Ride to Wang Kelian

Firstly, I would like to pen down a brief intro about Wang Kelian. Wang Kelian is a Perlis border town on the Malaysia-Thailand Border. It is one of two border crossings between Malaysia and Thailand in the state of Perlis. The other one is at Padang Besar.

It is also known as the low cost shopping place for both Malaysians and Thais. The prices of the goods are said to be lower than of Padang Besar.

Initially, the idea of riding to Wang Kelian was not in my list of riding destinations. After I had some conversation with my friends who had been there and a brief description of what it was like and how to get there, I finally decided that I should ride to that place one day.


April 6, 2014

On a lazy Sunday morning, I was quite bored with nothing to do. Suddenly, I remembered about Wang Kelian. I Googled & found some blogs about it. After a brief reading, I browsed Google map to get some idea on how to get there. I believe this is the shortest homework I've done before a long distance ride.

Without having any second thoughts, I just grabbed my riding gear (actually a windbreaker and a pair of gloves only), mounted the bike, pressed the ignition switch and off I went with my old and faithful Yamaha Lagenda 110.

1.30pm
My ride started quite late. I must be quick as the 'free' border crossing ends at 7pm. The 'free' border crossing means that passports are not required when crossing the border at Wang Kelian everyday from 7am to 8pm. However, the visiting areas are limited to the bazaar area only that stretched about 1km between the border.

I took the North-South Highway from Seberang Jaya to Changlun. Stopped for refuelling at Gurun R&R and continued until Changlun town.

3.00pm
Stopped for a late lunch at one of the tomyam restaurants in Changlun. After the meal, refuelled at Caltex station.

4.00pm
Continued the ride from Changlun. I took the Changlun-Kuala Perlis Highway heading towards Padang Besar.

The route was quite easy, just follow the signboards and you won't get lost. Upon reaching Kaki Bukit Perlis, the road to Wang Kelian is an uphill and downhill winding road. It is almost the same like the Teluk Bahang-Balik Pulau road, but on a shorter distance.

Awesome scenery. It is more beautiful than this photo.

4.50pm
Finally, I reached Wang Kelian. It was quite late and the crowd of Malaysians and Thais seem to be heading back towards their homeland after they were done with their shopping.

There are two bazaar areas, one on the Malaysian side of the border and another on the Thai side. Both areas are within walking distance. If you are too tired or too lazy to walk, you can easily hop on the motorcycle taxi service that would take you to both sides of the border for a fee of RM2 per trip. They even have female motorcycle taxi riders to cater for female passengers who are reluctant to ride with male riders.

I decided to cross into Thailand side on my bike as I was lazy to walk. At first, I was quite hesitant as it feels a bit awkward having to cross the customs and immigration checkpoints of both sides without passport and the necessary travelling documents. Rasa cuak pun ada. hehehe!

But hey, all I had to do was just smile at the police officers, and off I went! Yes, I only saw police officers. Neither the immigration nor custom officers were to be seen there. Only in Wang Kelian. Yezzaaa!

I can see the face of a General Operations Force (PGA) Corporal armed with a Heckler & Koch MP5 sub-machine gun on duty looked so bored watching people passing by. What else do you expect at a remote place like that? hehehe!

The goods sold over there were mostly apparels, clothing, shoes, accessories for women, toiletries, comforters (the most favourable one is Toto Narita), kitchenware, diningware, household items, small electrical items, children's toys, fruits, groceries & a lot of other things which I can't recall.

There's a number of halal food outlets/stalls over there. If you wish to try authentic tomyam or other Thai dishes, I guess this is one of the right places.

By the way, Ringgit Malaysia is widely accepted here. So, there's no need to worry about currency exchange.

The Thais were seen to have came here via various mode of transportation. Some came by pick-up trucks where the passengers sat at the rear of the pick-up. It is a common practise in Thailand but it is illegal to do that in Malaysia. Some Thais came by double-decker buses.

After about 45 minutes strolling around on my bike throughout the bazaar up until the farthest side of the Thai bazaar, I went back across the border without buying anything. Well, consider this as just a 'recce' visit. I shall return again for shopping soon. As Arnold Schwarzenegger always said in the Terminator movies, "I'll be back!"

On the way back and before having fun again riding along the uphill-downhill twisties from Wang Kelian to Kaki Bukit, I stopped for refuelling at a Caltex station. It is the only gas station at Wang Kelian.

5.45pm
I took off from Kaki Bukit, this time I use the Kangar-Kuala Kedah trunk road heading south. The traffic was clear with not much vehicles travelling on the trunk road. Stopped for refuelling at a Petronas station just a few hundred meters after the Kuala Kedah traffic light.

7.15pm

Reached Tandop and had my dinner at one of the food stalls there.

8.00pm
Took off from Tandop, not far from Stargate (not the Stargate where MacGyver became Col. O'Neill and travels through space), via the North-South Highway with full throttle ahead.

9.00pm
Reached home with dead bugs splattered on my helmet visor and jacket. The North-South Highway in Kedah was built on paddy fields and the bugs tend to fly after dusk. As the night gets darker, there will be less bugs flying around.

As a precaution to motorcyclists, do not wear an open face helmet without visor when riding at dusk near paddy fields. If the bugs get into your eyes, you will definitely ROTFCIP - rolling on the floor crying in pain. Well, I just made up that acronym thingy. However, don't trust what I wrote, just try to experience it for yourself. hehehe!

It was quite a tiring ride, with my butt feeling a bit numb but a very enjoyable one. I rode a total of 380km on my 'kapcai' (moped) today. Yes, this is the kind of satisfaction I get, which is by riding and seeing places. It is not the destination but the journey that matters. Alhamdulillah.


Note

Now let's calculate what I have spent during this ride.

Petrol
Shell Butterworth         : RM3.00
Caltex Gurun R&R       : RM3.70
Caltex Changlun            : RM4.50
Caltex Wang Kelian      : RM4.50
Petronas Kuala Kedah : RM5.00

Total                                : RM20.70


Food & Drinks
Lunch at Changlun                  : RM6.70
Dinner at Tandop                    : RM6.00
Mineral Water, Wang Kelian : RM1.20
Red Bull, Sungai Dua              : RM3.20

Total                                           : RM17.10

Total cost incurred : RM37.80

The total expenses was quite low as I didn't do any shopping at Wang Kelian. Perhaps it could give a glimpse idea on how to travel and seeing places on a shoestring budget. I hope this info will help others to plan their ride on a 'kapcai' too. However, different type of motorcycle engines will incur different amount of fuel consumption.

Till the next ride, cheers!


Note: An update in April 2015

With effect from 1st April 2015, the free-flow entry at Wang Kelian border has been revoked by the Malaysian Immigration Department.

However, the Menteri Besar of Perlis urged Malaysian Immigration Dept to reconsider to move (click here).