Traveling from north to south Thailand

My plan was to travel from Chiang Mai to the beautiful island of Koh Samui. First I traveled from Chiang Mai to Bangkok by plane. You'll have to be about 1,5 hour before departure at the airport, so I took a taxi from my hotel in Chiang Mai to the airport. It was about a fifteen minute drive so it was a very short trip. Chiang Mai Airport is not very big but the waiting lines are very short. After dropping off my luggage and checking in I went upstairs. There are a few shops but you can't shop till ya drop. I settled at the gate with a good book and soon the plane took off to Bangkok. After a snack and a drink and 1,5 hour flight, the plane landed at Bangkok Airport. There I waited at my luggage and grabbed a taxi to the central station which name is not to pronounce for English speakers.

It was very busy in Bangkok because it was rush hour. After paying tolls at the highway suddenly every car pulled over and stopped. My taxi driver made me clear that in one the large number of cars passing by was the King. After the fast moving cars went by, the other cars began to drive again. After a while the taxi driver dropped me at the station. Looking at the bulletin board a nice Thai woman came to me and when I said that I was looking for the train to Surat Thani she said that I had to go to platform 4. She probably said this to all tourist, hahahaha. But first I had to wait for about 3 hours. After looking at all the delicious food stalls I stopped at a pastry shop, I bought one pastry with vegetables and stuff and one with a pineapple filling.

I searched for a chair so I could wait for the train. Some people were seated at the central plaza and some used the pink chairs at the sides of the shops. When I waited for the train to leave the national anthem was played. Everybody seated on the central plaza or the pink chairs raised up. Nobody would seated down in respect for the national anthem of Thailand. It was a very special experience.

Then it was time for the train to leave. I searched for my coach and I had a bed downstairs, so it's nice so you'll have a window and see the scenery when it's morning. Another Dutch couple came to sit across me. And further there was a Dutch couple with a little child. The child found a coconut at one of the streets of Bangkok. He guarded it with his life during the train trip.

When the train staff turned the seats into beds, many people are preparing for a good or bad night sleep. In the bed above me slept an older grumpy Thai man who stayed all evening at the bar. This was my second night train and after putting of my shoes I felt asleep quickly. When I woke up I noticed the train wasn't driving anymore. I just looked through the curtain and my neighbour in front of me told me we already stopped for about two hours. I talked with my neighbor and had to laugh as the neighbour above me snored like a bear. Suddenly, his arm dropped down towards me and I was greatly shocked, hahaha. When the train started to move, we had already a delay of four hours.