Surat Thani - Chaiya (2)

I already mentioned Wat Praborommathatchaiyaratchaworawiham in an earlier blog and this is definitely a destination worth going to again.

http://tinamue.blogspot.com/2011/10/surat-thani-chaiya.html

This time, however, I took the time to explore some hot springs in Chaiya. Only a few kilometers away from Wat Praborommathatchaiyaratchaworawiham -- down the small road that also passes the ruins of an ancient stupa --  is a small but steep hill with a couple of small caves. The hill is also the source of a hot spring. Since times as ancient as Wat Praborommathatchaiyaratchaworawiham, the hot spring was used to feed two pools. According to signs at the site, it was people of Indian origin who brought with the a tradition for hot baths as part of religious rites. The two caves also became "holy".

Hot but not enticing

Since these hot ponds turned out to be useless, I sought the advice from my GPS. It informed me that there were another hot spring relatively nearby. This hot spring -- about 4 km outside of town -- was much more difficult to find, partly because of a lack of signage, but primarily because my GPS indicated I should take a road that did not exist.

Hot mineral water

I eventually ventured along a gravel road that lead to a temple on the top of a hill. Just at the foot of the hill, a couple of ponds had been constructed from concrete. But, again, the area and the facilities appeared deserted and unused. The mineral water overflow from the concrete ponds discolored the rocks as it made its way down hill for form a small lake. The rocks looked to my untrained eye somewhat like lava, but was in Thai named Lan Lonk Prachan.