Day 17: Year-end Trip: Kamphaeng Phet - Ratchaburi

 "Happiness is when what you think, what you say, and what you do are in harmony." - Mahatma Gandhi

(Kamphaeng Phet Historical Park)

Day 17: Saturday, 31 December 2022

Route: Kamphaeng Phet to Ratchaburi
Distance: 442km 5:49hrs
Hotel: Tai-Shan Suites, Ratchaburi

We had our breakfast in the room. This morning we checked out early and drove to Khampeng Phet Historical Park located 6 km from the guesthouse. At the entrance of the park, the guard informed us that the entrance fees to national museums and historical sites are free during the New Year holidays.

(The entrance to Kamphaeng Phet Historical Park)

(Getting our bearing from the map of the park)

(The start of our exploration)

(Driving our Bigfoot deep into the park)

Declared a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1991, the Kamphaeng Phet Historical Park is a fascinating archaeological site filled with ancient temples and ruins. Out of all Kamphaeng Phet attractions, we visited Kamphaeng Phet Historical Park which is the biggest one.

(Ancient palace at town centre)

(Centrally located is a large royal temple)

(The same town planning concept as the old Sukhothai)

(The lion structures are usually large and made of laterite)

(The central temple inside the walled city)

(The principal Chedi is built of mixture of laterite and bricks)

(Once housed the reclining Buddha)

Kamphaeng Phet is registered as one of UNESCO World Heritage Sites. Its Historical Park consists of city walls, moats, fortifications and ancient temples. We were allowed to drive into the park but we visited only some of the scattered archeological sites.

(Other ruins inside the Historical Park)

(Boudry is marked off by laterite walls)

(A standing structure remaining by the road side)

(The Bigfoot and a lone chedi)

(Leaving the historical city of Kamphaeng Phet)

From Kamphaeng Phet we headed to Nakhon Sawan and had an early lunch at Aminyan Halal Restaurant. There were a few other halal restaurant next to Aminyan. Hotel 42C is just a walking distance from the halal eateries.

(The food was as tasty as before)

(Soup ekor and daging goreng are our favorites)

(Other Muslim restaurants nearby)

After refuelling at a PTT in Nakhon Sawan we drove direct to Kanchanaburi. We reached Kanchanaburi quite late in the afternoon. Our initial plan was to stay for two nights in Luxury Hotel in Kanchanaburi. Unfortunately Luxury Hotel was no longer in business. Because of the New Year holidays, Kanchanaburi was swarmed by both local and foreign tourists and it was unfortunate that most hotels were full.

(Chinese New Year decorations in Nakhon Sawan)

(Passing through the towns of Chai Nat and Suphan Buri)

(Kanchanaburi was all light up for the New Year)

To avoid the crowd, we decided to drive to Ratchaburi 98 km away, and stayed a night at Tai-Shan Suites at B700/night.

(Thai Shan common living room at ground floor)

(Spacious and comfy room)

👈👈Day 18: Year-end Trip: Ratchaburi - Chumphon

Day 16: Year-end Trip: Umphang - Kamphaeng Phet👉👉

Day 16: Year-end Trip: Umphang - Kamphaeng Phet

 "Seeing a miracle will inspire you, but knowing you are a miracle will change you..." – Deborah Brodie

(Riding on the 1219 curves)

Day 16: Friday, 30 December 2022

Route: Umphang to Kamphaeng Phet
Distance: 334km 6:17hrs
Hotel: Tonnam Resort, Kamphaeng Phet

Breakfast was provided by the guesthouse but we had ours in the room.

(A morning offering and prayer near the Police Station)

(Affordable chalets in Umphang)

Before we drove out of Umphang, we revisited Wiriya Village about 500m from our lodging. This was where we spent a night in September 2016 when our Merc E-300 had two blown out front tyres when we tried some off-roading. Thanks to the kindness of an Umphang mechanic and friends who took the trouble to assist us to purchase a pair of tyres from Mae Sot and delivered them to Umphang.

(We stayed in this homestay in 2016)

(Driving out of Umphang)

(Retracing the same route we came)

(Passing through Black Fern Ancient Forest)

We drove on the same twisty route back to Mae Sot. We made a brief stop at the Phop Phra Rest Area and another stop at Tararak waterfalls. Thararak Waterfall, also known as Pha Chan Waterfall, is located in the area of Namtok Pha Charoen National Park, Mae Sot District, Tak Province. It is a natural waterfall that flows from a cliff 30 meters high and has a medium-sized reservoir to support water from the waterfall. The reservoir area has shady gardens and wooden bridges. It is a great place to relax for locals and foreign tourists.

(The waterfalls viewed from the reservoir)

(The way to the source of Tararak Waterfalls)

(The Golden Pagoda on top of the waterfalls)

(Golden chedi enshrined in Burmese architecture)

(The reservoir viewed from the top)

(Stunning view from the Chedi area)

(The stream on top of Tararak waterfalls)

In Mae Sot we had lunch at Upgrade Coffee & Service located near Masjid  Nurun Isalam. As it was a Friday, the mosque was full with jemaah for Solat Jumaat. We drove out of Mae Sot about 1.15 pm via Route 12 to Tak then drove on Phahonyothin Road to Kamphaeng Phet.

(Upgrade Coffee & Service Halal eatery) 

(Combination of Asian and Western dishes)

(Driving out of Mae Sot towards Tak)

(Driving on Route 12)

We reached Kamphaeng Pet quite early but we decided to visit the heritage sites tomorrow before we leave for Kanchanaburi. Kamphaeng Phet was an ancient outpost town during the Sukhothai period, as evidenced by the city walls and fortifications that remain today. Before the creation of the city, legends says that there were two cities present in the location; Chakangrao on the east bank of the Ping River and Nakhon Chum on the west bank of the Ping River.

(Kamphaeng Phet City wall and fortification)

(Entering the historical town of Kamphaeng Phet)

(The clock tower in the middle of town)

We visited Masjid Jannat-ul-Mohmeneem about 5 km from Kamphaeng Phet town centre but it was closed. We drove around but could not locate any halal restaurant in town but we had already cooked our meals.

(A beautiful Masjid Jannat-ul-Mohmeneem)

(The only mosque in Kamphaeng Phet)

Checked in Tonnam Resort by the River Ping at B450/night. This is our second time staying at Tonnam Resort.  Our last visit here was in 2017 during our solo biking Q6 4-Nation Ride with our KTM.

(A resort by the Ping River)

(A walk in the wood)

(Ample parking space in front of our chalet)

(A cozy clean room)

👈👈Day 17: Year-end Trip: Kamphaeng Phet - Ratchaburi

Day 15: Year-end Trip: Mae Sot -  Umphang👉👉