STEPPING BACK IN TIME- Phetchaburi, Thailand

....previous blog post about Almaty, Central Asia.....

After three months of solid recharging and resting after our big year traveling in 2017, we felt the urge to leave our bamboo hut on the beach and our many friends on Fruitopia and get out on the road again. Still having one month left on our Thai visa, we thought we'd tick off some places we'd long wanted to see around the country. Being the train fanatics we are turning out to be, an overnight train trip to leave the south seemed in order.

A happy Sal

A happy Rich

Although they lack the adventure of Russian trains, or the manic activity of Indian trains, Thai overnight trains are blissfully organized, clean and easy. The layout of four berths to a compartment with bodies lying head on in the direction of travel is different from what we have become used to in our last few years travels. The lying direction tends to cause one to wobble longways with the train's movements instead of side to side! Either way, we never really sleep well, as was the case this time. The price was 660 baht (AU$27) for an eight hour journey in second class.

Terrible photo, but you get the picture, train from Surat Thani to Phetchaburi, Thailand

Phetchaburi has a unique feeling to it, having retained a charm lacking in many modern southern Thai towns. The back alleyways are literally packed with beautiful old teak houses, and the locals thankfully seem proud of their history and keen to save and restore many old buildings. We saw only one 7-11 during our explorations, and anyone who's been to Thailand will know how amazing that is!!! It's always been a royal place- first for the Khmers, then the Sukhothai and Ayuthaya kingdoms, and the relics of temples and stupas line the streets. Nowadays it's sleepy, friendly and relatively tourist free, and we very much enjoyed our few days there.

Ayutthaya style Buddhas,  Phetchaburi, Thailand

Prayer time,  Phetchaburi, Thailand

Phetchaburi, Thailand

Horseshoe crabs for sale in market,  Phetchaburi, Thailand

In good hands,  Phetchaburi, Thailand

More gold, Phetchaburi, Thailand

We were lucky enough to stay in one of the old teak houses, right on the river, and although it was quite haphazard, the atmosphere was unbeatable, and the wooden room cool, even during the day.

Hotel Rabieng, Phetchaburi, Thailand (250 baht/AU$10 a night)

Our room, Hotel Rabieng, Phetchaburi, Thailand

Funky, but run down, Hotel Rabieng, Phetchaburi, Thailand

Cool old ceiling fan, Hotel Rabieng, Phetchaburi, Thailand

Benevolent face looking down, Hotel Rabieng, Phetchaburi, Thailand

The highlight of the Phetchaburi temples is Wat Mahathat Worawihan, shining brightly in the sun from most points in town. Other wats were spread out and all completely different from each other in character depending on the era in which they were built. All were working and free to enter.

Shining white Wat Mahathat Worawihan, Phetchaburi, Thailand

Decoration on the roof of Wat Mahathat Worawihan, Phetchaburi, Thailand

Visiting monk in Wat Yai Suwannaram, Phetchaburi, Thailand

Sparkling gold interior, Wat Mahathat Worawihan, Phetchaburi, Thailand

Wat Kampheng Laeng, Phetchaburi, Thailand

Wat Mahathat Worawihan, Phetchaburi, Thailand

Roof detail, Wat Mahathat Worawihan

Cute little wat in a lake, Phetchaburi, Thailand

Monks paying their respects, Phetchaburi, Thailand

We loved the strangely incongruous Art Noveau style Ban Pun Palace of Rama V, with a stunning staircase, beautiful tiles and use of light (and the not so stunning weird cherubs!).

Grand staircase, Ban Pun Palace, Phetchaburi, Thailand

Ugly little cherubs, Ban Pun Palace, Phetchaburi, Thailand

The King's throne, Ban Pun Palace, Phetchaburi, Thailand

Exterior, Ban Pun Palace, Phetchaburi, Thailand

Wandering around town we came across little gems hidden in backstreets. People were welcoming, with some even giving us small gifts of coconuts, water and fruit. The heat and humidity were becoming quite unbearable with the escalation of the hot season, and we reverted to our routine of early morning and early explorations, with a rest indoors during the hottest part of the day.

