Rayong - Sunthorn Phu

On the road from Klaeng town to Laem Mae Phim (highway # 3145), there is a small park in honor of Sunthorn Phu.

Sunthorn Phu (1786-1855) is probably Thailand's most famous classical poet - Thai school children are told that he is the father of Thai literature and all Thais know at least the main story line in his canonical 30,000 lines Phra Aphai Mani poem that describe a fantastical world, where people of many races and religions live and interact together in harmony.

Poet on a hill

Although many think Sunthorn Phu was born in Rayong, he was actually born near present-day Bangkok Noi a mere four years after Bangkok (Rattanakosin Island) had become capital. Thonburi had had the honor for a brief period after the Burmese sacked Ayutthaya.

Sunthorn Phu became a famous poets in the early Rattanakosin era. His father was from Klaeng and Sunthorn Phu wrote a poem about his first trip (1807) to his father's home.

Mesmerizing Mermaid

Rayong promotes Sunthon Phu as a native of the province and has dotted the province with statues of Sunthon Phu and characters from his literature.

Rayong - HTMS Prasae

HTMS Prasae is an old warhorse that was retired after 57 years on the high seas.

The vessel is a Tacoma class frigate of second world war design. It was built in the USA as the “USS Gallup 47″ and launched September 17th, 1943. It survived WW2 and the Korean war. Then, in 1951 the vessel was sold to the Royal Thai Navy and renamed HTMS Prasae.

An amazing rust bucket from WW2

After almost 50 years of service, it was decommissioned in year 2000. Three year later, the vessel was towed to the mouth Prasae river in the Klaeng district of Rayong and put “ashore” by means of a temporary canal being constructed.

The vessel is from an era gone by and I found it very interesting to be able to walk around the frigate and get idea of the narrow confines sailors had to fight their battles. There are still guns (or at least gun barrels) children and young-at-heart can use to aim at imaginary enemies.

There is a big area along the vessel and a nice beach for pick nicks. However, the drawback is that the mouth of the Prasae river is a bit difficult to find and next to impossible if you have to rely on public transport.

Rayong Beach Life

Rayong's beaches are an easy drive away from Bangkok. They are less crowded than Cha Am, Hua Hin, Bang Saen, and Jomtien and some beaches are of superb quality. I prefer those in Klaeng, especially the one just before one reaches the Laem Mae Phim beach, but you should do your own exploring.

Take a Stroll

Rayong - Ko Kloi Market

There are many fake "floating markets" in Thailand. The one in Rayong is the one with the least hassles. It is a relaxed place without annoying crowds. This may be because it is located out of sight behind a PTT gas station on Route 36 (roughly opposite Big C on Rayong ring road) near the Ko Kloi intersection.

Ko Kloi Market as the sun sets

The market opened in 2010 and its theme seems to be "Thailand as it once was". The wooden houses encircling a pond are in old traditional style and so are many of the decorations. Shops and restaurants offer traditional Thai food (and modern coffee) served with "ancient flavor", e.g. in bowls made from coconut shells.

Scattered around are resting spots made up by rows of chairs from movie theaters 40-50 years ago. The atmosphere is very relaxed and family-friendly. Ko Kloi Market can definitely be recommended for Bangkokians stopping over on their way to / from Trat or Chantaburi. It is also a very nice destination for a dinner outside the rainy season.

More information can be found here:

http://taladkokloi.com/home.php

Rayong Beaches

A couple of months ago, an oil leak from a tanker was badly managed. As a result, oil slicks marred the sea around Koh Samed. However, PTT (responsible for the leak and for the clean-up) has in recent weeks been busy announcing and advertising that Rayong's beaches are now all clean.

View from Chak Pong Beach westward towards Hin Suay Nam Sai

Today, I visited Chak Pong Beach and Rim Pae Beach, the two best beaches on mainland Rayong. There was absolutely no sign of any oil slicks. The beach sand was nice and the water crystal clear.

View from Chak Pong Beach eastward towards Laem Mae Phim

As the sun was shining, it turned out to be a great day.

Rim Pae Beach - view of Koh Samed

Rayong - Khao Chamao

Khao Chamao and Khao Wong National Park are located in Klaeng District.  3-4 km from entrance to Khao Chamao, you can find the Klong Pla Kang waterfall. It is a lot more impressive and beautiful than Khao Chamao waterfall, but it is also rather difficult to reach. During the rainy season, the access road gets so muddy and slippery that the rangers often don't allow people to enter.



Khao Chamao waterfall is the most famous and visited attraction. Turn off the highway (Sukhumvit Road) at km 274 and continue for around 16 kilometers. The waterfall has seven levels and reaching the top levels requires ascending on a very rocky trail. The rocks can get very slippery during the rainy season, so the rangers often block the trail at level 5.


There are of course various types of trees and plants, but what surprised me was the information that this (relatively) small patch of forest is the last remaining old-growth forest on the Eastern Seaboard.


At the second level (called "Wang Mutcha") there is a pond, which is brimming with fish. They have become icons of this waterfall and it is a must for visitors to feed them.

If you are allowed to enter and park, ahead awaits a sturdy walk through the forest followed by a relatively steep climb up the mountain. Steep and slippery - one rainy day, I fell on the rocks and hurt my back. One of the occasions where an afternoon spent in front of the TV seemed a better option.


If you have the time and the stamina to do the climbs, however, a visit to Khao Chamao national park will reward you with a good feel of exploring a real rain forest where you may run into real "wildlife" like the little bugger pictured to the right. 


After the climbs, there is a wonderful beach about 10 km from Laem Mae Phim (in direction of Ban Phe), which is relatively deserted.   

Rayong - Koh Samed

This island was a great backpacker destination 15 years ago. That was when people didn’t have phone, satellite TV, or internet. Back then, most resorts on the island was connected with the mainland with NMT 470 mobile phones that weren’t mobile unless they were in the trunk of a car. At resorts’ restaurants, they’d show two video movies (video tapes, not DVDs) to keep guests entertained.

Since then, development has moved ahead – faster and faster – and the backpackers have all but gone. In Ao Maprao, a couple of small family-run resorts were razed to make space for a condo building. Jet skis were allowed to race first along White Sand Beach, and then along the whole east coast. And today, all resorts have WiFi as today’s wealthy tourists have to stay in contact with the rest of the world.

I don’t like the crowds, so I haven’t visited Koh Samed much the last few years, but the island still has some impressive bays along the southern part of its east coast.