Had Yai – Nakhon Si Thammerat (Day 9)

Ban Nang Phraya-Nakhon Si Thammerat, 36km.

Into Nakhon Si Thammerat, with sightseeing.

Figured out living in a container isn’t so bad, after all. 😉 After a good cup of coffee I hopped into town and checked out the place. Very provincial, very laid back town, at least the old parts around the railway station. Checked into an old, local hotel in that area. Definitely not the best room I had on this trip, but clean and everything one needs. Had a look at some newer places, but their locations along the major through roads wasn’t appealing to me. Now after the sightseeing all I needed was a good spot to hang out…🍺🍺🍺

Woke up with a view of the river right from my container bed. With only a short hop into town planned for today – about 7km as the crow flies – I started out slow this morning. Had a good cup of coffee and breakfast at the resort and enjoyed the quiet of their garden, interrupted only by the occasional boat motoring down the river. I left late morning and was back on country roads. I followed a canal for most of the way, delightful cycling there with no traffic and quite some shade.

After crossing Highway 401 I head a bit South first, away from the city center. I took in Wat Phra Mahathat Woramahawihan along the way, the most important temple in Nakhon Si Thammerat, as not all hotels do check-in before noon time. The temple was rather busy with mostly local visitors, but I did see a handful of foreign tourists as well. With a first shrine supposedly built as early as 293 AD and later rebuilt and expanded between the 13th and 18th centuries this temple became an important center of Theravada Buddhism. It’s an impressive sight and I spend quite some time there, there’s a lot to see and I enjoyed hanging out in the shady hallways, soaking in the quiet atmosphere.

Wat Phra Mahathat Woramahawihan is certainly worth visiting, even if you have already seen many temples in Thailand.

Afterwards I cycled into town through some residential areas. I had marked the 24 Boutique Hotel for my overnight stay but it was fully booked. I went on to check out several other places, crossed the main road quite a few times doing so, but didn’t find anything suitable. Nobody around, fully booked, requiring to cross the main road all the time, or still closed because of COVID. Finally I looked more around the old part of the city, near the railway station. The first place I checked there was the V. House Nakhon, an old drive-in style of hotel. They had a room, and albeit very simple it was clean and had everything in it, including a new air conditioner. That would do for a night.

Soon thereafter I was cruising around the old town, working my way towards the Northern end of the town, to get to the Kiaw Kuton Cafe, an old style shop along the main road. Unfortunately they closed an hour early – when I got there they were just about to lock up the place. I pedaled back into town and ended up having dinner in a place close to the Southern end of the town, not too far from the temple I had visited earlier today. After dinner I looked for some life music, but unfortunately there wasn’t any as COVID restrictions were still in place. However, some pubs were open, just without the band, and I found a great night spot in a place called Sixty Bar. Open until late, good music, snacks and drinks, all I wanted for the last night of this trip.