Day 3 - Friday 8 July 2016

Corrections........I’m awake at 6am and get straight onto completing my blog. Yesterday this tour was somewhat blown off track so a number of corrections are needed today to stay on course but first some breakfast. For once I need to take the car out as there is no convenience store within walking distance. The nearest is 7Eleven actually in the hospital itself: That done, I can start to plan the day’s tours. The idea that I just turn up in some location or other hasn’t worked on this occasion as it did for example in Chanthaburi. With much more co-ordination I’m hoping today will be better as I produce a list of possible sites. One immediate result of this action is that I find a lot more in Prachinburi Province than I had expected. The immediate effect that has, is that I need to remain in or near Prachinburi for at least another day but with no internet connection at Orawee Resort I’m leaving soon whatever happens.
Ancient ruins........ Despite having an itinerary now, that still doesn’t mean everything will be easy to find. While Google Map is very useful at times, equally there are occasions where it’s incomplete or out of date. There needs to be other sources to back it up and that means collecting information from local sources as well; something Katoon is very good at. Needing to start somewhere I decide to head south of Prachinburi into the district of Si Mahosot along Highway 319. In the village I pick up Highway 3070 heading roughly east. When I first noted the presence of an archaeological site, it was music to my ears. Nothing so far had suggested anything like that here. Nonetheless I considered it relatively insignificant. I would probably be in the district about an hour. Not far along the 3070 I come across my first reference to ancient ruins. A small ruin with a site board reference 16 photo appears on the roadside. Nothing much to go on at the moment but the signage reminds me of those found in Ban Khu Bua in Ratchburi Province. Could this site be bigger than I expected?
Sites 27 and 223........With Google Map showing something more substantial I keep a look out for signs and then on the right is a small road easy to miss. A short distance away is the first substantial ruin recorded as site 223 with a pond and earthworks nearby recorded as site 27.

Boran Suthan Sa Kaeo........Aware there’s now more than one ancient ruin I follow the road around the field system and another site soon appears. The signboard reads, ‘Sa Kaeo is an ancient pond of circa 5th-6th Century AD measuring 18 by 18 metres. It was dug into the natural laterite (rock) formation. A total of 46 bas-reliefs of animals such as elephant, lion, Makara (a mythical dragon) etc, decorated around the edge of the pond’. With other earthworks and depressions nearby, one recorded as site 29, another as 195, a pattern is forming of the site an ancient town of some size dating from the early Dvaravati Period.

Boran Suthan Sa Morakot (Sa Morakot Ancient Ruins)........I find myself back on Highway 319 and have already identified another important site yet Katoon heads off in another direction and I’m at a loss to identify the site she’s heading for on Google Map. This is one for local knowledge. When I arrive at the site on the left hand side of Highway 319 heading south I find a collection of buildings and sign boards which relate to Boran Suthan Sa Morakot. Here things become much clearer as I finally get some hard data to work with. On site are information boards with details and maps and with a small museum on site as well there is a lot here I can work with. Basically Boran Suthan Sa Morakot is an ancient site that dates back to the early Davaravati Period. What you see today is the result of different period constructions superimposed. The site here concentrates on the Buddhist era. The presence of the biggest and most ancient footprints in Thailand here confirm that Buddhism took hold sometime in the 9th Century during the early Khmer civilisation succeeding the religion of the Dvaravati Period but evidence of both are found in the area. A model of the ancient city in the exhibition hall shows that the site was quite extensive covering a number of parishes.
Finally at last I get a handle on this site and how it fits into the history not only of this area but for Thailand as a whole. In addition there are tourist maps of Prachinburi as a whole which I can now use for future site visits. It’s a great start but now we head back to the site I earlier identified.

Si Marabhodi Tree........The Si Marabhodi Tree is located in Wat Si Maha Pho along Rural Road 4014 west off Highway 319 near the junction with the 3070. The Marabhodi Tree has supposedly grown from a sappling of the Bhodi Tree where the Lord Buddha meditated. It is the only one in Thailand which has been registered by the Fine Arts Department as having national historical interest. This is because excavations have shown it’s the oldest with brick and laterite blocks discovered underneath the tree dating from between 900 and 1300 years ago. The ancient Buddha’s Footprint and stone inscriptions of the period can be traced back to Anuradhapura in Sri Lanka. King Rama V mentioned Si Marabhodi Tree when he visited the site in 1908. The bhodi tree has since become the provincial emblem of Prachinburi.

