Trang

Trang - is a small inland town near Krabi, with clean, quiet streets, and not many tourists at all. The town tends to win municipal awards such as "Cleanest City in Thailand". The Chinese-Thai community in Trang have had a strong influence on the cafe scene, and you'll see plenty of Thais relaxing with the local coffee in the evenings. There are a selection of nearby beaches to the west, and a number of waterfalls for day-tripping. 

How to get there - The guide books say there's an airport and a train station, but I've never seen them! I've only ever arrived in Trang from Phuket, Krabi or Hat Yai, and it's always been on a VIP air-conditioned coach, or in a little mini-bus. Bangkok is 870km to the north. Krabi is 140km to the north-west, and Hat Yai is 160km to the south-east.

Where to stay -  I usually pick the Trang Hotel, because all the tuk-tuk drivers know where it is, it's easily pronounced, and it has enough large, clean rooms that you don't have to worry about it being full. It's centrally located by the clocktower at the top of the hill where Pra Rama VI Road and Visetkul Road meet. There are plenty of other accommodation options available which I haven't tried, such as the Koh Teng Hotel and Queen Hotel.

What to do in the day - Wander round the town to get your bearings, check out the pungent local market. All Thai markets are pungent - it's the combination of curry and shrimp pastes, ripe durians, fresh fish and meat laid out on slabs, and the drains which run just under the concrete floors. Outside of town, you'll need to hire a tuk-tuk or jump on a song-tao to visit a waterfall or one of the quiet beaches to the west. Take care climbing up slippery rocks near waterfalls - I went arse-over-tit one day at Khao Chong waterfall and ruined my camera. The beach at Pak Meng, for example, an hour from Trang, is a long stretch of sand with a little road running by and a selection of deserted restaurants which are used to catering for Thai holiday-makers rather than tourists. Apparently, you can arrange trips out to the little islands, but I've never made it past the restaurants on Pak Meng. 

What to do at night - Eat at one of the many foodstalls which set up near the clocktower. They serve up khanom jeen, which is a rice-noodle dish with a sweetish curry sauce, and plates of crunchy fresh green vegetables. As an alternative, sit yourself down at one of the Chinese restaurants, which you can spot by the large tables and metal boxes or plastic baskets containing chop-sticks. Once Jeff and I sat at one of these restaurants with a beer each. We'd already eaten elsewhere, so we didn't order any food, but every now and again, the waitress would bring us a small plate of Dim Sum (Chinese steamed dumplings, filled usually with pork or prawns). We assumed it would have been rude not to try them, so we kept eating, and she kept bringing more. After an hour of this, we realised that all the customers were getting the same treatment, and that all you had to do to stop receiving more was to stop eating them.