ChristianPFC Posted June 12, 2013 Posted June 12, 2013 Weekend in Chanthaburi province Last year, I met two boys from Chanthaburi on Camfrog, we then proceeded to chat on facebook. One of them had plenty of excuses every time I wanted to go to Chanthaburi (“we cannot meet because I might get a lot of home work and I might be very busy the weekend”) which is an indication that he isn’t really interested. But the other one really wanted to meet me. I have never been to Chanthaburi, but last year BaoBao posted about Wat Kao Sukim (วัดเขาสุกิม) and Nam Tok Pliu National Park (น้ำตกพลิ้ว) which I kept in mind: http://khunbaobao.blogspot.com/2012/09/trip-report-pt-24-wat-khao-sukim.html http://khunbaobao.blogspot.com/2012/09/trip-report-pt-24a-wat-khao-sukim-2.html http://khunbaobao.blogspot.com/2012/04/nam-tok-phliu-national-park-getting.html My friend lives near the bus station in central Chanthaburi and said I could stay with him, which is a good start! Friday 07.06.2013 Bangkok to Chanthaburi I finish work early and take bus and BTS to Ekkamai bus station (arrive about 17:03). I go to the first counter with “Chanthaburi” and am in the process of purchasing a ticket, but then the lady mentions “small bus” and in addition, I ask about time of departure (18:00), so I back-pedal and take a look at the buses first. I do not want to wait an hour and then spend 4 or 5 hours crammed in a minibus. There is a big bus, I ask for time of departure (17:30) and name of operator (Chedchai เชิดชัย) and get a ticket at their booth (205 Baht). Now I finally understand the system used at Ekkamai bus station: several operators have their own booths, even if they have buses to the same destination. I used to go to the first booth that caught my eye, now I know that the person who sells tickets there will not tell you that there is a more comfortable (big bus versus minibus/van, my opinion) bus that leaves earlier (17:30 compared to 18:00) from a different operator. They all seem to have the same price. The bus leaves 17:30 in Ekkamai, a bottle of water and a custard cake are distributed for free to all passengers. We arrive in Chanthaburi bus station at 22:09. I call my friend, he comes to pick me up on his motorbike. Judging on his pictures on facebook, I was not sure if he is my type. Now in real life, I think he is rather not my type. We have dinner on the way back to his place (not that close to the bus station). His room is minuscule (about 10 sqm), but he pays 3000 Baht per month rent and even a joiner fee (He asked me for 200 Baht for staying with him over night). A very basic bathroom (no wash basin) is shared with others. The mattress in his room is small, but we manage to fit on it. I try to sleep, but my friend initiates hanky-panky, followed by rumpy-pumpy. I manage to fall asleep on that small, hard mattress after some adjustments (change the direction of the fan that I am not in the air flow). Saturday 08.06.2013 Wat Kao Sukim, fruit garden, Nam Tok Pliu waterfall About 7am, my friend wakes me up. His teacher is coming and I have to get out of his room and check into a hotel. He takes me there on his motorbike. The hotel’s name is Kiatkachorn Hotel (โรงแรมเกียรติขจร) on Ta Luang road, close to Bangkok Hospital. The cheapest rooms are all booked out, I get a room with aircon and hot water for 350 Baht per night. Excellent value for money! Large and clean room and bathroom in central location. The only disadvantages are a hard mattress and a window above the door to the floor, so there is light from the floor all night (I cannot sleep well with light). Pictures of my room (contrary to other’s hotel reports, my stuff is in the picture): Bathroom has the sink built in kind of tiled table. So I have enough horizontal space in table high to put my stuff on (contrary to Thai friends’ bathrooms, the sink has only bend surfaces so you can’t put anything there, the tray below the mirror is usually full, as is the cover of the toilet water reservoir, I have to put my stuff on the floor, where it gets wet and I have to bend down). I sleep some more hours and get up around 10am. I call my friend to join me for a daytrip to Wat Kao Sukim. On the internet, I found information about a minibus that drives past the Wat. http://www.kookgiggstour.com/wat-khao-sukim.html I ask my friend to take me to the market (Nam Pu) to inquire about minibuses, but there are no buses in that direction (he asked a driver, I asked a passenger). My friend takes me to another place where he had organized a driver (that was his original suggestion, but I had to check if there are public buses) for 450 Baht. My friend will be busy studying all the day, so I have to go alone. I thought he would be free for the weekend and join me, but I am prepared for sudden changes in plan and as he is not so much my type, I don’t mind travelling alone. Now that I can make myself understood in Thai, it even has some advantages. It takes 30 minutes (10:45 to 11:15) to drive to the wat. I stay there until 13:05 and have lunch at the market around the car park while my driver is waiting at the car park. Entrance area Main stairway to the wat (314 steps, you can take the train instead) View from a nearby pavilion onto the existent wat (right top, covered by trees) and the construction site of the new building (left top) This is what it will look like when complete (from the wat’s website): http://www.watkhaosukim.com/sara/images/p1.jpg[/img] (according to a poster I got there: Burapha Thitha Wiriya Pracha Samakkee pagoda 99 meters wide, 99 meters long, 119 meters high) There were no opportunities for me to get a picture of the wat area I visited. That’s the problem with travelling by car: we should have stopped 100 m back so I can take a picture, but now it’s too late. But they have several halls that are filled with handcrafts