A quick getaway to Hatyai.

The name Hatyai is known to all Malaysians who travels. At one time, many of  us ( colleagues and friends ) would make our annual pilgrimage for the Songkran festival which falls on April 13 every year. We did that for several years until the bombing started and that effectively stop us from going across.
Last week on 10.11.16, I decided to  take my family across to Hatyai as we were supposed to attend a friend's wedding dinner in Penang on the weekend. Moreover, Yvonne have not been there for at least 10 years and Valen have never been to Hatyai before. We took a 5 hour drive to the border, parked our car at the open car park operated by the duty free shopping complex and took a van across the border and into Hatyai.

 At the Thai immigration border getting our entry stamped.

 We were in Hatyai in 45 minutes from the border. Valen is relaxing at the Centara Hotel.

 View of the city from our hotel room.

 After some rest, we took a walk around and bought some dry stuff for friends and families.

 The popular items are cashew nuts, red dates etc.

 There are many items that you may want to buy because it is cheap.

 Our hotel is centrally located and all the shopping streets are in that area. 

 One of the local vendors that is irresistible for the sweet tooth. 

 Coconut ice cream.

Valen showing off the fake sunglass bought from one of the shops.

 The next day,after our breakfast at the hotel, we decided to take a trip to nearby Songkhla. Even though I have been there twice, I had no idea what Songkhla is really liked. First time was to the beach where I only aw a mermaid statue and second time was for a hash run which was in some light jungle there. I thought it's good for my family too to take a half day trip there.

The driver took us to a village called Koh Yo where there is a big sleeping Buddha facing the river mouth. This I have never seen or heard before and it's a pleasant surprised. 

 It may not be the biggest of them all, but it's big enough to impress.

 Yvonne and Valen praying to the many Buddhas at the temple.

 Praying to Gautama Buddha.

 Valen too prayed and later we had our blessings from the monk seated at the far end.

 The pavilion at the compound.

 You can't imitate the Buddha.

A panoramic view of the temple.

Next, the driver took us to Tang Kuan Hill where you could have a panoramic view of Songkhla.

I never knew the existence of this hill.

But it is sure a pleasant hill to come to to have a good idea of Songkhla's layout.

Bells stack in a cage here. Donate a bell here. When this cage is full, they will be re-cast to be a bell as big as this cage and place exactly at the same spot.

Some Words of Wisdom signage seen here.

Elephants cage. No signage to explain, but one can safely assume it has the same objective as the bell cage.

We saw a heart shaped plant full with flowers.

And then there is a heart shaped designed metal structure.

Next, the Love Locks signage.

Like many countries, buy a love lock, and lock up your love, and throw away the key! I can tell you, all women are suckers for this.

This hill by itself is indeed a nice place to visit, no need to have all those locks

You can see the city of Songkhla is build on a peninsula, one side facing the Gulf of Thailand and the other facing Songkhla Lake.

The view of the hilltop. Foreground are the Love Locks thingy and the back is the Royal Pagoda.

Beneath the statue is a shiny aluminium surface that clearly reflect me taking a photo of the view.

Signage at the pavilion.

The Royal Pagoda is believed to contain Buddha's relics. 

The locals celebrate each year in October by giving alms to monks that converge here for the occasion.

This statue of the Naga is unique.

It is located at the tip of the Peninsula facing the port.

There are three body parts of this Naga. This is the head, it's tail is 3 km away down at Samila beach and the belly is sited on the road up to Tang Kuan Hill.

The inscription on the Naga symbol.

View directly from the back.

 It was lunch time and Samila Beach have some seafood restaurants fronting the sea.

 The beach is not exactly pretty.

 And the restaurants are just wooden stalls that have seen better days.

 But, it's a nice place to relax and have some good seafood in an unpretentious environment.

 The only statue that I can remember is the mermaid.

There's some story about a fisherman frightening away this mermaid combing by the beach. I guess, anyone can build a statue and then come up with a story, or build a statue base on some stories coloured with some imagination.

Some souvenir stalls along the pedestrian walkway.

At the roundabout, the pretty singnage of the beach.

Songkhla is a nice place to visit on a day trip from Hatyai. If you are bored with the monotonous offerings of Hatyai, this is a good seaside place to explore. It does have some nice little things for a day tripper.

During our trip, the much revered King Bhumibol had passed away a month ago.

 The signs of the country mourning the king's passing is still evident.

 It is normal for a country to legislate a mourning like flying a flag at half mast and other rituals.

Here at Centara Hotel, the condolence book with the King's portrait is placed for guest to convey their condolences. In Thailand, the private sector mourns for a month.

 What we were told by the locals, the public sector mourns for a year !

On the road, we could see black and white cloths with a big portrait of the king.

 They are placed in all government buildings such as schools, and various departments.

 These are seen all over the towns and villages.

 The special bond between the King and it's subject are well known the world over.

The other obvious sign of mourning is seen on the black ribbon the locals wore on their sleeve.

Many Thais wore it on their own as a personal loss, and they also wore sombre colour of black or white.

 But one most fascinating thing as we went shopping for clothes.

 Almost every shop sells clothes in blacks.

They are not just mourning clothes...

 they are designer labels.

 I'm not sure if this is mourning, but certainly, there is a lot to do with commerce.

 The Thais have certainly taken morning to a whole new level.

 I am not sure how long this mercandise will be on sale,

 but certainly, the market is on the locals.

 How did designer labels get into the act as well?

While there are many locals that truly mourns their king,

there are certainly many businesses capitalising on it.

We left Hatyai the same way we came.

Back on the same road.

This statue is very recent as I have not seen it before.

 As we near the border, there landscape changes to more trees.

Then, the view of the very recent town came up. This is Danok.

At the Thai Immigration exit point.

 Exiting Thailand, in no man's land.

 That's the duty free complex 500 meter after the Thai immigration.

Right ahead at the toll gate is where we parked our car.

After paying  RM32.00 for the 2 days parking, we were on the road at Changloon after clearing the Malaysian customs.

 Immediately, one can see the difference in landscape.

We were soon in Penang where we checked into Evergreen Laurel Hotel at Gurney Drive.

That evening, we attended Shin Yean's wedding dinner at the CRC Chinese Restaurant.

 It was good to meet up with some ex colleagues who also came for the wedding.

 A group photo with the happily married couple.

I am glad to have come all the way to attend the wedding Shin Yean's wedding. As far as I am concern, if a friend invites me to their function, they thought of me. I should always make it a point to attend, no matter the distance.
Congratulations Shin Yean. We wish you a truly happy marriage.