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Flying Singapore airways means there is a short stop at Singapore, normally a couple of hours, sometimes, and depending where you are going it can be up to a eight or ten hour stop, today for me just two hours, then its just a short hop to Bangkok. As I do a few leg and foot exercises, I hear the engines cut back a little.......yippee, here we are, Bangkok oriental city, but the city....so on as the song goes!!! The first thing that hits me as I get off the plane is the heat and that delicious Asian smell, it's not for everyone, but I adore it, it surely let's you know you are in a different world. Luggage and customs clearance is fairly smooth and quick, then it's outside and into the true Asian atmosphere.People travel differently, some have everything pre organised, where as I like to go totally free lance and find my own means of travel and accomadation. My destination is a fantastic city called Hua Hin, and this is a good three to four hour drive from the airport, so as it's quite late in the evening arriving at Bangkok, I normally stay one night in a hotel to freshen up and make an early start in the morning.There are plenty of places to stay from no star to five star depending on your budget. In the main hall of the airport, there are hundreds of taxi drivers all begging for your custom, remember always haggle the price, I don't know about you, but I hate waisting money on day one. You can get into town very cheaply by bus, but after a long journey added to your tiredness, its just so easy to jump in a cab and say "take me there". There are a few ways of getting to Hua Hin, you can take a train, a coach or even fly, I prefer to go in a mini bus, which holds about eight people, yet each time I have used them, there has only been two or three people, so they are quite comfortable. Inside there is a dvd player, with a huge range of various films to choose from, they are also air conditioned. The driver normally speaks some english, and will make a stop on the way, where you can have a smoke and visit the toilet. When arriving in Hua Hin the driver will drop people off at their hotels, but for me I get him to drop me off in the town centre. The trip will cost between $25 and $40 Australian, if you choose to travel down in a limo, it will cost around $80 and if you went by bus or train around $10. So there you are your in Hua Hin.

 

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