Day 3 - Sunday 18 October 2015

Third day start……..The night passes more comfortably but I wake quite early to catch up with my blog after an eventful day yesterday. Today though should be my last day in Meuang Suphanburi, but I still have six sites to visit before I move on. After coffee and a snack I’m packed and ready around 10.30am. Five of the sites on my list are temples but I’m expecting some interesting variations. Due to its distance from the city, the first temple was left off the list yesterday so today I head north along Highway 340 by an easier route.
Wat Phrao……..Wat Phrao is located in a horseshoe bend in the Tha Chin River about 15 minutes drive from Suphanburi. Its architecture is in Burmese style. The hall houses a Buddha footprint while in the backyard is the library for Buddhist scriptures, located in the middle of the pond. Large flocks of flying foxes live on the Java plum trees at the rear of this temple.

Wat Sanam Chai........Returning to the 340 I look for signs to Wat Sanam Chai. This temple would have stood within the old city constructed during the reign of King Katae. The Northern Chronicle says that King assigned his brother to build this temple and to renovate Wat Pa Lelai at the same time. The ruin consists of an octagonal chedi alongside a viharn and four smaller chedis.

Wat Phra Rup........ With these two outer temples visited I need to return back to the city along the 321. Just over the Tha Chin River Bridge I turn left into Khun Chang Road to add two more temples to the list. Wat Phra Rup is an ancient temple housing a reclining Buddha statue, which is said to have the most beautiful face in Thailand. Another interesting antique is a wooden Buddha footprint. Delicately carved on both sides of Paduak wood, it is the only one of its kind in Thailand. I am kindly given access to the room which contains some wonderful items as well. Wat Phra Rup is also the original place of the famous Phra Khun Phaen amulet.

Wat Pratu San........I’m halfway through the day’s program already and park up in Wat Pratu San taking lunch nearby. The temple contains some beautiful murals in the Phra Ubosot. In 1848, a royal painter painted the delicate murals featuring the life of the Lord Buddha. A series of paintings on wood pieces, which seem to copy the murals, are kept in the temple’s image hall. Unfortunately there seems to be nobody about to show me around here but I could clearly see the murals in the old Phra Ubosot.

City Pillar Shrine........I mentioned that there were six sites on my list today so that leaves just one right? Wrong! The City Pillar Shrine is included here when it should have been included on my first day in Suphanburi. For some reason I missed the point that the shrine is now within the Giant Dragon Park or at least beside it so I’d actually visited the site already. I’ve returned to the park to get some better photos and to better understand why I missed it in the first place, The pillars were originally housed in a wooden pagoda but when the Giant Dragon Park was built a new home was found for them. In traditional Chinese style the pillars are housed in a beautiful mondrop, a place of pilgrimage for Thais and Chinese alike.

Suphanburi National Museum........For once my geography goes astray. Maybe it was the excitement from yesterday but I’ve managed to miss the museum located in the Government Complex on the main Highway 340. I have to double back. The Suphanburi National Museum is not the largest national museum I’ve visited but some sections were closed for renovation. The collection does contain, however, some interesting objects relating to the history, religion, culture and art of the region, The timeline of development from the Dvaravati Period through to the Ratanakosin is well displayed and adds considerably to my understanding of sites I’ve already visited. OK now there’s just one site left. Sure!

Wat Phra That........photo. Wat Phra That is in Meueng Suphanburi District, just. I’ve left it till last as I head out of the district and into the next, U-Thong. Located on the right some 15 km from Suphanburi on the 321, Wat Phra That is a prang or stupa which is similar to the one in Wat Phra Si Rattana Mahathat. With a height of 25 metres, the ruined stupa is a bit smaller with a rounder spire. Local people call it Wat Phra That Nok because of its shape.
U Tong........Thankfully the day’s tour has gone well and at around 4.30pm it’s time to complete the trip to U Thong. On this occasion I’ve done no homework on selecting accommodation. Surely that shouldn’t be a problem. The town is quite small but that also means less selection. As I turn left at a junction in the town I start looking around but worrying that I will be too far from the town I double back but get snarled up in roadworks on Highway 333. Stopping to get help I find that my best option was to continue along the 321. I was on the right road in the first place. Just a couple of kilometres more and there on the left are two resorts complicated by the fact that they are set back well off the highway. I’m not disappointed with the first I enquire at. Tanachon Resort is more of a motel, the chalet type rooms having parking space directly in front. My only concern is the distance from the city but soon I realise there is a local restaurant and minimart within walking distance. This helps a lot with my budget. With an easier evening it would be expected I make good progress on my blog but recent activity has caught up with me and I turn in early. Next Page.