and other stuff: After the wat, we drive to Suan Sadetyat (สวนสะเด็ดยาด) a fruit plantation that is open to visitors from April to June. It is five minutes drive (13:35-13:40) from the wat, entry is 100 Baht all you can eat (and in my case: all you can carry, as I filled a bag with some mangosteen and rambutan and asked if it’s ok to take them with me). I learned about the plantation here: http://www.laemsing.com/14_wat_khao_sukim_laemsing.html The rambutan are spectacular, the branches bend under the weight of the fruit. This confirms a long-hold suspicion: these fruit simply grow on trees, just like apples back in Europe! Mangosteen is less spectacular (tree in front, no fruit visible on the picture). Tip: pick the fruit from the ground, they fell down because they are ripe. We leave 14:20. Too early to go to back to Chanthaburi, so I ask my driver if there is anything of touristic interest along the way back. We end with Nam Tok Pliu, which is not on the way, but I read about it before. We arrive there 15:15. My driver waits at the car park. Entry is 200 Baht for adult foreigner. There is a Nature Trail, which leads you around the and above the waterfall. After a few minutes, I am alone on the Nature Trail (which is the longer way and requires good condition). There were many shirtless boys, some of them even my type. If I had thought of the waterfall, I would have brought swimwear and a towel (which leaves the question: where to store my valuables?) and joined in. There are many fish, you can feed them beans. The waterfall is on top of my list of places to visit if I go again. Back to my hotel (17:15-17:45). The deal was just Wat Kao Sukim, which I then extended to the fruit plantation and the waterfall. So I ask the driver how much it is for all together: 900 Baht. That’s a price I am happy to pay. I even consider to do this again (hire a driver, in this case for 7 hours and about 100 km drive) elsewhere when no public transport is available. I have a shower and change clothes and call my friend to join me for dinner at the Fruit Fun Festival with night market. He is still busy, but will call me when he is at the festival/market. After two hours, I mentally switch from (“I am here waiting for a friend” to “I am here alone and we can go to my hotel room if you want” for the case I should meet a cute boy who is interested in me – I didn’t, but at least I had a plan). My friend calls about 11pm, I am preparing to go home, so no meeting tonight. On my way back, I discover a bus station diagonally opposite my hotel. (http://pornnipatour.com/ in Thai: พรนิภาทัวร) They have buses to Ekkamai and Mor Chit, this will save me 10 minutes’ walk to the main bus station. Sunday 09.06.2013 Chanthaburi town, back to Bangkok I get up and check out (instead of paying 50 Baht per hour for late check out after 12 pm) and leave my luggage at the reception. For economic use of time, I spend most of the day walking through Chanthaburi (without paying for another night). Fruit play an important part in the province, they have statues and fountains dedicated to them: King Taksin monument in the center of a peninsular in a lake in the center of Chanthaburi. Finally I reach the cathedral (the largest in Thailand, the spires were removed during WWII and were replaced in 2009 http://www.thai-blogs.com/2009/07/12/cathedral-in-chanthaburi/): Return by bus uneventful, leave Chanthaburi 16:33, arrive in Mor Chit 21:18. Cost for the entire trip (from my room back to my room): 2694 Baht. The weather was good, I didn’t get into rain, there were clouds on the sky, nonetheless I got a very weak sunburn (can’t feel it, but skin looks a bit reddish on arms and if I press my skin, I get a light spot). My friend is another addition to my long list of Thai who are just not my type. Apart from that, no complaints: fluent in written and spoken English, good manners, efficient communication (apart from not being free on the weekend), on time, in the course of getting an education. KhorTose, Rogie and kokopelli 3 Quote
Guest fountainhall Posted June 12, 2013 Posted June 12, 2013 Yet another great report, Christian. But I'm really sorry you seem to have such trouble finding compatible companions. Quote
Rogie Posted June 12, 2013 Posted June 12, 2013 I finish work early and take bus and BTS to Ekkamai bus station (arrive about 17:03). I go to the first counter with “Chanthaburi” and am in the process of purchasing a ticket, but then the lady mentions “small bus” and in addition, I ask about time of departure (18:00), so I back-pedal and take a look at the buses first. I do not want to wait an hour and then spend 4 or 5 hours crammed in a minibus. There is a big bus, I ask for time of departure (17:30) and name of operator (Chedchai เชิดชัย) and get a ticket at their booth (205 Baht). Now I finally understand the system used at Ekkamai bus station: several operators have their own booths, even if they have buses to the same destination. I used to go to the first booth that caught my eye, now I know that the person who sells tickets there will not tell you that there is a more comfortable (big bus versus minibus/van, my opinion) bus that leaves earlier (17:30 compared to 18:00) from a different operator. They all seem to have the same price. Good advice! I've has a few problems with getting the best bus. If you are not careful you can end up on one that is just a 'bus' stopping for all and sundry by the roadside, rather than a 'coach' that goes direct with only a few recognised stops. I am a little more practiced now but owing to not reading or speaking Thai I am in extra difficulties at small bus stations where the signs are only in Thai. Quote
baobao Posted June 12, 2013 Posted June 12, 2013 Another interesting report, Christian. I'm glad the stories about Chantaburi sparked a nice weekend for you! Quote