A simple lunch is taken near the temple then leaving Sa Morakot behind we head eastwards back along the 3070 heading for Si Maha Phot.
Thewa Sathan Pan Hin........photo../..Google Map. The idea that I would spend an hour in this district has by now long disappeared. There is simply far too much to see here and I’ve completely misjudged that. As we head east there are yet more ruins. Thewa Sathan Pan Hin is located near the town of Si Maha Phot. The site is believed to be the shrine of the Hindu God Vishnu dating back to the reign of King Jayavarman I of the Chenla Kingdom (early Khmer circa 7th-8th Century AD). In the heart of the sanctuary is a stone statue pedestal which looks like a footed tray or Phan in Thai hence its name Pan Hin (stone).
Having recorded this site there are still two more I’m looking for.
Royal Handwriting Monument........The Royal Handwriting Monument is located on the left hand side of Highway 3070 heading north exiting the village. This is a site that’s confusing by its name seemingly having nothing to do with ancient ruins but this is another site visited by King Rama V in 1908. It was registered by the Fine Arts Department as a national monument in 1981. It originally consisted of a stone column dating from the Lopburi Period 12th-13th Century AD but the upper part is now missing. When King Rama V visited the site he left a stone slab with writing in Thai script showing the year of his reign (41) and the year of the Chakri Dynasty (127).

Lum Muang........ Directly opposite there is another ancient site with strange foundation stones. Lum Muang is noted for a series of holes cut into the laterite base. Nobody is quite sure of the purpose but when King Rama V visited the site he thought the holes were for mortar strikes for decorative moulding.

Wat Kaeo Phichit........Continuing along the 3070 we connect with Prachin Anusorn Road which runs along the southern bank of the Bang Pakong River eventually passing the Chao Phya Abhaibhubejhr Hospital where we left off yesterday. There’s just time for one more site visit and that’s across the river bridge easily visible on the northern bank.
Wat Kaeo Phichit is regarded as one of the oldest in the area. It was built in 1879 during the reign of King Rama V. It was built with private funds from locals and Khun Kaew Prasangsit intended to be a gathering place for people to practice their faith. In 1918 Chao Phraya Abaiphubet who we’ve already met in the museum of traditional medicine at Chao Phya Abhaibhubejhr Hospital had the ordination hall built. The prominent feature in the hall is the magnificent textiles portraying the life of Lord Buddha, an art form from the time of King Rama VI. The hall itself contains elements of Chinese, European and Khmer design with outer walls of the hall depicting stucco decoration of Ramayana.

Also within the grounds of the temple is a museum dedicated to the life and times of Chao Phraya Abaiphubet with his statue in front: Well worth a visit.
Paradise Resort........photo../..Google Map. With a late start today there’s now going to be a late finish as we scout around for accommodation yet there’s nothing obvious in and around Prachinburi. As we haven’t done homework on this it becomes a bit of a struggle as we fail to get our heads together.
Eventually just a short distance south of the river off Rural Road 2033 we find Paradise Resort. The style of this resort is discrete, a popular type in Thailand for a short stay of just a few hours or longer. It doesn’t matter as long as I can get a good night’s sleep and an internet connection. I check the signal first and it’s OK. The other feature of this resort is that it’s cheap just 450 baht per night. On the face of it the rooms look smart enough but will they be comfortable? With the time racing past 5pm we decide to skip formalities and head straight out for dinner. We soon find a pavement restaurant offering western style food and steak and chips will do just fine right now. Back at the room I work hard on my blog. There’s a lot of detail to work with today but I’m really much happier that I’ve been able to sink my teeth into something more substantial today; and yes the steak was ok too. I manage to catch the back end if the Tour de France stage 7 to see another super British win. If I have any complaints now it’s the hard bed and pillow as I turn in. Next Page.