Happy coconut processors (they gave us a coconut to drink as a gift), Phetchaburi, Thailand

Old movie posters, Phetchaburi, Thailand

Unusual statue, Phetchaburi, Thailand

Quiet morning streets of Phetchaburi, Thailand

Great weather for drying, Phetchaburi, Thailand

Contented looking Buddha, Phetchaburi, Thailand

Afternoon clouds, Phetchaburi, Thailand

Any kind of pipe you like, Phetchaburi, Thailand

Pondering the river, Phetchaburi, Thailand

Laughing lady on streets of Phetchaburi, Thailand

Rather strange temple offerings, Phetchaburi, Thailand

Monk finished his prayers, Phetchaburi, Thailand

Wat Yai Suwannaram, beautiful wooden wat with no Buddha, Phetchaburi, Thailand

Appearances of Ganesh, Hanuman and rat statues gave clues to the Hindu past of Phetchaburi.

Rat protectors, Phetchaburi, Thailand

Ganesh with Buddhist background, Phetchaburi, Thailand

Khmer style wat, Phetchaburi, Thailand

Getting to Bangkok from Phetchaburi was a breeze on the brilliant third class train with open windows and fresh air. That is, until the torrential rain started, but that was also refreshing. Luckily, on arrival at Hualamphong station in Bangkok, our bus came along almost immediately, and saved us from becoming soaked.

Hualamphong Station, Bangkok

A small cartoon version of the real deal Buddha with glasses we saw in Burma (HERE)

We used to spend a lot of time in Bangkok in the early years of our travels, due to it being the cheap flight centre of Asia. Then Air Asia started up and we switched to Kuala Lumpur, and nowadays, there are many budget airline options throughout South East Asia. So, after a few years we returned to the Thai capital to find our old reliable guesthouse demolished, hundreds of new shops and restaurants around Banglamphu, and some of the old familiar haunts still standing. We discovered a gem in the old Bella Bella Guesthouse- it's been around for years, and provides the basic needs of a budget traveller (although these days all rooms have WIFI), for 320 baht/AU$13 a night.

Every visit to Bangkok for us includes a trip up the huge and busy Chao Phraya river- the 15 baht/AU$0.60 fare for an hour's trip on the public ferry is the best bargain in the city. A wander around whatever random ferry stop we disembark at is always fun. People watching and 70 baht/AU$2.90 cocktails around Soi Rambuttri are a must for the evenings. It was also nice to catch up on internet time after three months without much on Fruitopia, and prepare for our upcoming trip to Vietnam.

Loading onions, market, Bangkok, Thailand

The stunning Wat Arun, Bangkok, Thailand

Cool cat, Bangkok, Thailand

Rubbish problem, banks of Chao Praya river, Bangkok, Thailand

Our bar, Soi Rambuttri, Bangkok, Thailand

Pak Khlong flower market, Bangkok, Thailand

A somewhat bizarre day trip was made to see the “World Famous” Maekhlong market, where the rickety train runs so close to the stalls next to the tracks it looks like everything will be squashed. It was a bit of a palaver to get there, with two trains and a ferry crossing, and we were shocked upon pulling into the market station to find hundreds of Chinese tourists there with cameras and selfie sticks massing all over the train and tracks as soon as it pulled in. The distasteful and hectic area surrounding the station was filled with noisy groups, and we decided immediately to turn right around and go back rather than disembarking and exploring Maekhlong. The positive side was that we saw some new and intriguing parts of Bangkok on the way to and from the market.

Commuter train to Maekhlong, Thailand

Train slowly coming through market, Maekhlong, Thailand

Close to the tracks, Maekhlong, Thailand

Railway sign, Maekhlong, Thailand

Short video of the tourists mobs at Maekhlong railway market: HERE


....more Thailand, Sangkhlaburi and around......