Ken Cross in Thailand, Cambodia and Vietnam.: Cross gets Angry in Northern Thailand

Our trip started poorly and looks like it will finish in similar fashion thanks to the incompetence of some travel companies. Below is a very quick description of our how our trip started;

“We got to Thailand a little later than we originally anticipated due to me booking with the worst travel agent in the world; the ironically named Bestjet. Avoid them like the plague. Our problem was that Thai airways changed their schedule some 6 weeks before we flew and we were never informed of such changes so we arrived for a flight that no longer existed.

Bloody hassle because i did not understand what could have happened. Bestjet was unobtaianable. The Thai offices were empty and locked... Cancelled the first Thai accommodation. And then found out that we had been re-booked for the flight on Sunday....”

Now the end of the trip and Bestjet* changes and no advice is the gift that keeps on giving. I made flight arrangements from Chiang Mai to Bangkok initially taking into account our original flight schedule. We are flying from the north to BKK on the evening of the 14^th January and then spending a night in a cheap airport hotel. We were then to fly about midday on the 15^th; so breakfast, transfer to the airport and then fly.

* Since starting this trip i have discovered that very recently this company has gone bankrupt and tales of their incompetence and dishonesty have been made public. While i feel sorry for myself and my poor experience with them, I acknowledge that i have got off comparatively lightly compared with some who have lost sizeable sums of money and their [dream] holidays. At any rate it is good riddance to bad rubbish!!

Now those bookings were made on the original information – now we fly back to Oz just after midnight on the morning of the 16^th. A full day hanging around near the airport with nothing to do except watch planes and listen as they fly by. Had we have known about our schedule could have made a few changes to our itinerary so we do not have to waste so much fricking time….

So today bad karma continues….

I had organised a birding day trip to Doi Inthanon National Park from Chiang Mai with a birding company ‘Chiang Mai Birding’. Our hotel name, address and phone number were supplied to the company. Pick up at 5-30am. Done.

So we’re up at 5. On the street outside at 5-20am.

On the street at 6 am.

On the street at 6-20 am.

Back in our rooms at 6-30am.

I write the guide an email as follows, ‘Hello Uthai, We have been waiting outside our hotel on the main road now for over an hour and we have just returned to our room. The pick up was 5-30am as you wrote?’

He replies, ‘I was there at 0520not see you

Not call me I have you phone number

Uthai

0815305654’

He then emails me a picture of a different hotel but with the same name as ‘proof’!? The email has no text.

He then emails again with a simple message, ‘The hotel phone no one reply’. Which we can translate simply to mean that while I was standing on the road he rang our hotel and it seems that we do not have 24 hour reception…

He sends a fourth email with the entire message, ‘Very sorry...’

Very optimistically he send a fifth email at nearly 9-30 in the morning, ‘Hello

If you still want to do Doiinthanon can do stir birds and visit National park

Reply now

Uthai’.

It is an hour and a half drive to Doi Inthanon so we would be talking about arriving for a birding trip in the tropics just before midday…He mentions nothing of the cost. He mentions nothing really in the way of the opportunity lost. I was bloody angry at this stage and did not feel like giving him a bloody cent. Also because I am pretty rarely in northern Thailand [first time for some 20 years] and his lack of attention to detail and incompetence has cost me this one opportunity I had. Looking at his web page some clients do say some nice things about him. It is a pity then that my experience has been a total fuck up and my opportunity has been thoroughly lost…

So poor plan B I decided to hire a Songthaew and go for a drive to Doi Suthep. Sadly, I got the worst driver in Thailand who seemed intent either to destroy his gear box, wear his brakes out, have a crash, kill someone or all of the above. We arrived at the hill top temple well after peak birding time at after 10am. Believe me when I say we did not beat the crowds. Temple crowds at a Buddhist Temple did not help my karma or me get calmer for that matter - they are noisy, they ring bells loudly for no good reason. And, childishly perhaps I was still pissed off. The birds were limited although I did get a couple of views of common species but there was nothing too interesting and at 1pm I decided to pack it in and return to Chiang Mai.

So that was the second day in Chiang Mai wasted…The first I cannot complain too much about as Tom was a little crook and needed to stay close to the room [are you with me?] And to add more injuries - Tom's phone has committed suicide.

And now some bird pics from Doi Suthep.