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Day 2 - Tuesday 17 March 2015
Palmsweet Hotel……..photo. I’m awake at 7am and waste no time in getting ready for what will be a long day at the wheel. I still can’t connect to the internet so there’s no reason to delay. Breakfast is the now normal coffee and khanompang; khanompang in Thai could be toast or any kind of cake or pastry so I never know what to expect. The starting point is usually toast and jam but here at Palmsweet Hotel the owner has gone the extra mile. Homemade jam is a welcome change from the normal fare. Then I see ‘banggo’, which is a popular pastry often eaten with condensed milk. There are also home-made muffins which seem a meal in themselves. I’m impressed and quite full. I’m then told that the internet connection problem is common to the area due to technical issues at the telecoms company. At this point I’ve lost all reason to nit-pick and as far back as I can remember I cannot fault the hotel for anything so very well done! Before I hit the road now I must check the map. Without the internet I cannot do more that make an educated guess for a suitable aiming point but to be honest it is an easy decision. I’ve selected the most northerly point on the coast in Nakhon Si Thammarat Province, some 450 kms from Prachuap.
Heading south……..At this point I take a few photos but I must get started and hit the road south on Highway 4. My only objective today is to complete the distance to Nakhon Si, arriving at a sensible hour. My aiming point is Khanom. From Prachuap the road runs south to the next provincial city, Chumphon. The next hour and a half is spent travelling through an area covered on a previous tour. The Highway changes to the 41 and by lunch I’m south of Chumphon in Lang Suan and take my break. Although the traffic is light and the road a dual carriageway, the road surface is often in poor condition and drivers adopt unorthodox driving styles to keep up a steady speed. Nevertheless by 3pm I turn off the 41 near Surat Thani heading east to the coast. At around 4pm I’m across the provincial border into Nakhon Si. And the turning to Khanom soon appears. For reasons I explained, this location is a real shot in the dark. The question is, have I hit anything?
Objectives……..With no sites to visit today, I can use this space to explain the objectives of this second tour. My principal objective is always to gain knowledge and explore my surroundings. I do this through travel and end up with something that I can publish. My blog is the key and the support is from the detail I can extract. It’s never the case with this website that I research a site in the hope that someday I can pay a visit. The thinking behind the selection of Nakhon Si Thammarat as a destination is that there are undoubtedly some important sites to visit in a province I've never stayed in before. I’m conscious of the fact that it takes a lot of time to explore any province and Nakhon Si is quite a big one. I’m giving it I week as there just might be something else that comes into play in this province and it’s the association with the sea. I’m praying it is not spoilt as is Phuket or Krabi. Is Khanom, a place I’ve never heard of before, the right place for me? There is potentially a conflict between the touring aspect which has dominated recent tours and the beach holiday mode which has crept into my other southern Thailand tours. I shall soon find out.
Khanom……..As I enter Khanom I quickly find the beach road and it’s quite a revelation. It’s just like some now crowded destinations used to be 30 years ago. What accommodation there is consists of small resorts and hotels. A lot of beach land is still sea pine forest. While this is still excellent news to me there is still the problem of finding accommodation. There seems to be plenty of choice but for one reason or another I delay selection, often over price. Land, of course is expensive along the beach and from what I can see this one is as peaceful as it gets. What to do? It some point I have to decide and when the next resort is full I’m directed to another. The problem seems to be that I’ve missed the town of Khanom completely where some of the cheaper accommodation would be. When I’m directed to another resort, it would normally be an automatic nono due to price but really what have I come all this way for? Right in front of me is an amazing sandy beach, practically deserted. There is just a cluster of bungalows with all mod cons and an inviting terrace. The only problem is that there are no dining facilities nearby but I have the car and it’s still light. I will take the bungalow regardless but I well aware it's really too good for a stopover. At last I get directions to the town and instead of heading for a restaurant, I pick up some street and takaway food to consume on the terrace with a cold beer. As a cool breeze blows off the Gulf of Siam, I just wonder how many people would not want to swap places with me now. With dinner over I can carry on with my notes. Yes, on the terrace as well. I can’t remember that happening too often and for one night, at least, my touring instincts are bottled up with the cork rammed tight. Next Page.
