From Penang we headed north and out of Malaysia to Thailand.

The journey went like this… A Grab (Asia’s answer to Uber) to Pangkalan Raja Tun Uda ferry terminal in Penang. We just made it onto the ferry, although in my attempt to run I dramatically toppled over and face planted the floor (saved from injury by the bags). Then a quick ferry across to Butterworth followed by a train to Padang Besar. We then went through passport control and stepped into a new country – Thailand! This was our first land border crossing which was exciting. We then had another short train ride to Hat Yai in Southern Thailand for a couple of nights before continuing on to Bangkok.

We’d not booked anything in advance so it was a wing it travel day but a pretty easy journey with no dramas. The trains all ran late but it didn’t seem to matter.

Hat Yai was an unremarkable stop in our journey and we mainly hung out at cafes and the mall and the girls went to yet another inflatable soft play (malls do good play areas!). Chinese New Year decor is now everywhere and the mall displays are amazing.

The next chapter involves quite possibly the worst travel experience of our trip so far and might have put the girls off sleeper trains for a while…