I really liked the Hop Inn. The room was simple but functional. The air conditioner worked perfectly. The hot shower was hot, even when not set to the maximum temperature. The free morning coffee from a coffee machine was good. It was in a good location. But it failed on the most basic role of accommodation. It let the rain in.

It rained hard through the night, and was raining when I got up in the morning. When I got out of bed, I stepped in a puddle. I'm not sure how the water came in, as the window was not openable. The walls are concrete, and there were some cracks, but nothing looked significant. Then I realized that there was also water on the desk/shelf, where I had my panniers, and my folded clothes were in the water. Uggh. I hung them up to dry while I got sorted out and got ready to leave, and then wrapped the wet items in plastic bags before putting them in my panniers. I might have stayed another night without that problem, but in the end I'm glad I left.

I stopped by the 7-Eleven and had just a poundcake-like thing to eat. While I was there, lingering because of the rain, several people asked me where I was from and where I was going. That was notable because I'd been in and out of the same store several times previously but without my bike, and no one had even said hello. It's interesting how the bike seems to get people interested.

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I left the 7-Eleven in the rain, but it only rained for another half hour or so. I rode a smaller road that my map called 3348, but I don't recall seeing the number on the road. Traffic was light, and I didn't get splashed by the passing cars. When the rain let up and the sun peeked through the clouds, it turned into a real steam bath. There was some interesting scenery, though, and the road passed through some small towns.

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I stopped at a small restaurant at about 10, happy to have found some place open. When I was leaving, the owner asked the usual questions in broken English. When I said I had been traveling for 2 months, he told me to wait, that he wanted to give me an "amulet of Siam". He went off for a couple of minutes, and I got ready to go. He came back with a few little copper...amulets. I'm not sure what I would call them.

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I went on toward Trat, and had to join national road 3, Sukhumvit Road. It was busy, but with a good shoulder and a section of parallel road that was well shaded. I stopped for a while at an Amazon Cafe. I wanted to use the Wi-Fi, as I've been expecting an email reply to a question I asked about taking my bike on the boat to Ko Mak. I didn't have a reply, but I can always stay busy online for a while.

The two possible ferry piers to Ko Mak are almost equidistant from Trat, but in opposite directions. Not knowing which could take my bike, I decided it was best to stay in Trat. I rode into town and found what I'd call backpacker alley, and took a room at Yolin Guesthouse, which has good reviews on Agoda. I hadn't reserved a room because I wasn't certain I would stay in Trat tonight, and they had only a fan room left. I went ahead and took the fan room with attached bath for 360 baht. I could have had a room with shared bath for 280. My room is small, but functional. The only issue so far is that another guest is smoking under my window.

I asked at the guest house about taking my bike on the ferry. While I was waiting for an answer, I went online to look up accommodation in Ko Mak. Some places that were available when I checked yesterday were gone. I went ahead and booked a room for 2 nights, but starting the day after tomorrow. With more choices available, and not knowing the situation with my bike, I thought it was safer. The rooms available are expensive. I didn't know whether I would find anything on the island that wasn't on the reservation sites and fit into more of a backpacker's budget. I'll stay somewhere near the pier tomorrow night.

The answer about my bike was yes, I can take it on the boat. It will cost 100 baht. The boats go earlier and more frequently from Laem Ngop, so that's where I'll go tomorrow.