PENANG
Our 10.30am bus KL to Penang left from underneath Plaza Rakyat train station at about 11.00am. It was a good air conditioned coach that got us to Penang Sentral Bus station in Butterworth, we then had to catch a ferry across the river to Pinang. English speakers spell it with and E whilst the locals spell it with an I. It was a short walk across one street from the ferry terminal to find our accommodation called the Victoria Inn. Booked in and went for a leisurely stroll for an hour to get our bearings of the place. We ended up having dinner at an Indian restaurant in “Little India”. Could not find anywhere to have a Pinang curry. Our accommodation was a let down. They provided coffee cups but no facilities to make it. The fellow at reception was the epitome of a self made man - untrained and unskilled and didn’t care about anything. Checking in was a chore for him. We asked him several run of the mill questions about Penang ( and he didn’t have a clue and didn’t care - not very helpful in a tourist orientated area). The room was clean and the air conditioning worked too well. Wifi worked well but we had to pay for it. Why is it, you stay at a backpackers place for less than A$20 night and you get free wifi, yet you stay at a much dearer supposedly good motel, and they charge you for it. It happens world wide.
Our breakfast the next day was a treat. There was a street food market next door. The type that starts before the sparrows and caters to the worker. After some friendly banter, we were able to get some coffee, two eggs on Roti and a bowl of the best mutton stew you will ever come across. Well worth the MYR15 (A$5) for both of us.
We then went to The Komptar, the major shopping centre in Pinang and booked our mini bus ride to Krabi for the next day. The tickets cost MYR55 each ($18 each). Local buses are a great way of getting around Pinang although we sometimes still felt lost. We then hopped on another bus that took us to Penang Hill. We didn’t know what to expect at Penang Hill, when we got off the bus, we looked up and there it was.
A train track that looked nearly vertical.. It was built in the early 1900s so the Europeans could get away from the heat. (similar to Darjeeling India.)
We bought tickets (MYR30/A$10) The train ride is spectacular.
It is a funicular railway -
The lower section of the funicular has the following technical parameters
Length: 907 metres
Height: 319 metres
Maximum Steepness: 50.5%
Cars: 2
Capacity: 80 passengers per car
Configuration: Single track with passing loop
Journey time: 11 minutes
Maximum speed: 1.4 metres per second
Track gauge: 1 metre
Traction: Electricity
The upper section of the funicular has the following technical parameters
Length: 1313 metres
Height: 367 metres
Maximum Steepness: 51.3%
Cars: 2
Capacity: 80 passengers per car
Configuration: Single track with passing loop
Journey time: 13 minutes
Maximum speed: 1.8 metres per second
Track gauge: 1 metre
Traction: Electricity
A funicular railway is also known as an inclined plane or cliff railway, is a cable railway which is attached to tram-like vehicles on rails and moves them up and down a steep slope. The ascending and descending vehicles counterbalance each other.
The view from The Hill is great except for the haze (unknown source).
View from Penang Hill 
Penang Harbour
Going back down we were able to get in the front car to get a birds eye view of how steep it really is/feels. 
We then went back to town for lunch and took a free shuttle bus around Penang. We jumped off at The Komptar, a major shopping complex. When we were about to leave we ran into an American lady about our age who had just got off a bus, no money and no idea how to get where she had hoped to stay. It turned out she was staying at a guesthouse near us in Little India so we took her there in a cab, saw her to the reception and said goodbye. Not sure how she fared but she didn’t have much information about what she wanted to do or where she wanted to go.
We decided we needed to change money before leaving Malaysia and entering Thailand. Money changers are everywhere and the one we used didn’t rip us off which was a nice surprise.
Saturday 31/3/12 we were picked up by mini-bus outside the Victoria Inn for our trip to Krabi (via Hadyai) we luckily had the back seats to ourselves. A good trip. The border crossings and customs much easier than airports or from Singapore to Malaysia and Wendy didn’t illegally smuggle any booze through. We made it to Hadyai in 4 hours. We had to change buses there and we had about 45min to kill before catching the next bus. (1 hour time change backwards from Thailand to Malaysia). We got in the bus and thought, this is pretty good, only four passengers and luggage in the bus. There was no back section for luggage. We then picked up another two. Things were getting cramped but we managed. Ten minutes later we stopped to pick up again. All of us on the bus said to each other that we might be able to fit one more in but it will be a squeeze. 5 more got in with their luggage. We had 13 + backpacks and luggage in a 13 seater mini van. Luggage in the aisles and some being nursed.
Thats Wendy in the bottom left corner and there are 4 of us in the back seat.
After 3 ½ hours, stopped for a Loo break and fill up with ‘gas’. Everyone but Wendy got out of the bus, she was ‘luggage in’.
Rear entry 
Room for no more.
Wendy "luggaged in" 
A Canadian, 2 French, 1 Aussie in the back seat.
She was surrounded by backpacks loaded up to her armpits. She wanted go to the toilet but decided to stay. We got about 16klm out of Krabi and the mini bus had a flat tyre. Longer to wait, it took about 30 minutes to fix.
waiting, waiting, waiting...
Finally got into Krabi Town at about 6.00pm. Got out of the mini bus and walked straight into a small travel centre and booked our seats on the ferry to Phuket the next day. We then hoist our backpacks on and walked about 10 minutes to The Gafiya Guesthouse. Had a short walk around the centre of Krabi, had dinner and went to bed. The Gafiya Guesthouse was the best accommodation we had thus far. Good sized room, clean, TV that worked, free wifi, very hospitable people and good amenities.
Next morning got up early and walked for an hour around the Krabi Town CBD and wharf.
Back to Guesthouse for shower and then on the road in a mini b us to the other side of Krabi for our ferry ride to Phuket.
The ferry ride was special. We sat on the bow of the boat and enjoyed the sun and wind. We were the only two on the bow and we felt as though the boat was our own. It was hot. The only thing Allan had to shade himself was a tea-towel. Looked like Muamar Gadaffi.
We both got wind/sun burn but loved all of the 2 ½ hours on the boat.
on bow of boat.
Enroute on the ferry, they stopped to pick up and drop off passengers about 500m out from the beaches where resorts were and the only method of getting in and out was by boat.
Arrived Phuket for another mini bus ride from Phuket to Patong Beach and the Baumanburri Resort. This took about 40 minutes and we were dropped at the front door.
