There were 3 main reasons I wanted to visit Phetchaburi. First, and most important, I read about the huge monkey population, which I was dying to see. Second, I wanted to learn to ride a motorbike in a relatively traffic-free area, and third, it’s close to Bangkok and doesn’t involve more than 2 modes of transportation to get there. After my painful travel to Koh Samui, I needed something easy for my next weekend getaway. In addition, it’s close to 2 fairly well known beaches – Cha-Am and Hua Hin, and it’s very much off the tourist map so I knew I wouldn’t be immersed in the Disney version of Thailand. I definitely received all of these perks and more.
So first I have to mention that in all my travel guides it talks about how friendly and inviting the Thai’s are. I finally got a chance to experience the kindness of strangers here in Thailand. I had a man and his wife drive me to my guesthouse when I got off the minivan, purely out of the kindness of their hearts; then the next day a woman came out of a beauty salon in curlers to assist me with directions.
I was truly touched though when I joined in a morning Buddhist service. I felt uncomfortable, naturally, being the only Westerner and obviously not understanding the language or the customs. I sat down quietly in the back and put my camera away and just tried to do what they were doing. Within the first 5 minutes I had members bringing me water and a juice box. People were turning to smile warmly at me, and some old ladies came up to greet me. I was feeling a little uneasy with all the attention. The service consisted of the monks sitting on the stage eating the breakfast alms they had collected in the morning, while another monk sat in front reading something. There was periodic bowing, and I just followed along. It was funny because one lady came up to tell me that it was ok to take pictures, but I still felt uncomfortable about doing so, which is why there’s only 1. One of the monks on stage even jabbed the monk next to him to point me out – recognized by a Monk—cool. J After the service, several ladies insisted I join them all for breakfast, which is part of the service. I sat at a long table eating corn muffins with coconut, while fielding the many questions from around the table, which consisted of, “where you from?” and “what your name?” Overall it was a wonderful experience and something I’ve wanted to do since I got here.
I feel like Phetchaburi was the perfect place to experience real Thai life. It’s a small town surrounded with scenic views of the palace ruins, and a quaintly charming vibe. There is one main street, with little lanes branching off it, some not even paved. The pretty little town has more old teak houses than I’ve seen in one area before, which really add to the towns appeal. There’s just something about those old wooden buildings that I love. Plus, in the center of downtown is this beautiful park with little bridges over Koi ponds, and huge trees with monkey’s swinging from the tops.
There’s not all that much to do in Phetchaburi, aside from the palace ruins and the beautiful Khao Luang Cave. But that’s part of its appeal. I thoroughly enjoyed cruising slowly around on my rented motorbike, riding into the various working Wat’s (temples), and speaking to friendly Thai’s who didn’t want anything from me except to make me feel welcome. It was the true small town feel, Thai style.
So, saving the best for last is my experience with the monkeys! Wow. When I first got close to the bottom of the mountain of which lies the palace at the top, I saw animals in the distance all over the streets. At first I thought they were stray cats but when I got closer I got my first taste of a town overrun with monkeys. The kind of thing you see on tv, but don’t ever think you’ll see in real life. I drove to the top of the hill and had this courtyard on temple grounds all to myself. It was just me, the stray dogs, and the monkeys. It is good that I took this trip by myself because I’m not sure anyone else would have wanted to spend the kind of time I did just watching those monkeys (aside from Sue Angelini who is a huge animal lover – Sue, if you’re reading you should come visit me; plenty of cats & monkeys ;) . So I hung out in that courtyard for 3 hours solid and loved every minute of it. Watching monkeys is fascinating because they seem so intelligent and their actions and movements are so similar to people. That video I posted for example is so amazing because you can see this mother’s worry over her baby. She pulls him out of the water and carries him off because I was too close. I just loved being able to witness their world.
The longer I’m in Thailand, the more deeply I fall in love with it, and desire experiences such as these – places with such a genuine feel. I love seeing the tourist areas as well – they are beautiful and warrant the crowds—but there’s something so special about just being somewhere amongst people who are culturally different, and being able to experience life as they live it, without all the glitz set up for the tourists. This was the reason I came to Thailand and I’m hungry for more!
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