Wat Phu Prao in Chong Mek is better known as the 'glow in the dark temple'. — Photos: DAVID BOWDEN
In the last calendar year, 4.6 million Malaysians “escaped” to amazing Thailand. This isn’t surprising as Bangkok is just a two-hour flight from Kuala Lumpur while other popular Thai destinations, such as Phuket and Krabi, are only 90 minutes away.
Thailand’s top holiday spots have been well and truly discovered but there are numerous other lesser-known destinations around the country that intrepid travellers are heading to as well.
Over the decades, I’ve done my share of adventurous travel in the kingdom, with my last pre-Covid-19 trip giving me a brief, but inviting glimpse of northeastern Thailand. This is the part of Thailand known as Isan (or Esan), and it offers a uniquely Thai experience, as I was to discover when I flew to Ubon Ratchathani earlier this year.
I then continued onto Kong Chiam (Khongjiam) for a few days, using the Tohsang Heritage Resort as my base to discover several attractions close to the Mekong River.
Towards the rising sun
I’d read that the sun first rises over Thailand at Pha Taem National Park to the northeast of Ubon Ratchathani, where there is an international airport. I later discovered that the “international” in the title was in name only and that no direct flights fly in from overseas just yet.
In fact, there are only four airlines that operate in Ubon Ratchathani: Nok Air, Thai Lion, Thai Smile and AirAsia, which provides the best connection for Malaysians. You would need to fly to Bangkok first (into the older Don Mueang International Airport) and then take a connecting domestic flight to Ubon Ratchathani.
On average, it’s a total journey time of six hours.
I consider this to be reasonable for a more remote part of the region, especially as I had planned to stay here for several days rather than just a short weekend escape.
While my visit was one of discovery and exploration, it was also one of rest and wellness. In my pre-travel research, Tohsang Heritage Resort captured my imagination because it was close to several fascinating sites and attractions, including the nearby Pha Taem National Park.
One of the cotton weavers at Tohsang Cotton Village.
The Mekong River is a valuable resource for fishing, and many villagers are engaged in the industry and can be seen fishing along the riverbanks or from small boats. Various river fish are served in the resort’s restaurants.
You can also request for a traditional palang dinner of local dishes served at a low round table with cushioned seating, set within the gardens.
The Mekong River and Sam Phan Bok, known as Thailand’s ‘Grand Canyon’.My room had all the features offered by a sophisticated city hotel and enhanced by cotton fabrics made in the adjoining Tohsang Cotton Village.
The property doesn’t just employ local villagers – especially women – to produce traditional Isan fabrics for the furnishings used in the resort, but it also sustains an ancient craft that is being threatened by cheap, synthetic, foreign fabrics.
After waters from the rainy season have receded, cotton is planted along the floodplains of the Mekong River in soil that has been enriched by the annual flooding. Visitors can participate in various activities here and learn about Isan tie-dyeing techniques and weaving.
I spent a very educational morning learning the technique and dyeing a shawl with locally sourced indigo dye.
Ancient cave paintings can be found at the Pha Taem National Park.
River rambling
I had heard a lot about a nearby river feature called “Thailand’s Grand Canyon” so I headed out one afternoon to discover what is officially called Sam Phan Bok, or Three Thousand Holes.
These geological formations are actually the bedrock of the Mekong River which becomes exposed during the dry season when the water flowing down the Mekong River is at its lowest.
My enthusiastic young guide, who was earning some extra pocket money after school, knew the river well and through his gesticulation, I appreciated that there was a huge difference between water flowing down the Mekong during the wet and dry season.
Over the millions of years of river erosion and deposition, the orange-red sandstone has been sculptured into fascinating shapes and landforms with numerous water-filled potholes giving it the name, Three Thousand Holes.
A visit to the Wat Phou, an 11th century Khmer Temple near Pakse in Laos, is possible from Ubon Ratchathani.
