I got up fairly early to pack, and got to the beach at 8:45am. The boat was due at 9. Sue and Steve turned up as well, mainly to see how the boat ferry was organised so they’ll have no problems tomorrow. I arrived in Trang and took a Tuk Tuk back to the Trang Hotel, where my backpack with the rest of my stuff was waiting. After surviving the last few days with no more than what I could fit in a laundry bag and my day pack, I realised that most of the stuff I was carting around in my backpack was unnecessary. I repacked the backpack, integrating the island bag, and went down the road to the internet cafe.

Charlotte had left me a note at the hotel suggesting we meet for lunch, but that turned out to be unnecessary since she walked into the internet cafe about ten minutes after I did. We went for lunch, and Charlotte left to get a train back to Bangkok. I felt slightly guilty that I would be back here in Bangkok in a few hours while she was still just strating her train journey.

Cashpoints were not liking me very much. I tried four in search of one that would give me some money, but they variously gave me errors such as “Communication Problem”, “Transaction Error”, and more worryingly “Card declined”. In the end I queued up inside the bank and actually bought some cash on my card. The teller didn’t speak much english either so it was quite a challenge.

Having successfully got the cash, I left a note for Steve and Sue at the hotel and took a taxi to the airport. I phoned Palm and arranged to meet them both at 9 for dinner. The flight left on time and I arrived in Bangkok at 7:40pm. This time I ignored the taxi hawks and headed for the airport bus. It turned out to be only 100 baht, six times cheaper than the taxi I got the last time, plus it was faster, once I got on. I did have to wait for the bus though, so I found myself checking back in to the Viengtai at 8:45pm. Fifteen minutes to unpack, shower, change and be back in the lobby. After another phone call to Palm we did eventually meet and went to dinner, at the same restaurant that they liked.