train, Bangkok to Chiang Mai - WHOOPS!

We boarded the train to head to Chiang Mai at about 7:00pm. Our seats were set up at chairs facing one another (see below)...

...And then a guy comes around and makes the chairs into bunk beds... making up the bed and everything for us! Very cool.

It was about 8:00pm (or a bit before) when we were all heading to bed. We were exhausted... I was just tired and ready for an early bedtime but the others at least had an excuse, as they were still pretty jet-lagged.

I woke up around 5:00am or so I think.

Tim and Heather had been up for a while.

WELL... let my kerfuffle begin!

I had in my head that this night train from Bangkok to Chiang Mai would take 10 hours (same as the night train from Hanoi to Sa Pa that I did in the Fall).

Tim and Heather had been counting down the time since about 3:45am...

But our arrival for 5:00am came and went and the train kept going... 6:00am came and went...

And I finally took a look at our tickets.

Uhhh ohhh!

I couldn't even tell them... I just showed the tickets to Shannon on the top bunk across from me and she read it to Tim and Heather... our arrival time in Chiang Mai wasn't until 10:00am!!!! WHOOPS!

THEN 10:00am came and went... still going...

We ended up pulling into the Chiang Mai train station at about noon... so the train ride that I thought was 10 hours was supposed to be 14 buuuut turned out to really be 16! Hahahahahaha. Sorry guys!!

Good thing I booked a flight for us to get back to Bangkok... the flight is just over one hour (much better). Hehe.

BUT... Heather, Shannon, and Tim were all good sports and I think overall we enjoyed the experience of the train ride. (Minus Tim threatening to kill me if the arrival time was really 10PM instead of AM... while we were about an hour behind the 'new' arrival announcement of 10am versus 5am.)

We made it to Chiang Mai!