Day 2, Sunday 1 October - Nakhon Pathom
Rain Delay....... With appointments spilling over into another week, planning a longer tour isn't an option right now but reaching the weekend I can fit in an overnight trip. But initially the Gods are working against me. There have been a couple of opportunities already to attend another football match but every evening for the last few days it's been raining heavily and yesterday the fixture at Port FC looked more like a paddy field. Well, today I plan to try again as we pack and get ready. We head west which means a long journey through the northern suburbs of Bangkok. Initially we follow the railway line which serves the west and south out of Bangkok.
Salaya it is....... I aim to reach Taling Chan Railway station, but we managed to miss the turn and rather than backtrack I head for Salaya Railway Station in Nakhon Pathom Province instead. The result is the capture of another three trains on video which is good result. The next location will allow us to stop for lunch.
Lam Phaya Floating Market....... Nakhon Pathom is a great province for floating markets. The Tha Chin River flows north to south through the province and Lam Phaya Floating Market in Bang Len district is a popular one especially with local tourists. Although relatively small, it still has all the characteristics of traditional floating market. It was built by the Lam Phaya Cultural District Council and takes its name from the nearby Lam Phaya Temple. The purpose of this market is to support the community for traditional people to sell products like hand-made goods, vegetables, fruits and clothes. In the market, many locals set up their merchandise on boats, and in booths along the walkway. Most of the food is traditional Thai food to represent and express how traditional people live. Examples include chicken biryani, grilled with a mixture of rice, herbs and spices; and Thai vermicelli, a boiled fish noodle mixed with curry spices. There are also places where tourists can join in the fishing activity in front of the Lam Phaya temple. The market is also visited by river boats that transport tourists up and down the Tha Chin River.
In my opinion the floating markets on the Tha Chin River are more authentic and cheaper than the more popular markets at Damnoen Saduak or Ampawa and are closer to Bangkok too. The next location is a Buddhist temple.
Wat Klang Bang Phra....... Wat Klang Bang Phra Located on the southwest of Nakhon Chai Si River (Tha Chin River) in Nakhon Chai Si district. It was believed to be built in the Ayutthaya era (1667) and has always been the spiritual centre for the locals. Chao Athikan Him Inthachoto, the abbot at that time, invited monks and locals to build the new Ubosot which was finished in 1927. Later, the Ubosot was renovated to a concrete one by Luang Pho Poean Thitakhuno, the new abbot, who developed the temple until the end of his life. After Luang Pho Poean passed away Luang Pho Sam Ang Paphatsaro, decided to follow his steps by continuing the temple development. In 2006, he, together with Fine Art Department, renovated the old Ubosot. There are many sacred items which tourists can see and pay respects to e.g. Lord Buddha's relics from Sri Lanka, a replica of Luang Pho To's footprint (the new principle Buddha image of the new Ubosot), Sitthimongkon statue (the old principle Buddha image of the old Ubosot), the statue of Luang Pu Him, Luang Pu Thong Yu, Luang Pu Plian, and the body of Phra Udom Pracha Nat (Luang Pho Poean Thitakhuno). This temple is also popular among the Yantra tattooing lovers as the actual abbot can put magic on the Yantra tattoo.
Nakhon Pathom Municipality Sports Stadium....... It's now down to the main business of the day. We arrive at our selected accommodation in Nakhon Pathom. My Room consists of apartment blocks that are relatively dated. The main consideration for us is the cost at just 500 baht. Without further ado we head for Nakhon Pathom Municipality Sports Stadium for an evening of entertainment.
The football fixture between Nakhon Pathom and Police Terro of Bangkok kicks off at the sensible 5:30pm. Nakhon Pathom was promoted to the Premier League for this season while Police Terro are old dogs in this league. Obviously, this is a stadium I haven't visited before and keeps in place my target to visit as many Premier League football grounds as I can.
Having purchased our stadium tickets for 130 baht we settle down in this all-seater stadium just in time as the stadium is almost full. The game starts with customary banging of drums and chants. The home team make the better start and deservedly go ahead with a strike by Ablorh after Terro fail to clear their lines. However, after 26 minutes Terro are awarded penalty after a VAR review. The penalty taker W. Jeong makes no mistake firing low into the left-hand corner of the net. Then to gasps by the home supporters Terro take the lead just before half time. Midfielder Dennis Villanueva fires in a shot from outside the box which beat everyone including the goalkeeper. The half time score of 2 : 1 to the visitors is to be the final score although how it stayed that way is a miracle. In the last 30 minutes the home team spent most of the time in the visitor's half hitting the upright twice add squandering numerous chances. Under those circumstances the visitors defence cannot be said to be in control and how on earth they walked away from this game with a win is quite incredible; daylight robbery by the Police if you ask me.
In the end we have the last laugh remembering that rain had prevented us from attending previous fixtures. Within 10 minutes of the end of the game rain arrived with a vengeance causing us to make a hasty retreat back to the room.
Next Page.
