Sangkhla Buri - Borders and Brownies

This place is really quiet. Really, really quiet. 30km from the Myanmar border Sangkhla Buri is a sleepy town   with a large population of Burmese refugees and a mahoooosive man made lake.


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Massive man made lake - there's even a submerged town at the bottom of the lake that appears during the dry season when the water is low.

View from our room at P Guest House

Jean-Christophe and myself stayed 3 days, renting bicycles on the first day, a canoe on the second, and finally visiting the border with Myanmar at the 'Three Pagoda Pass' on the final day.

All these activities were book-ended by our regular visits to a local bakery that sold cakes to raise money for a local Orphanage called Baan Unrak.

We visited the Orphanage to see what it was like - we were shown around by one of the orphans and regularly attacked by over excitable children. Hearing about their timetable was enough to make me need an early night. Everyday the children have to get up at 5am to do an hours meditation!? I think I'd rather meditate in bed! All the children at the orphanage are encouraged to lend a hand, many of the children help out with cooking, and farming (they grow their own food) and the older children help with building and plumbing.

The Border crossing into Myanmar at the 'The Pagoda Pass'

Looking out over the top of our truck as we fly towards the Myanmar  border - OH NO! BIG POT HOLES!

I think this used to be the town hall or something.... not anymore... obviously

The Sunken Temple - we looked for this for hours. Despite seeing a half submerged temple shaped thing in the distance we were sure it wasn't the sunken temple because it was the wrong colour. So we went in the opposite direction, and got rained on, a lot. Then we went and investigated the temple shaped thing and found it was indeed.... the temple.

Sunken temple is only submerged during the wet season.

Jean-Christophe testing the canoes buoyancy.

Letting Jean-Christophe paddle was a good idea.

Monastery.

Golden temple - it was pretty dilapidated inside though.

OOOOOoooooooOO golden!

The Mon bridge - the longest wooden bridge in Thailand.

Happy Jean-Christophe.

Ladies bikes are all the rage in Sangkhlaburi - all the locals liked to express how impressed they were and how cool they thought we looked by pointing and laughing at us..... then we got some cake.