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As you cut through the Thai countryside, you will see many temple complexes with glimmering structures, intricate details, and immaculate spaces. Buddhist temples in Thailand are known as “wats“, meaning an enclosure, and generally contain 7 or 8 types of buildings, each of which have their own symbolic, ceremonial, or practical importance.

The largest building is usually the Ubosot, or Ordination Hall, which usually contains the main images of the Buddha and illustrations of the stories of the Buddha’s life on richly decorated walls, windows, gables, and doors. The tiered roofs to maintain a grand and elevated aesthetic over the large areas they cover, and you will see the blade-like pointed finials at the ends of the roof that take various sculpted forms of the head of the Naga – a serpentine dragon – or the Geruda – a humanoid bird. The Ubosot is usually surrounded by 8 Sema Stones – one at each corner and mid-way along the wall – to delineate the consecrated area of the Ubosot. They are often housed in small but ornate pedestals, and another Sema Stone is also buried under the Ubosot before it is built.

The most eye-catching structures are usually the large Stupa or Pagoda – usually the bell-shaped monolith, often coated or painted with gold, but which can vary markedly in style and shape. These structures enshrine important relics of the Buddha (such as bones, teeth, or hair) and sometimes of kings or other important people. It seems that the larger they are, the better, and they can get rather large indeed!

You may occasionally notice a tall chimney: these stem from a crematorium, with cremation being the preferred burial right for Thai buddhists. Other structures you may see include bell-towers used to summon monks to their devotions, libraries built in ponds or on high structures to protect scriptures from insects and fire, and the Kuti – or monk’s dwellings.

Keep an eye out for the occasional large fig-like tree amidst the buildings. This is ficus religiosa – the “Bhodi tree”. In Bodh Gaya in Northern India stands the original Bhodi tree under which the Buddha meditated for 7 days without moving and achieved illumination (or “Bhodi”), and the Bhodi trees you may see are planted with seeds descending from this original.

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Lake Boraphet is a large freshwater wetlands. Originally a swamp, it was flooded in 1930 to improve fishing. Since then it became home to a huge diversity of species, and an important nesting and breeding ground for birds and fish.

This is the only known habitat for the White-Eyed River Martin, which hasn’t been seen since 1980, and may well be extinct. But nevertheless, when you’re passing through this area, keep an eye out for a bird that looks like a black swallow, with white areas around the eye, a white section on its rump, and a tail with two extended tail feathers of an elongated racket shape. Getting a photo of it would be a big deal.

The lake has an abundant population of crocodiles, so keep an eye out for the tops of their heads and torsos as they float on the water, or perhaps bask on the banks.

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Welcome to the Heavenly City – the translation of Nakhon Sawan.

This is where almost the whole of Northern Thailand’s water run-off converge, and create the Chao Phraya river – Thailand’s most important river.

But a hill in the centre of town creates a permanent obstacle for the bending and converging rivers, which has allowed the permanent settlement amidst the floodplain.

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In a grid dominated by fossil fuel based energy production, you’ll find a solar farm perched in the middle of Nowhere, Thailand a breath of clean air. Its a big one too – producing at 126 MW – and offsets almost 100,000 tonns of CO2 per year.

This central Thailand area is the home of most of Thailand’s solar production. It has a lot of sunny days. Thailand is a regional leader in solar energy production, with the only other major producer being the Phillipines.

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As you’re travelling past the most southern foothills popping out of the Chao Phraya floodplain, you might notice an object on the the top of a nearby hill that looks rather odd. Its a radar!

Other side of the hill is the Takhli Toyal Thai Air Force Base. If you’re lucky, you might see one of the F-16 Falcons, or the L-39 Albatross from the attack squadrons.

The Base has an interesting history of partnership with the United States in Thailand’s fight against the common enemy of communism: In the 50s, the base was used as an operating base for the CIA c-130 Hercules to resupply Tibetan freedom fighters in their struggle against the Communist Chinese. Reconnaissance missions of the US-Airforce were also flown from here over Laos in the 1960s. Then, of course, the base was an important staging area in the United States’ operations during the Vietnam War. During that time, you could see the US Airforce’s Tactical Fighter Squadrons flying missions out of here with its fighter-bomber aircraft, such as the F-100 Super Sabres, F-104 Starfighters, F-105 Thunderchiefs, General Dynamics F-111s, and F-4 Phantoms. Boeing B-50 Superfortress and B-66 Destroyers were also used.

