Day 3 - Tuesday 10 March 2015

Recovery……..As morning breaks I’m clearly suffering from a restless night. Despite the efforts at Muean Fun to create rooms that are of good décor, particularly the bathroom, they’ve totally neglected some basic comforts. The pillows for example are better employed in a Thai Boxing school and I’m forced to sleep on my towel. I’m sure prison cells in the UK have better comforts. OK, enough of winging. I have to recover. I manage to get a coffee but skip breakfast. At least my searches are throwing up some interesting sites that will please Katoon and the first is only 5 minutes drive away.
Wat Khongkharam…….. Wat Khongkharam is a listed temple on account of its age and the presence of some important murals in the viharn. These date back to the reign of King Rama III (1824-1851). Its style is typically Mon and within the grounds is a museum, unfortunately open only at weekends. However there are enough antique and vintage objects under the building to get a flavour of past times. A number of long river boats are stored under the museum needing some TLC, a reminder that trade upriver from Ratchburi was a local endeavour. A couple of hundred yards to the rear of the temple is the substantial waterway of the Mae Klong River which passes through Potharam from Kanchanaburi upriver. A reminder of the cause of decline in river traffic is right in front of the temple; the railway line. The visit to Wat Khongkharam and the banks of the Mae Klong have taken an hour. The next site is not far away across the river.

Nang Yai Wat Khanon…….. Wat Khanon is a Mon/Thai temple with a particular attraction. The preference of earlier Kings of the Rattanakosin era to reside in these western provinces is evidenced here in the form of Nang Yai an old form of entertainment using puppets in traditional dance preferred in the court of the King. The Nang Yai Museum houses some 330 examples of puppets that were in the Royal collection. At the time of my visit the museum was undergoing some renovation in preparation of the grand re-opening but I was still allowed to view the puppets. In another building is a display of antique and vintage objects, not all of them clearly religious, as if the temple is the guardian of local culture. If I have to select another feature of this temple it’s the presence of a substantial monkey troop which congregates at the front of the temple. Another hour is spent here by which time it’s time for something to eat. Perhaps for first time this tour I feel rural Thailand closing in and I eat in a local restaurant, fast and cheap and……..very spicy hot. It’s another oppressive day in the heat and I’m starting to feel the effects of a sleepless night. Despite visiting the two most important sites listed for this area, another is just 5 kms further on and I may as well go and take a look.

Wat Meung……..Wat Meung (purple temple) is yet another example in this area of Mon influence. It houses yet another museum which appears to be closed. Sadly visitors to this temple are rare, which is a pity. A curator arrives from his chores and unlocks the building. Inside I’m treated to a display of one of Thailand’s underestimated cultures; the Mon. It’s now I realise how dominant the Mon culture is in this area; all but two of the local temples are Mon. Exposure to Mon society and culture is not new to me. My visit to Sangkhaburi in Kanchanaburi province gave me a flavour but this museum puts it well in context of how the Mon are a stateless people yet hold spectacular influence on the Theravada Buddhist tradition that has survived for so long. It traces the roots of their faith way back to the first Indian settlers. The museum reveals how for centuries, the Mon were persecuted in their traditional homeland, Myanmar. They were welcome allies of the Siamese in their constant battles with the Burmese and allowed to settle in Thailand’s western provinces. The museum contains important antiques recovered from this predominately Mon area. This museum is yet another example of Thailand’s history lying dormant for later generations to discover. I’m privileged to have visited this site and proud of my desire to turn over stones to see what lies underneath. Nevertheless, well into the third day on tour in unfavorable conditions, I’m beginning to flag. I don’t think there is much more I can do in Potharam and head back to the town.

Potharam……..Before arriving in Potharam, I’d only ever learnt of the place as a station on Thailand’s southern railway line. Yet I was told it was an old town with narrow streets lined with rustic wooden buildings. It was yesterday when I first drove down the narrow streets but then my focus was on finding accommodation. Now I park up figuring just to take a few photos. Certainly there is a flavour about it that reminds me of Chiang Khan on the Mekong River, Loei Province but it’s underdeveloped by comparison. Certainly there are a few shops that realise the tourist potential and give over their space to accommodate visitors in their coffee shops. No intention is made to renovate the wooden structures nor should there be; in fact every effort is made to accumulate vintage objects to line the dim wooden wall panels and surroundings giving the precise amount of ambiance to the place. Maybe in time, infrastructure will improve for tourists but in the meantime they should use the modern facilities near to Ratchburi or Nakhon Pathom and travel to Potheram from there. It’s to Ratchaburi I head next along Highway 4. As I approach the outskirts of the city I’m still not much more than hour’s drive from the capital.

Ratchaburi……..It’s now about 3pm and I’m too tired to pile more coals on the fire. All I need is a soft pillow. Then like a prayer from heaven, not one but several motels appear on my left. The Toyota seems to drive itself into one almost without instruction and I take care of the formalities in reception. Well what a relief. At 3.30pm I put my head down. I figure if I get an hour’s sleep I can head into Ratchburi and still add another site today. No chance of that as I wake around 6pm. There are no restaurants around the motel which has its own dining facilities and room service; except that is for a MacDonalds next door. I make a beeline for it. Well what do you expect I should do? Happy with that I can settle in to a comfortable evening. If I have any thoughts now it’s all to do with how hard the last three days have been and what I should do to add a bit of R&R into the mix. Surely tomorrow after I’ve had a chance to look around Ratchburi I must start to unwind. And there’s precisely the place for that further west from here. Next Page.