Today I was up early (much earlier than normal) and getting things accomplished before heading from Buriram to Surin, with the big stop of the day at Phanom Rung Historical Park.
This is good! I am trying to get in the habit of being up earlier and being productive, getting writing done every day, as well as running through my photos and picking what I like from that day. I just need to get on to dealing with video too!
It was disappointing that the place I had planned to go for breakfast was closed. I did find another good option at the Bamboo Bar. No beer for me! Just orange juice.
The plan today was to head back to the area I had been in yesterday. When I looked at my route, I realized I drove within a kilometre or so of where I was the previous day! I didn’t have time to do everything late in the day.
I tend to linger a bit longer at these places than most people, so I can’t quickly check off travel stops like it’s a grocery list. I’m more interested in exploring each stop a little deeper and finding interesting aspects of places that most people just quickly gloss over. I realize I have that luxury, so that’s okay!
The destination was Phanom Rung Historical Park which dates as far back as the 10th century AD. It was built from the 10th to 13th century.
The literature I have referred to CE and not AD. BC/ AD is the same as BCE/CE, with BCE standing for “Before Common Era” which is considered as more inclusive and secular. I prefer more secular things, but I find it ironic they just rename the periods on either side of the date believed to be the birth of Christ. *facepalm* I still prefer BC/AD.
I really liked the historic park, also referred to as Phnom Rung. (English translation of Thai words has a range of spelling!) The grounds are very well cared for, and it’s nice to see that it’s all taken seriously.
I started out at the upper level where the main buildings are, but decided not to go down the steps from here onto the long causeway, lined with stone pillars. I did that later, but walked up from the bottom after checking out the museum.
The buildings here are quite similar to those in Angkor Wat. Makes sense, since it’s so close to Cambodia. Borders and empires have changed a lot in a thousand years in this area.
I often have people stop and talk to me, as I did today. This time it was a Thai man and his family travelling from Bangkok. He said he was from the Pua district in Nan. Most of the place I go these days I see more Thai than western tourists. The odd time I do see a westerner, it’s typically a man with a Thai wife and family.
I had purchased a ticket for an extra 50 Baht that would have allowed entrance to Prasat Muang Tam, but I knew I wouldn’t make it in time, or be able to spend the time I would have liked. It was only $1.87 Cdn so I decided to just head to Surin right away. I didn’t feel like driving at night here. Never a good idea if you can avoid it.
I made it to Surin, checked in, and found a restaurant, Let’s Eat Surin, just across from the hotel. It was inexpensive, and tasty. I thought it was closed, but they were open. Google Maps is never truly reliable at the best of times.
I went in out of curiosity and they were open. The burger place nearby was interesting, which I did stop at, but it was delivery only. I almost never order in at my hotels. I don’t think I have, other than maybe room service once at the Royal Cliff Beach Hotel in Pattaya.
Overall, not a bad day. Just have to decide on the next few days of my route. I have a rough idea of where I will go. Oh, add one more province to the list I have seen. What am I at? 58 provinces?
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