The Royal Thai Air Force has a rich history of its own since its founding in the early 20th century. Shortly before WWII, the (little remembered) Franco-Thai war saw them fighting the Vichy French’s Armee de l’Air, and achieving several dogfight victories. During WWII, they provided air support to the Royal Thai Army’s occupation of the Shan States of Eastern Burma as somewhat reluctant allies of the Japanese, and in defence of the Kingdom from Allied air raids. They also used C-47s in support of the United Nations in the Korean War, and in support of the Americans in the Vietnam War.

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Chan Sen, although not a destination in its own right, is an ancient city set up about 1,000 years ago, but which has had human settlement for a few thousand years more.

It is curious that the founders chose to build a city there, as there is no obvious advantages in terms of defence or trade. It was perhaps the fertility of the surrounding land, and the existing small village that warranted the increased investment: It was built upon an earth mound surrounded by a moat, amidst an otherwise waterlogged valley.

Although the moat was said to be square in shape – as was the custom in city planning in the region, but the traces found today seems to have become strangely circular over the years. It is this moat that brought Chansen to the attention of archeologists, but only as late as 1966 when aerial photography was being perfected. Archealogical digs ensued.

The Chan Sen museum in the Chan Sen Temple was set up by a late abbot. Its collection is contained in an attractive circular Chedi and contains a bunch of artefacts excavated in various digs of the site in the late 1960s. Its open on weekends, and can be opened during the weekdays by asking at the temple.

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On the Northern Line, and particualrly in the more authentic rural areas, you might see some classic Thai homes.

Particularly, the typical “Thai stilt house”. Elevation on stilts to around head hight is universal throughout Thailand, whether it be here in central Thailand, the Northern Lanna culture, the Northeastern Isaan, or the South.

The most obvious reason for this, given that we’re in a floodplain, is that it provides protection from monsoon flooding. But it also offers the inhabitants protection from wildlife, thieves, and prevents general filth getting into the house. The area under the houses are used for storage, sometimes for livestock, and sometimes for lounging in the shade in the heat of the day. And having circulation under the flood keeps the inside cooler too.

Other core features include the high, angular roof with extended eaves facilitates sun protection and air circulation in the heat, and quick drainage in the wet. Terraces and varandahs offer respite from the sun and heat.

The use of various types of wood and bamboo are a sign that these materials were once abundant, and they also help the other features I’ve outlined come together.

Traditional houses are built in a cluster of physically separate rooms – called “Kuti” – arranged around a central terrace that makes up around 40% of the square footage of the stucture. The middle of the terrace might be left open to allow the growth of a large, shady tree that provides a nice fragrance when flowering. Potted plants are also distributed around. Overall, the architecture is very open, green, and breezy.

Apart from the functional, there are also aesthetic features particular to Thai houses. Other distinguishing features are elegantly tapered roofs, and regionally varied finials and decorations. You may see rich colours, carved wood, and handmade tapestries

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Before Bangkok, Thailand was ruled from Ayutthaya, and before Ayutthaya, the Chao Phraya basin was ruled by collection of Kingdoms, one of which was the Lopburi.

The records of Thai history become less clear at this point – around 1,000 years ago. Marco Polo wrote briefly about the Lopburi Kingdom in book 3 of his travels, and there is a chapter devoted to it in “the History of the Yuan”. But there are sophisticated earthernware pots that can be found which date back thousands of years before that.

Unfortunately, what we know about the history of Lopburi before 1,000 years ago is based almost purely on the architecture, and separated into the “Early” period of the “Neolithic” and “Metal Age” indigenous people.

Then the “Funan” period – named for a Mekong Delta empire dated in Chinese annals of approximately 200 to 600 AD but with very few surviving relics

Then the Dvaravati period -named for a kingdom centred on Nakhon Pathom in the Western part of the central plain of Thailand. The “city” of Lopburi seems to have been founded during this period by a King Kalavarnadish, who came from Northern India in the 7th century, and it seems to have been either a seat of power or a town of great importance until the continued rise of the Ayutthaya Kingdom in the 18th Century.

After the Dvaravati period, came the “Lopburi” period where this city reached its peak of properity as a regional administrative centre of the Khmers from around 1000 to 1300 AD. It is this period that produced the earliest dated inscriptions found in Thailand and has a very distinctive artistic style, so it is here that the fog of history clears. Hindu or Buddhist art in Thailand with strong Khmere influence – like Prang Sam Yot which is discussed in an adjacent Blip – is often labelled the “Lopburi style”.