Palmsweet Hotel……..photo. I’m awake at 7am and waste no time in getting ready for what will be a long day at the wheel. I still can’t connect to the internet so there’s no reason to delay. Breakfast is the now normal coffee and khanompang; khanompang in Thai could be toast or any kind of cake or pastry so I never know what to expect. The starting point is usually toast and jam but here at Palmsweet Hotel the owner has gone the extra mile. Homemade jam is a welcome change from the normal fare. Then I see ‘banggo’, which is a popular pastry often eaten with condensed milk. There are also home-made muffins which seem a meal in themselves. I’m impressed and quite full. I’m then told that the internet connection problem is common to the area due to technical issues at the telecoms company. At this point I’ve lost all reason to nit-pick and as far back as I can remember I cannot fault the hotel for anything so very well done! Before I hit the road now I must check the map. Without the internet I cannot do more that make an educated guess for a suitable aiming point but to be honest it is an easy decision. I’ve selected the most northerly point on the coast in Nakhon Si Thammarat Province, some 450 kms from Prachuap.
Heading south……..At this point I take a few photos but I must get started and hit the road south on Highway 4. My only objective today is to complete the distance to Nakhon Si, arriving at a sensible hour. My aiming point is Khanom. From Prachuap the road runs south to the next provincial city, Chumphon. The next hour and a half is spent travelling through an area covered on a previous tour. The Highway changes to the 41 and by lunch I’m south of Chumphon in Lang Suan and take my break. Although the traffic is light and the road a dual carriageway, the road surface is often in poor condition and drivers adopt unorthodox driving styles to keep up a steady speed. Nevertheless by 3pm I turn off the 41 near Surat Thani heading east to the coast. At around 4pm I’m across the provincial border into Nakhon Si. And the turning to Khanom soon appears. For reasons I explained, this location is a real shot in the dark. The question is, have I hit anything?
Objectives……..With no sites to visit today, I can use this space to explain the objectives of this second tour. My principal objective is always to gain knowledge and explore my surroundings. I do this through travel and end up with something that I can publish. My blog is the key and the support is from the detail I can extract. It’s never the case with this website that I research a site in the hope that someday I can pay a visit. The thinking behind the selection of Nakhon Si Thammarat as a destination is that there are undoubtedly some important sites to visit in a province I've never stayed in before. I’m conscious of the fact that it takes a lot of time to explore any province and Nakhon Si is quite a big one. I’m giving it I week as there just might be something else that comes into play in this province and it’s the association with the sea. I’m praying it is not spoilt as is Phuket or Krabi. Is Khanom, a place I’ve never heard of before, the right place for me? There is potentially a conflict between the touring aspect which has dominated recent tours and the beach holiday mode which has crept into my other southern Thailand tours. I shall soon find out.
Khanom……..As I enter Khanom I quickly find the beach road and it’s quite a revelation. It’s just like some now crowded destinations used to be 30 years ago. What accommodation there is consists of small resorts and hotels. A lot of beach land is still sea pine forest. While this is still excellent news to me there is still the problem of finding accommodation. There seems to be plenty of choice but for one reason or another I delay selection, often over price. Land, of course is expensive along the beach and from what I can see this one is as peaceful as it gets. What to do? It some point I have to decide and when the next resort is full I’m directed to another. The problem seems to be that I’ve missed the town of Khanom completely where some of the cheaper accommodation would be. When I’m directed to another resort, it would normally be an automatic nono due to price but really what have I come all this way for? Right in front of me is an amazing sandy beach, practically deserted. There is just a cluster of bungalows with all mod cons and an inviting terrace. The only problem is that there are no dining facilities nearby but I have the car and it’s still light. I will take the bungalow regardless but I well aware it's really too good for a stopover. At last I get directions to the town and instead of heading for a restaurant, I pick up some street and takaway food to consume on the terrace with a cold beer. As a cool breeze blows off the Gulf of Siam, I just wonder how many people would not want to swap places with me now. With dinner over I can carry on with my notes. Yes, on the terrace as well. I can’t remember that happening too often and for one night, at least, my touring instincts are bottled up with the cork rammed tight. Next Page.