About four hours into our 7.5-hour ride from Hat Yai to Phuket, the bus driver stopped for a break. I saw two ladies selling fried bananas and sweet potatoes. Then, I realized one was loosening cempedak (a relative of jackfruit) and dumping them into the batter to be fried. I have been looking for cempedak for Kenric to try. I signaled to her that I wanted a bag of it as she bagged the bananas for me. Kenric paid and we stood there for about ten minutes waiting.
When the bus driver was done eating he came over to chat with the people at the stall. I was worried that the cempedak wouldn’t be ready in time, but the ladies scooped them out and started bagging them into two bags. I walked forward to claim ours, but she handed both bags to the driver’s attendant!! Where is mine? I asked, and she signaled she would make some for me then. I pointed at the driver and his attendant, signed that I must go, and asked for my money back. They said they didn’t charge for the cempedak, only the bananas. They were right, but I was still very disappointed and annoyed.
Bus Breaks Down
About six hours into the journey, I told Kenric I smelled burning rubber. He smelled it too. I looked behind us and everyone looked concerned. The attendant ran to the back of the bus, and then ran back to the driver who then pulled over. They both checked the back wheel, did something to it, and we were on our way again. Fifteen minutes later, we smelled the same thing. The driver pulled over, both checked the wheel, and the attendant came back onto the bus and told the people in the back of the bus to move forward.
We were parked for about 45 minutes when we were told to get off the bus. All the passengers’ luggage was already sitting on the steps of a store front. After waiting outside the bus for about ten minutes, another bus with passengers of its own pulled over to take us for the remaining 1.5 hours. I waved to the bus attendant. Kenric and I were the only two who rode the entire distance from Hat Yai. The 7.5-hour trip took about 9.25 hours. From the Phuket bus station, we took a 30-minute Grab ride to the hotel.
We arrive in Phuket to find someone in our room
“Top floor, room 647”. Kenric opened the door and I walked in. In the mirror, I could see a woman sitting on the bed. I was really confused and then I saw two suitcases. I said, “There’s someone in the room.” She said “Hello”. The lady was not alarmed at all as she was still sitting on the bed using her phone. I would be so freaked out if someone opened my hotel room door. We went back to the front desk and got a different room; one with a view of the street instead of the pool. Kenric prefers the pool view, but I prefer this. I hope tomorrow goes more smoothly as Kenric’s sister and their cousin will be joining us. Otherwise, I’ll have to double up on the Mai Tais!
Another Mai Tai, Please
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