Month: March 2014

The day after my birthday, we decided to visit friends down around Buri Ram, though we didn’t do anything in Buri Ram except pass through. Our friends recommended the Runkengnam Resort in Nang Rong. The stay was great; Runkengnam is on the lakeshore, and is done in a neo-traditional style. There are several small wooden cabins, with a concrete construction bathroom extending out the back. The grounds are lush and green, and the neighborhood is very quiet.

A Thai style breakfast of rice soup comes with the cabins, and there are other dining options a short walk away on the lakeshore. We went with the option of cooking for ourselves on the front porch area. There are electrical outlets on the porch and we brought our own cooking supplies.

All in all, we had a relaxing time staying at the resort, and recommend it if you’re in the area.

On day two of our stay, we visited two Khmer ruins to the east of Nang Rong. Our first visit was to Phanom Rung Historical Park, which is a restored temple complex on the rim of a volcano. It was open in it’s restored state in 1988. ‘Restored’ is relative, it’s certainly cleaned up, and in good shape, but it’s not returned to the condition it was in the 10th century. So far, of the few Khemer ruins I’ve seen, this one has been the best, and well worth the trip to go visit it.

Not far away is a smaller Khmer temple complex, Prasat Muang Tam.

This smaller temple features much more water, with four large pools arranged around the central structure. There is also a large park like open area around the temple which, at least for me, gave the area a very relaxed and tranquil feel. On the day we visited, there were very few people, so it was easy to take the time to really look around and appreciate the site.

On day number three, we changed to modern day sights. Our first stop was the Big Buddha Statue at the top of 297 steps. You can walk up the steps to get to the statue, or you can pay a fee and drive a vehicle to the top. We took the steps, and I’m quite happy I was able to make it all the way up. I don’t think I could have done that before Cardiac Rehab, and my current exercise schedule. So while my legs felt like they were on fire, I wasn’t winded like I would have been.

Our last stop was Wat Pa Khao Noi, which is a modern temple just a few kilometers down the road. There aren’t a lot of online references for it, but we were able to see it from the top of the Big Buddha area. The design is stunning, and an interesting contrast to the 10th century work we were looking at the day before.

This was our final attraction of the visit. After one last social evening with our friends, and a good nights sleep, it was off to Udon Thani and home the following morning.

For a full gallery of our photos for the trip, you can see them on Flickr in this set.