This month I joined my old friend Frans for an inspection trip down South. We flew separately to Hat Yai, met at the airport, rented a car and drove to Songkhla, a new adventure was about to start. After 2 great days there we continued to Pattani, Sungai Kolok, Tak Bai, Narathiwat, Yala and back to Songkhla, wonderful trip, plenty to see and do, and the number of western tourists we could count on 1 hand! On the other hand (lame, I know) there were plenty of Malay tourists (e

At present I’m on an inspection trip of the deep south of Thailand with my friend Frans. Today we left Songkhla (I’ll post about it later) and drove to Pattani. According to travel warnings from various countries this is dangerous territory, Thai version of Black Hawk Down... Granted, there are more than a few military checkpoints along the way and armed soldiers in town, but I still consider crossing a busy street in Bangkok more tricky! Overall friendly people, tasty food,