Amazing site on train travel within LOS, SE Asia the world

[lonelywombat]

Recently I posted on gaybutton, a request for a man that can no longer fly without a greal deal of pain and discomfort, asking about travel from Singapore to Beijing by train.

Geezer posted an amazing link for anybody considering train travel anywhere in the world. Of particular interest to this forum, was the detailed info regarding train travel within Thailand and travel from Thailand or within neighboring countries.

A whole new avenue of travel has opened up for me but I warn you it is can be addictive

The name of the site is The Man in Seat 61"

http://www.seat61.com/Thailand.htm

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[atri1666]

Yes very good informations for beginners in train travel. I use it some years already. November will discover Malaysia more than before. First class is so cheap.

[Beachlover]

Surprised you'd never heard of this site, Lonely!

It's been around for ages! Best place to get up to date info on routes, timings, options and conditions.

I did a bit of train travel, usually overnighters, when I was backpacking through Thailand and Vietnam and it was fun... great scenery and getting drunk with the other backpackers!

Most memorable was one New Years Eve, Bangkok to Chiang Mai, music pumping, little disco ball dangling off the roof and 20-30 people (including the train staff, some in overalls) knocking back whiskey and dancing on the chairs and table tops in the happy car (dining car) as the train rattled on into the night!

Then waking up the next morning to cool fresh air and gorgeous lush green views on the approach into Chiang Mai!

Doesn't interest me now though... too much time taken up.

[Geezer]

As I mentioned before, it's best not to get me started on trains. I too discovered that on the night train to Chang Mai the dining car turns into a disco at nine o'clock.

Occasionally I take an overnight train for the sole purpose of sleeping in a private room on the train. As best I recall, the cost is about 1000 baht per person in a room which accommodates two passengers. I always pay an extra thousand baht so I can have the room to myself.

I enjoy walking from car to car on the train. It can be quite a trek on a 12 car train, but you can meet a lot of interesting people. Of course, the private rooms are air-conditioned, as are some of the other cars in the train. Some of the cheaper cars are fan cooled/open window. . I usually walk from one end of the train to the other about 10 or 11 o'clock in the evening.

On my evening walk I always keep an eye out for an attractive young man fitfully trying to sleep in an un-air-conditioned car. I hope to strike up a conversation and tell him I hve a nice extra bed with clean white sheets in air-conditioned private room, and if he would prefer to sleep there his welcome to join me.

I would like to report that I have had some success on these treks, but I cannot. When I see a suitable candidate he is always traveling with his family or with friends of the same age. Oh well, I can always try again on the next trip.

I have posted many photos of train trips, but here are a couple more. They are cute kids returning home on the train after school. One is of students just off the train at Doi Khuntan National Park. For years this park was accessible only by the railroad to Chang Mai. The station is located at the entrance to the National Park, and the entrance to the longest railroad tunnel in Thailand The other photo is of kids returning home from school in Kanchanaburi.