In Thailand the public transport system is extremely efficient and capillary.
To travel from one place to the other within the country, several different transportations can be choosen:
airplanes, trains, bus, ferryboats, tuk-tuk and the like allow you to easily reach even the most remote
corner of the country always at very low cost.
As we get in Bangkok we purchase a ticket for the first flight to Buriram in the Northeast of the
country.
Buriram is a pleasant and quite town and is the ideal departing point to visit different
archaeological Khmer sites. The following morning we rent a minibus to visit two archaeological
sites of the ancient civilization Khmer that once dominated the region. The temple of Phanom Rung
and Prasat Him Phimai. |
The temple of Phanom Rung (that in Khmer language means Great Hill)
is the largest and better restored Khmer monument of the whole Thailand. The complex is situated
over an extinct volcano.
The temple was built as an Hindu monument between the X and XIII century with the greater part
of the works being performed during the kingdom of King Suriyavarman II (1113 – 1150 AC), this
period was the apex of the Angkor architecture.
The temple, facing East toward the capital Angkor, was build to commemorate the stay of Shiva
on the sacred mountain Kailash. |
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Phimai is a small town between Khorat and Buriram.
Here we have visited a Khmer temple of the Ankgor period built between the X and the XI century.
Phimai, as well as Phanom Rung, was part of the Ankgor Empire which included the better part of
Thailand’s Northeast. When the Ankgor Empire was at its apex, Phimai was connected to the capital
Ankgor by a road.
It is not clear who has built Phimai, nevertheless it is believed that the temple has been built
during the kingdom of King Suriyavoraman (1002-1049).
Prasat Him Phimai is situated in the centre of the ancient city of Phimai. |
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After a long trip by train from Korat to Nong-kai and the crossing of the
border by Tuk-Tuk we finally arrive in Laos.
Vientiane is a pleasant and quite city where the clock seems to have stopped around 30 years
ago.
We try to get a flight to Luang Prabang but all flights are fully booked: we decide then to
stay a couple of days in Vientiane.
In the photo we can see the sunset over the Mekong River from the porch of our Vientiane’s
favourite restaurant. |
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Pha That Luang (Great Stupa or Sacred Shrine) is the most significant
and important Lao monument, for religious and national reasons. The Stupa is located on a hill
about 5 Kms from Vientiane centre.
The legends tell of a shrine built in the III century from the Asokans missioners to preserve
a pectoral bone of the Buddha. Nevertheless the most ancient ruins found until today date the
existence of a Khmer monastery built around the XII century.
In the middle of the XVI century the King Setthathirat moved the capital from Luang Prapang
to Vientiane and ordered the construction of That Luang, the construction works began in 1566.
The temple was covered with gold leaf and has repeatedly been ransacked from Burmese, Siamese and Chinese.
The city was practically destroyed during the 1828 Siamese invasion and That Luang was abandoned.
The actual structure has been reconstructed by the French in 1930 based on detailed sketches of the
French architect Delaporte taken in 1860. |
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Wat Si Saket, the most ancient Vientiane’s temple, was built in
1818 by King Anouvong.
All the other temples of the city were built after Wat Si Saket or reconstructed after
the destruction of the Siamese in 1828.
The inside walls of the temple are full of small niches that contain more than 2000
silver and ceramics Buddha statues. |
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The Patuxai, the arc of triumph, was built to commemorate the people who
died in the pre-revolutionary wars and it is quite similar to the arc of triumph in Paris.
The upper part of the arc is engraved with typical Lao decorations. |
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Ko Lipe is an island of Ko Tarutao archipelago. The island is
rather distant from the coast; it is necessary to take a ferry from Pak Bara, with
intermediary stop in Ko Tarutao. The voyage takes the better part of the day.
In the morning we have hired a local fisherman’s boat together with another couple
met on the island.
The water around Ko Lipe is crystal clear without any trace of pollution as the
island is rather far away from the coast.
Our fishermen friends have brought us to visit some islets of the archipelago, then
we have gone fishing. Luckily the fishermen have caught some fish otherwise we would
have skipped lunch.
We have then chosen a shady beach on a islet and our Thai friends fixed lunch for
us; grilled fish and the best deep fried calamari of the last 15 years! Instead
of tablecloth they used some large leaves, some smaller ones were used as plates. |
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Despite the heavy tourist exploitation Ko Phi Phi is a very pleasant island. |
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Thailand
Buriram