During the 17th Century, Lopburi regained its importance under the patronage of King Narai who rebuilt a large palace here. Narai was a keen game hunter, and liked spending time in Lopburi over Ayutthaya to pursue this pasttime – eventually he preferred it here. A visiting Frenchman at the time described Lopburi as being to the King of Siam what Versailles was to Louis XIV – a hunting retreat where the King could hold court over longer periods of time.

Indeed, the French took a strong foothold in Thailand during the time of King Narai, and established an Embassy here. The French also took over fortresses in Bangkok and in Mergui – in modern day southern Myanmar. With this growing influence came resistance. An anti-French faction grew within the King’s court, eventually toppling Narai in a coup d’etat, and returning the capital to Ayutthaya and leaving Lopburi as a backwater. For more on this intriguing story, listen to the Blip for Ban Chao Wichayen.

Today the town is laidback, and a little sleepy, with a population of less than 30,000. It is best known for two features: the ancient Khmer architecture, and the rather naughty crab-eating macaques that inhabit it. We are fortunate to get a very good view of both, as Lop Buri station sits right amidst it, but we will cover that in the Blip titled Prang Sam Yot.

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In the middle of the Northern line (if you’re taking the day train), you may be able to see some of the first hills poking out of the alluvial floodplain.

Underneath, is a fault-line between the Eurasian Plate, which goes from around here all the way over Asia and Europe to Iceland(!!!), and the Sunda Plate, which encompasses most of Southeast Asia across to the Philippines to the East, and the deep-sea trenches off the coast of Indonesia to the South and West.

Fortunately, we’re on the least seismically active fault-line, but the Sunda plate is still moving at approximately 1 centimetre per year to the east relative to the realestate to the the North. Given that this rail line is over a century old, lets hope the steel has bent and stretched a meter or so over the years.

Approximately a millenia ago, the Singhanavati Kingdom – an ancient but progressive Lanna society on the River Kok in the far north suffered a huge earthquake, leading to the fall of its great city of Yonok. Literally, it fell, and was submerged by the waters of what is now Chiang Saen Lake. The survivors of this earthquake are among those who set up Chiangmai on higher ground.

Although earthquakes are rare in Thailand, the 5 active faultiness in the North have become more active since the huge 2004 Indian Ocean Earthquake. The last noteable earthquake in Northern Thailand was in 2014, when an earthquake measuring 6.3 hit near Chiang Rai.

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Central Thailand is cassava country. Its an interesting crop… Bear with me.

Cassava comes from the jungles of Northern Brazil, and the plant was carried by Portuguese and Spanish explorers to the rest of the world, including Thailand, which is now the world’s largest exporter. It is the third largest source of carbohydrates in the tropics (after rice and maise).

The problem is, cassava – and especially its more bitter and resilient varieties – is laced with dangerous amounts of cyanide (up to 1 gram per kilogram). Consumption of too much can leave one severely ill, and the repeated consumption of cassava without proper treatment causes Konzo disease – an accute and incurable form of paralysis.

So why would anyone eat it? Well, prepared in the right way, it can be both safe and delicious. The word “tapioca” actually describes a process of detoxification of cassava in the Tupi language spoken by the native people of Brazil. In this process, the cassava root is first ground down to a flour. To remove the cyanide, the flour is first supersaturated for a day and let to dry in the sun for hours more. It is then wet again, and traditionally stuffed into a long woven fabric tube and hung from a tree branch while the bottom of the tube is twisted and stretched to squeeze out all the liquid. This liquid is collected and let to dry in the sun once more until only the powdery residue – the tapioca – remains.

It is grown in this dry, central Thailand area because it is one of the most drought tolerant crops capable of growing any time of year on even marginal soils. Because it takes so long to prepare and can be harvested at any time, in many countries it is a food of reserve and last resort, consumed in times of food insecurity. The name of the plant Ewe language of West Africa – “agbeli” – literally means “there is life”. But in times of the most severe famine, the detoxification of cassava is skipped, and Konzo outbreaks ensue.

The Chinese love tapioca, and is the main buyer of Thailand’s tapioca. Although its almost pure starch and contains negligible amounts of protein and nutrients, it is used in a lot of industrial cooking as a thickener and binding agent, to improve textures creating a gel-like texture that traps moisture. Its also great in puddings, and as pearls in bubble tea.

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