Bangkok--Nov 11--TAT
Beyond the Floating Markets and the Temple of Dawn to Ayutthaya and Uthai Thani
Thanathep Pintusan, owner of Education Travel Centre, takes travellers back to the “roots of Thai culture” following the course of Chao Phraya River on the Thanatharee rice barge.
“Thai life has changed dramatically in the city, but I noticed that once you sail upstream the inseparable link between the river and Thai people reasserts itself. We can capture that on our barge trip,” Mr Thanathep explains.
Thanatharee carries 12 passengers who sleep in bunks, dormitory style, on the lower deck of the stout teak wood barge. While not the most luxurious river barges, the Thanatharee compensates with a “hands on” approach to travel. It’s a learning experience, an encounter with rural Thai values and heritage. Passengers live for two days almost as the villagers do, close to the river, dining on its fresh fish and the finest rice harvested in the vast emerald-green paddy fields of the Chao Phraya delta. Guests can learn how to cook a meal in the small galley tucked into the stern of the barge. At an early morning stop at the thriving market of Prathum Thani, 35 km north of the capital, they can shop for fresh spices, vegetables and fruits, learning firsthand about the ingredients that make Thai cuisine so special.
Today a barge cruise on the Chao Phraya River provides glimpses into the times and legends of Ayutthaya, but more importantly, a trip on the river underscores the vast economic and cultural influence the river still holds today over the lives of millions of Thais living on its banks. End.