Arrangements can also be made for you to visit to Pha Taem National Park to admire its many features, including sunrise over the Mekong, a walk through the deciduous forests, and a visit to admire ancient cave stencils.
I was keen to see the sunrise so a pre-dawn excursion was planned to the park, 30 minutes away from the resort. The sunrise site is perched high above the Mekong floodplain and it was worth the wait as the bright orange sun rose above the rolling hills in Laos on the other side of the river.
Timing is important and this means arriving in darkness, obtaining a front-row position along the precipitous cliff and waiting patiently for nature’s lightshow.
While the sun’s rays were glowing, it was the cave painting site that was most impressive for many reasons. The Pha Kham site, immediately below the steep sunset cliff face, extends over 180m and dates back several thousand years.
While the forces of water and wind erosion have taken their toll on the site, intrepid archaeologists will be fascinated by the pictographs and petroglyphs that adorn the sandstone caves.
The 300 red, black and white ochre paintings of features such as elephants, turtles, freshwater stingrays, catfish and fishing devices provide an insight to ancient life along the Mekong River.
Regional outing
While resting at the resort, I pondered the possibility of crossing the Mekong River into Laos. The river here forms the border between the two countries, but, after reading the in-room literature, I was already aware that I was not to swim in the river or even attempt to cross it.
Enquires with locals revealed that the nearest border crossing was at Chong Mek, an hour to the south and just east of the expansive Sirindhorn Dam.
A fishing boat on the Mekong River.
A few years ago, crossing into neighbouring countries for Asean passport holders was made much easier, so a plan was hatched to arrange for a vehicle to drive across the border, over the Mekong River to Pakse, and then head south to the famous Wat Phou Khmer temple site to the south of the Lao regional capital.
A Google search revealed the route to be taken, and I was fascinated that the Mekong River doesn’t form the international Thai-Lao border at Chong Mek, and I wondered how this cartographic anomaly came about.
The Khmer Empire, centred on Angkor in modern-day Cambodia, was one of the most powerful in the region from the ninth to the early 15th centuries.
At its peak, this empire extended over much of what is now Thailand, Cambodia, Laos, and southern Vietnam.
From Ubon Ratchathani, Pakse is the gateway into southern Laos, and from here, a road heads across the Bolaven Plateau to Vietnam.
However, it was the road south from Pakse that held my attention. My destination was the Unesco World Heritage Site of Wat Phou that was once the spiritual capital of the Chenla Kingdom.
Wat Phou was erected on a hilltop south of Pakse between the sixth and 14th centuries, which means, it predates the more famous temple of Angkor Wat in neighbouring Cambodia. This site has been a place of worship since the fifth century, and like Angkor, the temple was mostly abandoned until it was “rediscovered” in 1866.
My day-long visit to Laos was wonderful and well worth considering for those who venture to this part of the world. Now little more than a stony ruin, Wat Phou and the Champasak Cultural Landscape Unesco site is one of the most important archaeological ruins in the region.
In Thailand, on the way back to the resort from Laos, I also stopped at Wat Sirindhorn Wararam Phu Phrao, better known as the “Glow In The Dark Temple”.
The timing, just before dusk, was perfect and intentional as the temple, perched high above the border crossing at Chong Mek and the nearby Sirindhorn Reservoir, is illuminated by numerous florescent tiles which glow in the dark.
The Lao-style Buddhist temple is a perfect location for admiring the sunset over the reservoir but the real attraction begins as darkness sets in and the large Tree of Life at one end of the temple comes alive as the luminous fluorescent paint on the tiles begin to glow.
Notes
Getting there:
AirAsia provides the best connection with an early morning departure to Don Mueang (Bangkok) and then a one-hour domestic connecting flight to Ubon Ratchathani. Check with your resort for airport transfers to make things easier for you.
Where to stay:
Tohsang Heritage Khongjiam offers rooms and villas with contemporary styling and all the creature comforts of a large city hotel. Centara Ubon is perhaps the most well-known hospitality brand there, but there are numerous other boutique resorts and hotels available in town.
