A foreign backpacker making his first visit to Thailand was planning an island getaway in the South, but after a miscommunication he ended up in the North nearly 1,200 kilometres away. He also lost his wallet on the way back, but the journey had a happy ending.
Pol Cpl Teerapat Modjod of the Song Phi Nong police station in Suphan Buri province shared the story of the visitor, identified only as Jack, on his Facebook account on Wednesday.
According to the officer’s post, the backpacker told a driver he wanted to go to Koh Tao, a popular tourist island in the southern province of Surat Thani. But the driver brought him to the North, believing his passenger had said “Doi Tao”, a district in the northern province of Chiang Mai.
When the mistake was finally realised, the visitor was dropped off in Lamphun province, adjacent to Chiang Mai. A cabbage truck driver who was heading for the central plains province of Ratchaburi picked up Jack, who was trying to hitch another ride towards his real destination.
On the way, they stopped for a meal at a petrol station in Muang district of Suphan Buri. Afterward, as they travelled through Song Phi Nong district of the province, Jack realised he’d lost his wallet.
A Thai woman had collected the wallet that contained his passport and cash and went to the Muang Suphan Buri police station to seek its owner.
The cabbage truck driver could not bring Jack back to Muang district because he had to deliver his vegetables to Ratchaburi on time.
Police officers from Song Phi Nong, including Pol Cpl Teerapat, then brought Jack to the Muang district station to meet the woman who had found his wallet.
Pol Cpl Teerapat said he and his colleagues tried to communicate with Jack to give him moral support along the way. Local police also found him accommodation for the night and saw him off on the rest of his journey the following day.
Pol Cpl Teerapat said Jack praised the Thai police for their help. The officer said he was happy to have helped and created a good impression for the road-weary visitor.
A tourist known only as Jack (nationality unknown) talks to police in Suphan Buri, next to a cabbage truck in which he had hitched a ride from northern Thailand.