All in a day . . . all within 20 miles . . .
It's always great to have visitors from abroad come to Thailand . . . I get to take day trips out and about . . . usually to places I have never been, so we can explore together.
This Buddhist temple (wat) up against steep cliffs is one of my favorites. I pass it often when I am down Hua Hin way . . . but decided to stop and take a look again. Glad we did.
Such a lovely wat . . . looks like they are going to assemble a new giant Buddha image soon.
Beautiful workmanship . . . .
Ah! Looks like a standing Buddha image going up.
This such an interesting wat . . . lots to see here . . . including a pack of very curious monkeys.
As is often the case at Thai wats, the new buildings are built in front of the older, perhaps original temple structures.
The patina!
Lovely textures in the filtered afternoon light.
I was surprised to see this young monk! There weren't any other monks at this wat. He kindly gave me permission for so photos. I made sure he saw me put money in the donation box.
A large, old chedi on the temple grounds. Perhaps a previous revered head monk's final resting place.
One last look at this fantastic cliff side wat.
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Wat Huai Sai Tai Temple
On the way back from our hilltop chedi, I wanted to stop and show my friend the Colossus of Hua Hin at Wat Hui Sai Tai!
Such a lovely and strange place . . .
Yep . . . a cement elephant's butt.
The spaces and surfaces around the outside of the temple were beautifully decorated.
The exterior details were aesthetically very pleasing.
Of course, we had not come to just admire the exterior decor . . . it was what was inside that attracted us . . .
What attracted us was the colossal statue of the venerated monk, Luong Phor Thongsuk!
The giant Luang Phor Thongsuk in all his revered glory.
The scale of this statue is incredible!
During our short visit here, many people came to pay their respects.
Our last look at the colossus!
A marvelous spirit house on the grounds of Wat Hui Sai Tai.
The inside of the wat spirit house . . . very well tended by the pilgrims.
Beauty everywhere we pointed our cameras . . .
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An Old Fishing Village
We headed up the road to our next destination, a beach about 20km away . . . but a quick glance on the GPS map showed a small village on an inlet . . . maybe a fishing village? YES!
It was a very old fishing village . . . with a few very photogenic derelict old boats still dockside.
Did I say "old boat and old pier"? I meant to say "dilapidated pier and ghost ship"!
There were newer and older parts of this fishing village.
The village was very quiet this afternoon. These boats are rigged to catch squid . . . at night.
I love how the Thai fishermen decorate their boats . . . with these colorful votive blessings.
A village restaurateur. The large pots catch and hold rainwater.
Such rich and complex images to capture here!
We saw this catch of the day in one of the fishermen's sheds.
We could have stayed all day here . . . just taking photos . . . but there were other adventures in store for us on that day.
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A Mangrove Forest Swamp Park
Our next stop was the beautifully developed, and very educational, Pran Buri Forest Park and Nature Reserve.
Mangrove forests are completely unique ecological environments.
Mangroves grow in salt water estuarial swamps.
A phantasmagoria of twisted and gnarled complexity. Wonderful Nature.
The park positioned bulletin boards (in Thai and English) along the way with informative graphics.
Mangrove roots grow in the transition between wet (at high tide) and exposed to the air (at low tide). The mangrove grows in salt water but has the ability to filter out the salt and deposit it on the root 'knees' to be dissolved off when the tide comes in. Amazing.
The park managers built a tall tower so that the mangrove forest could be seen from above.
It was New Years' Eve, so there were quite a few day trippers from nearby Hua Hin.
We wandered on along the elevated walkway. There seemed to be a change in the nature of the trees in the swamp.
"Autumn" colors in the swamp. A blue sky reflected in the brackish waters.
Beautiful complicated light on the complicated forest . . . truly marvelous.
We walked on into a stand of densely packed trees . . . not mangrove, but growing in the salty water.
Ever-changing scenes . . .
My friend enjoying the photographic opportunities.
I do not know how these particular trees shed the salt.
On we walked through a forest of thin trees growing in the saltwater marsh.
We came to a saltwater inlet. There was a pier offering boat rides, but there was a line of people waiting. We walked on . . . more [visual] adventures in store.
We walked the rest of the 2km walkway loop to the car . . .
. . . and back through the tangled web of the mangrove knees.
We spent a wonderful couple of hours being amazed by this fantastic environment . . and taking photographs to our hearts content.
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A Fishing Port Village
About a mile away from the mangrove forest park was another small fishing port.
A beautiful day with colorful boats . . . what's not to like?
Small squid boats and large 'company boats" . . .
A 'company boat' heading out early for night squidding . . . they must be going far out into the Gulf of Thailand.
A busy Thai commercial fishing port.
Yep . . . a tourist tour boat! This is actually the tourist boat from the mangrove forest park nearby . . . we all waved at each other.
We walked along the road near the fishing port and came across a picturesque little slough.
Life along the slough.
Picturesque . . . indeed!
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Happy New Year 2020 From Hua Hin Thailand!!!
We went out to dinner at our usual favorite restaurant . . . . but we were not satisfied with the meal . . . it was a buffet, not the usual excellent food from the menu. Afterward we went to a friend's beach house . . . then out on to the beach for the BIG fireworks display.
Down along the beach . . . fantastic fireworks display for 20-25 minutes.
Fireworks across the bay . . .
Once I figured out my camera settings . . .
Right overhead!
I hope you all had a New Years' Eve as colorful and interesting as I did!
YES! All in a day! All within 20 miles!