Category Archives: Chonburi

Pictures of Songkran on Bangsaen Beach

Posted on April 16, 2011 by | Comments Off on Pictures of Songkran on Bangsaen Beach

The Wan Lai Bangsaen Festival is taking place this weekend, 16th-17th April 2011, on Bangsaen Beach in Chonburi. This is the annual water flowing festival that takes place a few days after Songkran. People in this area of Chonburi Province are descendants of the Mon and they celebrate Songkran later than the rest of the country. I went down there today to take some pictures, but the main day is tomorrow on Sunday.

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The highlight for the Bangsaen festival is the sand pagodas that are built on the beach on the first day of the festival. It is traditional in temples all around the country to make merit by building sand pagodas. In Bangsaen the local people build both gigantic and beautiful sand pagodas. Tonight the judges will chose the best looking pagoda.

Usually I drive down to Bangsaen on the second day to see the completed sand pagodas. However, this year I am not free as I am taking pictures at my local temple tomorrow. Instead of going down early in the morning, I decided to go after lunch with the hope that some of the pagodas would be finished. I wasn’t disappointed as you can see from this picture.

For most people, the weekend means another excuse to have water fights. This resulted in Beach Road being one long traffic jam of pick-up trucks with people on the back throwing water at each other. However, unlike in Bangkok, it doesn’t really matter if you get wet and dirty here as you can always just run down to the beach and jump into the sea!

Also along the waterfront there were a couple of venues where they were putting on free concerts. Free, that is, if you don’t mind getting a bit wet. For people who want something more traditional, there is a Buddhist ceremony on Sunday morning at 7 a.m. with chanting and offering alms to monks. This is followed by pouring scented water over the hands of elders and on a Buddha image.

Tomorrow there also some traditional games played by the local people which include saba and relay races. One of the most fun competitions to watch is “sea boxing”. They had the qualifying rounds today. Two competitors face each other astride a pole. The winner of each round is the one who manges to stay on the pole. It is not easy to box and keep your balance on the pole. If you slip off you fall into the water.

Bangsaen is only an hour or so away from Bangkok and is the capitals nearest beach. This is a great place to come and relax and eat in the shade on deckchairs. Information about this festival was posted in advance on two of our blogs www.ThaiTravelBlogs.com and www.ThaiFestivalBlogs.com. Make sure that you bookmark these two sites if you want to experience some festivals that many foreign tourists don’t get to see.

Map showing location of Bangsaen Beach in Chonburi:

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Posted in Chonburi, Songkran, Thai Festivals

Monkeys at Bangsaen

Posted on January 6, 2011 by | 2 comments

One of the nearest places to Bangkok to go and see monkeys in the wild is probably at Sam Muk Hill [MAP]. This is very near to Bangsaen Beach which is in Chonburi Province. It should take just over an hour to reach there from Bangkok. There are a number of attractions in this area which you will see from my map. One of the most popular stops here is to go and see the very naughty monkeys on this hill. There are also some good views of the sea from the top.

I say that they are naughty because you really have to be careful with your personal belongings. If you are carrying a bag, or even just wearing a cap, be careful as they might try and snatch your things. I started to take pictures of the monkeys with my iPhone then changed my mind. I was worried one of them might take a fancy to it. Near the top of the hill there is a car park, where there are some vendors selling food for the monkeys.

As well as naughty monkeys grabbing your belongings, you also need to be careful of stowaways on your car or pick-up truck. I stopped briefly at one point to take some pictures and then drove off. A few minutes later I heard something jumping around on my car roof. One of them had decided to come along for the ride. Although it might be fun to see wild monkeys, we do need to act responsibly and only feed them food which is appropriate for them. It is not a good idea to feed them candy or fizzy drinks.

Have you seen monkeys in the wild in Thailand? Can you recommend any places to see them which is within easy reach from Bangkok?

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Posted in Bangkok Day Trips, Chonburi

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Bangkok Day Trips: Bangsaen Beach

Posted on June 27, 2010 by | 6 comments

My Bangkok Day Trip for this week is to Bangsaen Beach in Chonburi Province. This is the closest seaside resort to Bangkok which has sand and water clean enough for you to swim. Chonburi City is just over 60 minutes from Bangkok and you can get there by using the Bang Na-Trad Highway. Most people by-pass the city on their way to Pattaya. But, they are missing out on some good tourist attractions which are worth at least a day if not longer. There are buses from Bangkok to Chonburi and the nearby Bangsaen beach. There are also songtaews running up and down the beach front. However, to explore the area properly, it is better to have your own transport. You will find motels, hotels and guesthouses along the beach. If you are able, best to visit during the week when it is less crowded. Click here for my map of the area.

