Visa Run

As we neared the end of our time on Ko Tao, we started looking into the quickest, most efficient and cheapest way to do our visa run. As mentioned before, due to lack of updated information on our part, we didn't realize that if you enter Thailand by land and try to get a visa on arrival (as oppsed to either flying in or getting a visa ahead of time from a Thai embassy out of country), the visa is for only 15 days. Which meant that in between Ko Tao and Krabi, we needed to quickly leave and re-enter Thailand to receive a new 15 day visa. There are different agencies with many different half day or full day packages. Apparently we aren't the only ones in need of this service!

We asked around about the different options, from both travel agencies and foreigners living in Thailand (like our diving instructors) who routnely have to renew their visas and the answer was unanimous... go to Burma. My first reaction was hesitation. You want me to go where?!?! I didn't even know it was POSSIBLE to do that. Burma has such a bad rep for violence and suppression. But after hearing stories from several foreigners who went there several times, it sounded like the visa run itself was quite simple and problem free. The other options were much farther and twice or three times as expensive. So we chose Burma!


We left Ko Tao on a night ferry. In reality, the boat was old and rusty and looked more like a cargo boat that moonlighted as a passenger transport. There were two places for sleeping on the boat - there were a few bunk beds inside and then a wide open space on the upper deck. Obviously the indoor spaces filled up fast. Beau checked us in at 7pm and claimed two upper level beds. By the time we said our goodbyes to Ko Tao and got on the boat for its 11pm departure, the indoor area was completely packed with people sprawled out on every available floor space! The upper area was packed too - the Thai people don't seem to worry about things like maximum weight capacity. Despite its outward appearance, however, the boat really wasn't that bad. Everyone, even those on the floor and outside, got a thin mattress and a small pillow. There were blankets but it was too warm inside for them. The bathroom was clean and the toilet was not a squatter. I was asleep before we departed and woke up at 5am just as we arrived on the mainland at Chumphon.



The next step in our journey was to take a mini van from Chumphon on the east coast to Ranong on the west coast. The van was cramped and packed and the A/C was on so high we were all shivering. Another observation about travelling in Thailand... they run on "island time here" and the estimated travel times are never accurate. Our quoted driving time of one hour turned into three hours. We arrived at Ranong and went through Thai Immigration, then were hustled onto a longboat for a 20 minute drive into Burma. It was raining heavily at this point, and although the long boat was covered, it leaked and was leaning heavily to one side.



We made it safely into Burma/Myanmar and were all escorted in either singles or pairs by Burmese people with umbrellas from the pier up to Immigration. We got our passports stamped for entry and exit, paid our visa fee, and then had 10 minutes to wander around the immediate area... with our escort, of course. Our escort very vehemently tried to get us to buy "cheap burmese goods" like viagra, valium, opium and cigarettes. We politely declined. After 10 minutes, we loaded back onto our longboat and went straight back to Ranong in Thailand where we passed through Immigration with no problems - they are obviously very used to the visa runs. All in all it took just over an hour and happened without any major hitches.

At this point, our mini van group divided into two groups. One group returned to Ko Tao. The second group - which consisted of myself, Beau and three Irish girls, took a separate van to the Ranong Bus Terminal to catch the bus south to Krabi. The Irish girls had pre-paid for their bus tickets, and there was an issue when our van driver told them that they had missed their bus and would have to pay for a later bus. After much argument and hand waving, they managed to get some of their money back before he left us at the bus terminal. There, we discovered that there actually wasn't a bus to Krabi that day, and we would have to split our travels into two buses. We weren't sure if this was a hoax or not, so we decided to think on it and went to a nearby travel agency/restaurant.

The owner of the restaurant, Jai, was an absolute sweetheart. She was personally insulted at how the van driver had cheated the girls (we actually would have made the earlier bus but he had made us wait at the Ranong Pier until he filled his van before taking us to the bus terminal) and she went over to the ticket booth and made sure that we were put on the correct bus for the correct price. She also very carefully explained what buses we needed to take to get to Krabi, and what to be careful of. Finally, she gave each of us her card with her cell phone number and told us to call her if we ever ran into trouble or needed a cell phone. She was so kind that we decided to eat lunch in her restaurant while we waited for our bus, and amused ourselves watching Jai's cats playing. The Thai food was reasonably priced and very good!

Our first bus was from Ranong to Koh Kluy near Phang Nga on the way down to Phuket. The quoted 3-4 hour trip took 5 1/2 hours. We got our seats and managed to spread out a bit since the bus wasn't full yet. That quickly changed. They not only filled all the seats, but they had people standing in every available space on that bus! Even though there was a toilet on the bus, there was no way to get to it, and you were guaranteed to lose your seat if you tried.


Our second bus was from Koh Kluy to Krabi. We only had to wait about 10 minutes for this bus, so we all took a toilet break and grabbed some snacks for the final bus ride. This bus was already full when it pulled into the bus station, so we squished into the standing areas. Beau and I actually got good spaces. I ended up at the bottom of the steps leading to the upper level (it was a double decker bus) right by the driver, and Beau scored the fold out passenger seat. An hour into the ride, we were moved to the luggage storage area where there were some benches. The area was full and we had to rest our legs on top of the baggage.


Eventually we made it to Krabi and took a taxi to the main strip where we found a cheap hotel to spend the night. It was simple but clean. We dropped off our bags and walked to the nearby night food stall area by the pier for dinner. A full day's worth of riding on swaying boats and buses on winding roads had finally caught up with me, and my stomach was feeling a little sensitive so I took it easy and just had a banana pancake. We wandered a bit around the area but it is mostly dominated by restaurants/bars and travel agencies. Krabi is more of a launching point for other places like Ko Phi Phi, Railay and Phang Nga. We hope to get an early start tomorrow and catch a longtail boat to Railay, a beach area that can only be accessed by boat and is famous for its rock climbing and laid back atmosphere. After a long day of travelling, it will be nice to be stationary again!