Malaysia- Not!

Thai's are known for their scamming ways. Tuk Tuk drivers will offer free rides, then pop you off to a suit/gem shop and pressure you until you buy. Touts hawk you to buy their wares/stay in their guesthouses/buy their travel tickets 'Is good price, same same!". Well, I fear we have been travel scammed.

We set off for Malaysia this morning after a late night; sleepily hopping onto a ferry then a minibus. There were ten of us crammed into a supposedly 'air conditioned luxury minibus'- in reality barely cool air circulated around the vehicle; we were tired, sweaty, cranky, and unhappy. It's fine, I reassured myself. Tonight we will enjoy a cold beer in Penang, take in the city of Georgetown, relax and go for a bite. Well it's NOT SO!

We are still in Thailand, albeit in a more southern region than we set off this morning. We reached Hat Yai, the nearest large city before the border crossing. 'PENANG! PENANG'!, our driver called. Lovely, here we go, we will get onto a big bus and get taken down to Malaysia in comfort. Oh no, of course not, because its Thailand and nothing is simple and easy is it.

We were taken into a tourist office, and told by our guides that there was some sort of commotion at the border crossing. A protest. 'Shit. Is it the redshirts?' 'Noh'. 'The Muslims?' I asked? 'Noh. There is a protest by travel companies, the transport. Border closed. Many vans, 20, wait. May be okay tomorrow though. We take you now to nice guesthouse'. Hmm, well none of this really rang true in my head. The people we were on the minibus with seemed to carry on their journey, only four of us, the ones going to Penang, were told about this trouble. With hesitation, we got into a car and were taken to a guesthouse about two blocks away.

'You stay here one nigh'. Tomorrow I come, I call maybe 9 o clock in morning, if all is okay, we go'.

'Right. Jolly Good'.

Now what was running through my mind now was that the tour company was in cahoots with the guesthouse. After all they dropped us here, in this big city, obviously not knowing our way around.

'They are gonna charge us a lot Will... I'm not sure about it'. Well I was wrong, its only 200 baht a night for a double room with ensuite. Which is roughly four pounds. So no scam there then, surely?

The room however, is akin to a crack den. Long fluorescent corridors lead to wooden bolted doors, giving off an aura of a prison. There is a big double bed, but the springs have unearthed themselves from the cotton and poke upwards. The less said about the toilet the better- it is a hole in the floor with a bucket next to it.

'How...how do I... do it? God I wish the Thai people would learn how to enjoy a nice poo. It doesn't have to be this big, uncomfortable squatting affair' Will muttered.

Anyway, time will tell as to how this will turn out. Worse case scenario, we have lost a tenner and have been dumped here by a phony tour company, never to be seen again. Or perhaps they will turn up tomorrow, apologetic for the delay. All I know is after asking around at the train station and several other travel shops, there are no riots, no protests on the borders. And the Thai ticket sellers have made themselves forty quid richer, as well as a bit of commision from the guesthouse where I type this now...