Introduction to Southeast Asia - The Rough Guide to Southeast Asia on a Budget - page 7

LOCAL TRANSPORT
Tuk-tuk, bemo, jeepney, songthaew, moto, remorque , cyclo - the names are endless, as are the
types of vehicle, which can be anything from modern minivans to three-wheel buggies. You'll
soon become familiar with the different ones as you travel around, particularly in the more
remote parts of the region. Noisy, bumpy and often jam-packed with people, these vehicles
are a world away from the slick, air-conditioned transport systems you'll find in Asia's big cities.
In some places the larger vehicles run as buses on fixed routes - bemos and jeepneys in
Indonesia and the Philippines respectively, for example - but more often they are share-taxis
or taxis. Negotiate the fare before you get in, make sure you know whether you're chartering
the whole vehicle or just a seat in one, and, as you would anywhere in the world, take sensible
precautions when travelling alone and at night.
overall time to travel in the region. he main exceptions to the above pattern are the
east-facing coasts of Vietnam, hailand and Peninsular Malaysia, which get rain when
the rest of tropical Asia is having its driest period, but stay dry during the southwest
monsoon. If you're planning a long trip to Southeast Asia, this means you can often
escape the worst weather by hopping across to the other coast. Indonesia and Singapore
are hit by both monsoons, attracting the west-coast rains from May through to October,
and the east-coast rains from November to February.
ABOVE CAGDANAO ISLAND, PHILIPPINES OPPOSITE FROM TOP BEACH NEAR EL NIDO, PHILIPPINES; KO TAO, THAILAND;
KUTA, LOMBOK, INDONESIA