I mentioned in the post talking about moving to Pakchong that one of the downsides of my current apartment is that its a little removed from town. So I've been taking a songthew to get around - to get to and from work, Tesco, the night market, etc. - and I have to say, I kinda like it!
A songthew (not to be confused with a song tail which is a type of boat) is a truck with benches in the back. Pakchong is basically made up of one big road with small roads branching off of it (but they don't go very deep) and the songthews drive up and down the main road.
My apartment is about a 5 minute (leisurely) walk from the main road and the nice thing about songthews is that you wave them down like taxis - no walking to a specific spot required! And its the same thing with getting off - you just press a buzzer when you want to get off and the driver will stop. Its also a flat rate price, 10 baht per ride, so its really cheap. There are quite a few children who take them to school but so far its only been a problem in the afternoon. And even then it isn't really a problem. There are two different colors - a pink and blue songthew and a green and yellow songthew - and for whatever reason only the pink and blue is filled with kids in the afternoons. I can always find a place on the green and yellow and though there are still some students, the crowd is definitely more mixed. The best part though is that taking a songthew here makes me feel like a local. I'm part of a community of songthew riders and its nice that even though I'm new in town I already feel like I have a connection to Pakchong and the people here.
A songthew (not to be confused with a song tail which is a type of boat) is a truck with benches in the back. Pakchong is basically made up of one big road with small roads branching off of it (but they don't go very deep) and the songthews drive up and down the main road.
My apartment is about a 5 minute (leisurely) walk from the main road and the nice thing about songthews is that you wave them down like taxis - no walking to a specific spot required! And its the same thing with getting off - you just press a buzzer when you want to get off and the driver will stop. Its also a flat rate price, 10 baht per ride, so its really cheap. There are quite a few children who take them to school but so far its only been a problem in the afternoon. And even then it isn't really a problem. There are two different colors - a pink and blue songthew and a green and yellow songthew - and for whatever reason only the pink and blue is filled with kids in the afternoons. I can always find a place on the green and yellow and though there are still some students, the crowd is definitely more mixed. The best part though is that taking a songthew here makes me feel like a local. I'm part of a community of songthew riders and its nice that even though I'm new in town I already feel like I have a connection to Pakchong and the people here.
No comments:
Post a Comment