Rain Delay....... With appointments spilling over into another week, planning a longer tour isn't an option right now but reaching the weekend I can fit in an overnight trip. But initially the Gods are working against me. There have been a couple of opportunities already to attend another football match but every evening for the last few days it's been raining heavily and yesterday the fixture at Port FC looked more like a paddy field. Well, today I plan to try again as we pack and get ready. We head west which means a long journey through the northern suburbs of Bangkok. Initially we follow the railway line which serves the west and south out of Bangkok.
Salaya it is....... I aim to reach Taling Chan Railway station, but we managed to miss the turn and rather than backtrack I head for Salaya Railway Station in Nakhon Pathom Province instead. The result is the capture of another three trains on video which is good result. The next location will allow us to stop for lunch.
Lam Phaya Floating Market....... Nakhon Pathom is a great province for floating markets. The Tha Chin River flows north to south through the province and Lam Phaya Floating Market in Bang Len district is a popular one especially with local tourists. Although relatively small, it still has all the characteristics of traditional floating market. It was built by the Lam Phaya Cultural District Council and takes its name from the nearby Lam Phaya Temple. The purpose of this market is to support the community for traditional people to sell products like hand-made goods, vegetables, fruits and clothes. In the market, many locals set up their merchandise on boats, and in booths along the walkway. Most of the food is traditional Thai food to represent and express how traditional people live. Examples include chicken biryani, grilled with a mixture of rice, herbs and spices; and Thai vermicelli, a boiled fish noodle mixed with curry spices. There are also places where tourists can join in the fishing activity in front of the Lam Phaya temple. The market is also visited by river boats that transport tourists up and down the Tha Chin River.
In my opinion the floating markets on the Tha Chin River are more authentic and cheaper than the more popular markets at Damnoen Saduak or Ampawa and are closer to Bangkok too. The next location is a Buddhist temple.
Wat Klang Bang Phra....... Wat Klang Bang Phra Located on the southwest of Nakhon Chai Si River (Tha Chin River) in Nakhon Chai Si district. It was believed to be built in the Ayutthaya era (1667) and has always been the spiritual centre for the locals. Chao Athikan Him Inthachoto, the abbot at that time, invited monks and locals to build the new Ubosot which was finished in 1927. Later, the Ubosot was renovated to a concrete one by Luang Pho Poean Thitakhuno, the new abbot, who developed the temple until the end of his life. After Luang Pho Poean passed away Luang Pho Sam Ang Paphatsaro, decided to follow his steps by continuing the temple development. In 2006, he, together with Fine Art Department, renovated the old Ubosot. There are many sacred items which tourists can see and pay respects to e.g. Lord Buddha's relics from Sri Lanka, a replica of Luang Pho To's footprint (the new principle Buddha image of the new Ubosot), Sitthimongkon statue (the old principle Buddha image of the old Ubosot), the statue of Luang Pu Him, Luang Pu Thong Yu, Luang Pu Plian, and the body of Phra Udom Pracha Nat (Luang Pho Poean Thitakhuno). This temple is also popular among the Yantra tattooing lovers as the actual abbot can put magic on the Yantra tattoo.
Nakhon Pathom Municipality Sports Stadium....... It's now down to the main business of the day. We arrive at our selected accommodation in Nakhon Pathom. My Room consists of apartment blocks that are relatively dated. The main consideration for us is the cost at just 500 baht. Without further ado we head for Nakhon Pathom Municipality Sports Stadium for an evening of entertainment.
The football fixture between Nakhon Pathom and Police Terro of Bangkok kicks off at the sensible 5:30pm. Nakhon Pathom was promoted to the Premier League for this season while Police Terro are old dogs in this league. Obviously, this is a stadium I haven't visited before and keeps in place my target to visit as many Premier League football grounds as I can.
Having purchased our stadium tickets for 130 baht we settle down in this all-seater stadium just in time as the stadium is almost full. The game starts with customary banging of drums and chants. The home team make the better start and deservedly go ahead with a strike by Ablorh after Terro fail to clear their lines. However, after 26 minutes Terro are awarded penalty after a VAR review. The penalty taker W. Jeong makes no mistake firing low into the left-hand corner of the net. Then to gasps by the home supporters Terro take the lead just before half time. Midfielder Dennis Villanueva fires in a shot from outside the box which beat everyone including the goalkeeper. The half time score of 2 : 1 to the visitors is to be the final score although how it stayed that way is a miracle. In the last 30 minutes the home team spent most of the time in the visitor's half hitting the upright twice add squandering numerous chances. Under those circumstances the visitors defence cannot be said to be in control and how on earth they walked away from this game with a win is quite incredible; daylight robbery by the Police if you ask me.
In the end we have the last laugh remembering that rain had prevented us from attending previous fixtures. Within 10 minutes of the end of the game rain arrived with a vengeance causing us to make a hasty retreat back to the room.
Next Page.
Nakhon Pathom Province
Salaya Railway Station, Salaya, Phutthamonthon District
Lam Phaya Floating Market, Lam Phaya,
Bang Len District
Wat Klang Bang Phra, Bang Phra,
Nakhon Chai Si District
Nakhon Pathom Municipality Sports Stadium, Sanam Chan,
Mueang Nakhon Pathom District