Friday April 1, 2016.
Alvin flew in from Singapore on the morning of 1st April. He messaged me when he got into the Taxi and that for me was the queue to leave home. So I set off from my home to rendezvous with him at the BMW dealership on Rama II in Samut Sakhorn. BMW MF Motorrad
When I arrived he was already there settling his account and checking the bike. So this gave me plenty of time to grab a much needed coffee and have a good look through their apparels and accessories. Couldn’t resist really !! All set and we left promptly at just before 11am. And I forgot to take an inaugural photo too !!
Our destination, Si Thep Historical Park in Petchabun province. I had already planned a route leading us along Kanchanphisek Road towards Ayuthaya and then through the countryside to Si Thep. The Kanchanaphisek (Route 9) is treacherous at best. Extremely busy, congested and lots of trucks and jams. Ride carefully and don’t get rushed into filtering through else you can meet with an accident for sure.
Riding past Ayuthaya, I pulled a fuel a rest stop just by Bang Pahan.
Riding on we rode through Nakhon Luang and happened to pass through a tourist spot with a temple known as Wat Phra Phutthabat. It’s one of the oldest temples in Thailand. It’s name means “temple of Buddha’s footprint”, because it contains a natural depression believed to be the footprint of the Buddha. It was an unexpected but welcomed stop. We stopped for photos, water and a walk through the little market opposite.
Moving on towards our destination, I took a detour to what I believed was a big lake and thought it would make a nice scenic spot for a rest and photos. I was puzzled on the map as to why there was a road going through the lake. When we got there my curiosity was funnily cured. It turned out the lake was a dry lake bed, a very flat area in a valley that was mostly rice fields and agriculture. Well we stopped anyway and then turned Northward towards Si Thep.
Finally arriving at our destination, Si Thep Historical Park. There are plenty of websites detailing Si Thep, the link above relates to the Thailand Tourism Authority website. Si Thep is an ancient city of the Khmer empire and about 1,000+ years old and is linked with Angkor Wat in Cambodia. One thing is for sure, you can’t miss the entrance.
Touring on bikes can be cumbersome when you have to get off and walk around. What do you do with your gear. Jackets, helmets, gloves. Leave them on the bike or take them with you ? In Thailand I have to say, despite your worries, it’s definitely a place you can have some trust in people. We left some gear on the bikes in the car park and then walked over to the ticket booth where we were kindly allowed to leave the jackets in the ticket booth. Amazingly the ticket attendant thought Alvin was a Thai and let him for free whilst I had to pay the enormous fee of 30 baht. Most of all they were quite intrigued to have big bikers arriving.
The park itself is very nice. Through the ticket booth and into a very nice reception area, Air conditioned (thank God) with drinks on sale, and a lot of information about the history and content of the park. Then to another reception area showcasing artifacts on display that have been uncovered in the park. Then moving outside, where transport buggies are waiting to drive you around the various parts of the park. It’s well maintained and quite manicured. Nothing like Sukhothai or Ayuthaya but definitely worth the experience.
It doesn’t take too long to see actually. 45-60 minutes and we were done. Mission accomplished, now up to the nights destination of Khao Kho.
Motorcycle Chronicles by Jamil Siddique 