed all the way to the Hatyai railway station to check if we are still in time to catch the 1800hr train northbound for Bangkok.

We arrived at the railway station at 1645hr and were in luck. There were still seats and cargo space available for both ourselves and our bikes.

1) 2nd class sleeper - 816B

(Hatyai to Ratchaburi)

2) Transport for Honda steed 400cc - 1540B + 60B for ropes + 100B tips

** In comparison, Jimmy's Honda Wave cost 860B + 20B for ropes + 100B tips

I don't know who got the better deal??

Once this was settled we only had 30 mins to get a quick bath at the railway station. But the train was late.. It was scheduled to leave at 1810hrs but did not arrive till 1850hrs.

The best part was that we actually missed our train even though we were waiting for it all the while on the platform. Our bikes had left without us. Time to panic!!

Reason: The train displayed 'Train 2' instead of 'Train 38' which was clearly printed on my ticket. 

I went to give a piece of my mind to the station master and he managed to offer me tickets for the 1900hr train instead. What a relief!

Once on the train, we quickly located the dining carriage to replenish some much needed beer.

We went to bed early at 2000hr as we were both exhausted. The train should reach Ratchaburi at 0900hr.