The first stop on my tour is the fishing village of Ang Sila. This is about five kilometers to the south of Chonburi city. Apart from fishing, the main occupation of the local people is making things out of granite. The most famous examples are a mortar and pestle which you can find in various sizes. There are also figurines of different animals. You will find many stalls along the road in front of Wat Ang Sila, so make sure that you shop around to get a good price. Further along this road you will reach the fishing pier which has a fish market. There are plenty of stalls selling snacks here such as dried squid. Not too far away from here is the The Mangrove Forest Conservation Center. It isn’t that easy to find but is a good place to see the mangroves up close as you walk along the 2.3 km board walk. If you are with young children you might want to skip this as it is a hot and tiring walk in the sun with not much shade.

On the road between Ang Sila and Khao Sam Muk you will pass the colourful Chinese temple called Wihan Thep Sathit Phra Kiti Chaloem. The four storey high building is beautifully decorated with many figurines and Chinese deities. You are allowed to take pictures in the compound but no photos are allowed to be taken inside. However, it is worth climbing to the top for the wonderful views of the bay. In the distance you can see the hill called Khao Sam Muk. The Chinese shrine is open daily. On weekdays it is open 8 a.m. – 5 p.m. At the weekend it is open a bit later until 6 p.m. on Saturdays and 8 p.m. on Sundays. As you are passing this way on your way to the next destination it is definitely worth your time to visit the shrine even if you are not Chinese. It is certainly very beautiful.

Continue driving south with the sea to your right. There are plenty of restaurants along this route which sell delicious seafood. If you are hungry then stop at any place. Personally I prefer to wait for lunch at Bangsaen Beach. The next stop is Khao Sam Muk. The main attraction at this small hill are the hundreds of monkeys that are really naughty. Be careful if you have a bag as they will most likely snatch it from you thinking there is food inside. I stopped briefly to take some pictures of some monkeys and as I drove on further up the road I suddenly realized I had some stowaways on the roof of my car. At the top of the hill there is a great lookout place and a small car park where there are some vendors selling food for the monkeys. At the foot of the hill, there is a Chinese shrine for two lovers who apparently jumped to their death when their parents objected to their marriage.

Continue driving south following the coastline and you will reach the cape at Laem Thaen. This area has been developed by the local authority as a place to come and relax. They have also set up a “walking street” here. This is the point where the beach becomes sandy for the first time though at the cape it is mainly rocky. From this point onwards there is an umbrella city with deckchairs. This end is quieter if you want to sit and eat your lunch in the shade. However, if you have come with children then best to keep driving until you reach Bangsaen Beach. On your left you will see plenty of places to stay the night. On the beach the kids can rent inner tubes for swimming and also go on a banana boat ride. You won’t find many Europeans here as it is mainly a beach resort for Thai people. If you go swimming here then please don’t walk around in speedos! Thai people swim in their clothes and most are shocked by how little Europeans wear in the local shops.

Once you have finished at the beach, you might want to check out Wang Saen Suk which has models showing what will happen to you in hell if you have been naughty. Little kids might be scared of some scenes but you might want to take this opportunity to show your children what will happen if they lie to you! You can reach the temple by going down Sai 2 which runs parallel to the beach road. Then look for Soi 19 on your left. The temple is at the end of the road. The Buddha Park is open every day from 6 a.m. to 6 p.m. Before you head back to Bangkok, you should stop at Nong Mon Market to buy some souvenirs. For Thai people, a souvenir usually means something that you can eat. The market along Sukhumwit Road has a lot of well-known local food and various dried seafood. To reach the market, drive out to Sukhumwit Road and turn right heading away from Bangkok. A short distance away, you will see many market stalls along the road on your right.

