WAT SOTHON WARARAM WORAWIHAN

Our first stop was at the Wat Sothon Wararam Worawihan. Situated on the west bank of the Bang Pakong River is Phra Phutthasothon, or "Luang Pho Sothon"is regarded as one of the most revered Buddha images in Thailand. The image, in meditation posture measures 1.65 metres wide at the lap and 1.98 metres high, is always seen entirely pasted with gold leaves by worshipers. Two annual fairs celebrating the image fall in the 5th and the 12th lunar months (around April and November).

Worshippers come from far all over Thailand to pay homage to Luang Pho Sathorn and a large group of 20 other Buddha images. What was interesting to see are the Thai dancers dressed in traditional costume that delights worshippers with their daily performance for a small donation. Very similar to the performances performed at the Four Face Buddha in Bangkok.

However what strike us most was the new tall building of Sothorn Wararam Waravihan temple and which never fails to attract the attention of visitors for its remarkable beauty. It has been 15 years in construction and the graceful and huge temple is almost completed and reflects the strong faith of the local people in Buddhism. The peak is 84 metres high. It is decorated with five golden umbrellas weighing a total of 77 kilogrammes. This is one of the world's largest temples.

The site of the temple also has an interesting legend. It was said that Luang Pho Sothon floated down the Bang Pakong River to the site of the temple. Efforts to retrieve it were unsuccessful until a villager had a small shrine erected on the site and performed a ceremony welcoming the image to the community.

It's an attraction that tourists really should visit on their way to Pattaya from Bangkok; we were then taken on a half-hour boat-ride to Restaurant Ban Panoo which turned out to be more of a leisurely cruise along Ban Pakong River. On the one side of the river are filled with mangrove swamps and lush green foliage and on another are rows and rows of wooden houses on stilts on water reminiscing of the days gone by when life was so much simpler. We were told by Khun Torntida that there is a row of 35 clinics on stilts in this village set up by those who have resided in this village to serve their fellow residences after graduation as doctors.

At the end of the boat-ride, we landed at Restaurant Ban Panoo named after its owner, a very charming and amiable lady, Khun Panoo who took our orders for lunch and very typical of Thai graciousness and hospitality served us a complimentary dessert of Thai mangoes with sticky rice..

The restaurant is housed in a very typical Thai house with its timbered walls and wooden floor above water and it was a sheer pleasure lunching there by the window with the sight of the calm river and lush green scenery and the gentle breeze caressing our face while we lunch. It was an experience not to be forgotten, what with its wonderful cuisine of authentic Thai food and its wonderful taste.

After a short tour of Tad Ban Mai or the market of Ban Mai which is more like a museum of living in the old days, we were taken to Banyan Tree Hotel to check into a suite.