Chanthaburi - Wats with the wabbits?

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Nobody has ever heard of Chanthaburi which probably explains the puzzled looks as we bought our bus tickets and the lack of other visitors when we got there. We only went there to break up a journey that would otherwise have been a little too long for us. As usual, getting there was part of the adventure. Our bus transfer from the hotel didn't turn up again! This time it seems that we were not even booked on the bus yet we were there when the hotel owner made the reservation so it certainly wasn't his fault. Eventually we were put in a taxi (again!) which took us to the Thai border at the expense of the bus company. At the border we were met by their representative who kind of explained the procedure for crossing into Thailand and finding our bus on the other side. There was quite a lot of hanging about but the actual border crossing was simple enough. On the Thai side the waiting foreign hordes were squeezed into pick-ups which took us a few kilometres to a restaurant. Various minibuses then took us all our different ways. Ours was going to the port for a ferry to Kho Chang but was to drop us in Chanthaburi on the way.

We had been told we would be dropped off on the edge of town because the driver "couldn't go into the centre". Little did we know that there would be no taxis, tuk tuks or public transport at the industrial site where he threw us out at the side of the road. It turned out to be 5km into town and it was far too hot and humid to walk all the way. We asked for help in a small restaurant but they were unable to call a taxi for us. We're not really sure why, but eventually one of their neighbours gave us a lift in his car. We had to force some beer money into his hands and we were left very impressed by Thai hospitality.

The Kasemsan Hotel is, apparently, the best place in town so we thought we would treat ourselves as it was just for one night. It was actually quite reasonable and very comfortable. We stayed for two nights in the end and could have stayed longer. That probably sounds surprising if nobody ever goes there but we quickly fell in love with the town and there are a lot of day trips you can do if you stay longer.

We were completely bewitched by the Chinese style riverside fishermen's cottages. Some have been converted into bars and restaurants whilst others house quirky arty shops. There are still a few which seem to house large Chinese and Vietnamese families behind ornate windows. We found one bar where "Mr Cob", the owner came over to practise his English. We had a good chat and discovered that his name in English means frog, so he will always be Mr Frog to us. Before we left he told us to come back the next night because two of his regular customers, Mr John and Mrs Helen would be there. The next evening we returned and were glad to have stayed the extra night because John and Helen were great and we had a very enjoyable evening. John teaches English in a local primary school so we had lots to talk about.

The town is also famous for its Catholic church. It's very big and was founded by Cambodian and Vietnamese catholics who came to town a century ago. In addition to the church, the town is known for its gem market. Crowds gathered around tiny tables inspecting and trading precious stones. At weekends it is supposed to get very busy and it must be quite interesting to see. With only a few traders active the camera lens seemed a little intrusive so we didn't hang around too long.

There are several wats and temples around too. They are probably the most colourful ones we have seen on our travels. We even saw the monks out cutting the grass using some pretty antiquated machines. Most of the temples are in the style we have become accustomed to on the trip but there were a couple which looked very Chinese with magnificent dragons.

This blog was called "Wats with the wabbits" because everywhere we went we saw rabbits. The lamposts around the central park with its lake and tributes to King Tak Sin were topped with golden bunnies. Street signs were adorned with white rabbits. There were even topiary ones. Luckily we met Mr John and discovered that the rabbit is simply the symbol of the town. They certainly brighten the place up.

Our next destination was the island of Ko Samet so another minibus journey was waiting for us the next day. The Thailand part of our trip had got off to a very good start.

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Photos

Wat Bot
Check out the monk mowing the lawn!