I hope you enjoyed this Bangkok Day Trip. I am out every weekend looking for new attractions. You can follow me live on Twitter @RichardBarrow where I post pictures as I travel. Also check out my moblog at www.MyThailandBlog.com which I post from my iPhone as I travel. You will find news and links about my next trip on my website at www.RichardBarrow.com

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Posted in Bangkok Day Trips, Chonburi

Songkran on Bangsaen Beach

Posted on April 17, 2009 by | 2 comments

The Wan Lai Bangsaen Festival took place on 16th-17th April 2009 on Bangsaen Beach. This is the annual water flowing festival that takes place a few days after Songkran. People in this area of Chonburi Province are descendent of Mon and they celebrate Songkran later than the rest of the country. The highlight for the Bangsaen festival is the sand pagodas that are built on the beach on the first day of the festival. It is traditional in temples all around the country to make merit by building sand pagodas. In Bangsaen the local people build both gigantic and beautiful sand pagodas. This morning the judges chose the best looking pagoda.

The ceremony this morning started shortly after 7 a.m. with chanting and offering alms to the monks. This was followed by pouring scented water over the hands of elders and on a Buddha image.

Later the local people took part in fun and games on the beach. This included relay races (see above) and tug-of-war.

One of the most fun competitions to watch is “sea boxing”. Two competitors face each other astride a pole. The winner of each round is the one who manges to stay on the pole. It is not easy to box and keep your balance on the pole. If you slip off you fall into the water.

There were also some more traditional games played by the local people which included this running game and saba where they have to flip a small wooden disc to knock over the disc belonging to a competitor.

In addition to all of this the rest of the people were busy on Beach Road throwing buckets of water at each other. I suppose if you are going to play Songkran then the best place to do this is on the beach. If you get all wet and dirty with white powder, you can always go and jump in the sea! Bangsaen is only an hour or so away from Bangkok and is the capitals nearest beach. This is a great place to come and relax and eat in the shade on deckchairs.

I will post more pictures on our ThailandQA.com Forums. Information about this festival was posted in advance on our forums and over at our website www.ThaiFestivalBlogs.com. Make sure you bookmark these two sites if you want to experience some festivals that many foreign tourists don’t get to see.

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Posted in Bangkok Day Trips, Chonburi, Festivals

Journey to the Jungle

Posted on March 9, 2009 by | 2 comments

Today we went back to Khao Kheow Open Zoo in Chonburi Province. I was there last year with Nong Grace (click here for pictures) and as she liked it so much she kept asking me to go again. It is the school summer holidays in Thailand now so we thought we would drive down there today. The zoo is not well-known among foreigners as it is not in any of the guidebooks. But it is an easy day trip from either Bangkok or Pattaya. There isn’t any direct public transport to get there but you can either rent a taxi for the day or join a tour. From Bangkok it took us less than 90 minutes to drive there.

Compared to Safari World, we found Khao Kheow Open Zoo good value for money. Although there is a two price system, they are very open about it and the difference is marginal. In fact, without really asking, they just gave me the Thai price and Nong Grace got in for free again. Thai people are 70 baht and foreigners 100 baht. The full ticket price for Safari World is something like 700 baht. The cost of buying the food for the animals was also reasonable compared to Safari World. And at the restaurant they gave us a large plate of food for only 25 baht. I felt we were well looked after. Though, at the elephant enclosure, I saw them charging three Russian tourists 800 baht for an elephant ride when they had only charged us 150 baht for two people.

Since our last visit, they have opened a new show called “Journey to the Jungle”. As usual in Thailand, they labelled this a world class exhibit. You have to pay extra for this. It is 50 baht for Thai people and 100 baht for foreigners. They show Arabic numbers for both prices so you know that you are paying more. But they gave me Thai price without an argument after I politely asked. The aim of the show is to give you an impression of jungle life without actually going to Africa. The commentary was in both Thai and English. That was nice of them to do that, however, I had a hard time understanding much of it. It was also very stage managed, with different animals coming on to do an “act” and then left as if on cue.

The highlight of the show were the tigers who clambered up a tree to grab some meat and then later dived into the pool to have a swim. If you go to this show, I would advise you to sit on the lefthand side facing the stage. Your view won’t be blocked so much by the gates. If you sit more at the back then you can look over the gates a bit better. Though you won’t see the tigers swimming in the water tank at the bottom. I took the above picture after the show was over. I went down to the bottom to get a closer view. The admission price of 50 baht wasn’t bad, but I think 100 baht would be pushing it a bit. The ending was a bit of an anti-climax. As usual, I have marked this on Google Maps. Come back to www.thaiblogs.com soon for more ideas of places to go with Kids in Bangkok and the surrounding area.

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Posted in Bangkok Day Trips, Chonburi, Road Trips