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  1. #1
    Thailand Expat
    wasabi's Avatar
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    Aranyaprathet Sae Kaeo

    This is My local town, what do you know about this area.?
    I go to the Market Motel every day as I enjoy their swimming pool.

  2. #2
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    Bettyboo's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by wasabi
    This is My local town, what do you know about this area.?
    Not much, other than it's very close to the Wild West of Poipet - perhaps the worst place I've ever been...

    It's your local town, so why don't you tell us about it. I imagine it should have a vibrant market? Can you pick me up a cheap AK47?
    Cycling should be banned!!!

  3. #3
    Thailand Expat prawnograph's Avatar
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    been in that area over last weekend for a wedding, about 60km away

    Here's a central Aran street scene from late 2009 - changed much? Remember the Tesco Lotus store had recently opened at that time on main rd west of city towards Bkk, apart from that, not much.
    Couple of good cycling shops. Always intended to try the train Bangkok-Aran, one day maybe.
    Watthana Nakhon about ? 30km west has a racetrack, car and bike racing events



    saw pics a few months back with floods and about .5m deep through here

    Market Motel - stayed there twice 2009-10-ish, old bloke who ran it was in poor health, wheelchair second time we were there - is he still running the place? Pool was good, what do they charge for non-guests?

  4. #4
    Thailand Expat prawnograph's Avatar
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    found one - news pic of flooding in October



    6km to the actual border/Rong Kluea markets. Best avoided (both)
    Thought Aran itself was an ok place; Khmer-era temples in that area if you're interested

  5. #5
    Thailand Expat Boon Mee's Avatar
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    Arana is OK but in my experience of border towns, Poipet has to rank as the rankest one I've ever been too.

  6. #6
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    Used to go a couple of times a year, stayed in the market hotel once.
    The Indochin ( something like that anyway) hotel has a much nicer pool though!

  7. #7
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    Khamen folk...
    Beware.

  8. #8
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    Albert Shagnastier's Avatar
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    Stay in Arun Garden 1.

    Left out the door, 5th on the Left.

  9. #9
    I am in Jail

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    Used to do my visa-runs there many moons ago and stroll round the market afterwards.

  10. #10
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    Bangsida national park not too far away if you don't mind a drive. Went camping there one November. Very nice. Modest waterfall, pleasant campsite and not too busy mid week.

  11. #11
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    I went to จังหวัดสระแก้ว (Sa Kaeo Province) in เขาฉกรรจ์ (Khao Chakan) two weeks ago for a wedding between a foreign guy and his Thai g/f of 10 years.

    NO! You goofballs, it wasn't that she was 10 y/o, it was that they'd been together for 10 years! She's actually 38, sheesh, you people!.

    It was บ้านนอก (hill billy) to the n-th degree, as in the middle of nowhere. Still there was a great "resort" about 20km from their farm with little A-frame cabins on a pretty big lake which we (the white people) were put up in.

    Surprisingly, unlike the poser known as RuralSurin, there was no danger from the เขมร (Khmer people) who were there. In fact traveling around the area the Cambodian labor force seemed to be the only people doing any "real work", other than the Thais working on widening that main road and even some of them were Cambodian! The Sa Kaeo-ians where I was, sat around doing nothing but complaining how hard life was.

    I asked the people in the village if any foreigners lived there, and they said to see foreigners you needed go to Tesco or BigC in the city..

    Interestingly enough, while the people from สระแก้ว city and countryside seem to employ Cambodians and travel regularly to Cambodia to buy stuff, not all that many appeared to speak ภาษาเขมร (Cambodian) other than a few words/phrases. Conversely almost every single Cambodian I ran across and talked to spoke Central Thai really well. Go figure?

    I'd say, if you have no reason to be there, you can cross it off the "bucket list". It's just another one of those Nakhon Nowhere provinces where once you've seen it you never need to go back to see it again.

    We went to เขาฉกรรจ์ (Khao Chakan) what the thais call a mountain, but which in reality, is more like a big hill with a sort of hole in it. The monkeys there are quite aggressive, and honestly it ain't all that much to see. They also went to some famous water fall too, but hey, once you've seen one Thai water fall you've pretty much seen 'em all, so I passed on that excursion.

    If you're living up there and can make a go of it, good on you!!

    My advice, learn to speak/understand Central Thai (which everyone I spoke to understood and answered in kind) or you'll die a slow death relying on your significant thai other to translate everything said around you.

    I totally agree with other posters; the border at Aranyaprathet/Poipet is one of the worst land borders in the country. It's a total arm-pit of a place and possibly one of the worst land borders in all of S/E Asia!

    About the only thing going for Aranyaprathet is those two markets; one for new stuff and the other for second hand stuff.

    Again, if you're living up there there making a go of it, you're a far better man than I will ever be.

    However, with that being said, I'm goin' back up there in the middle of next month to work on a renovation project with some Thais I met. I mean, true it's the middle of nowhere, but there are still good people up there if you look around..
    "Whoever said `Money can`t buy you love or joy` obviously was not making enough money." <- quote by Gene $immon$ of the rock group KISS

  12. #12
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    Gazza's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by prawnograph
    Always intended to try the train Bangkok-Aran, one day maybe.
    Done that a couple of times for a change instead of going by mc.
    You have to get to the station early and wait on the platform for the train to come in.
    Then there's a mad fight to get on and grab a seat. Everyone throws their bags through the windows onto the seats to claim them. Only 3 carriages and if you don't get a seat when you leave Humpalong Station then you'll probably next have a chance to get one when it reaches Chachangsao. Standing on a train doesn't give you much of a view out the windows if you're tall and most of what you'll see is the polystyrene and plastic junk strewn alongside the train tracks that gets thrown out the windows by passengers.

    I've stayed at Aran countless times at either Aran Mermaid hotel (950b) or Market Motel (400bt). Market motel is good for cheap western type food and a decent place to stay. Restaurant staff (Khmer) are useless and always seemed to mess up my orders (watch your bill too). Stayed at a few other places on the road out to Buriram way, but they were nothing special.

    On the road to Buriram there's a turn off for Lalu. There, there's a mini Grand Canyon type scenery which is basically subsided land.

    Aran town itself is like most other Thai towns. No real identity of its own. All have their non-descript shophouses selling the same things as everywhere else. Aran is just like Buriram which is like Surin which is like Udon which is like Sakhon etc., etc. Only differences are the town's layout.

  13. #13
    Thailand Expat prawnograph's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by toddaniels View Post
    We went to เขาฉกรรจ์ (Khao Chakan) what the thais call a mountain, but which in reality, is more like a big hill with a sort of hole in it. The monkeys there are quite aggressive, and honestly it ain't all that much to see.
    Khao Chakan, on Highway 317 (continues south and joins Sukhumvit 3 towards Koh Chang/Trat) - about 50-60km to Aranyaprathet, border with Cambodia


    where old tuktuks go to die?

  14. #14
    Thailand Expat prawnograph's Avatar
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    Rail to Bangkok


    and the scenic lake in town centre

  15. #15
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    Interesting name what country ? You can imagine some old confused crunt wandering around there, saying where the fvck are we?

  16. #16
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    Aranyaprathet is in Thailand on the Cambodian border with Poi-pet, if that's what you are asking...

  17. #17
    I am in Jail

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    Quote Originally Posted by peterpan View Post
    Interesting name what country ? You can imagine some old confused crunt wandering around there, saying where the fvck are we?
    The Thai flag kind of gives it away really in prawnograph's post.

  18. #18
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    Davis Knowlton's Avatar
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    I lived in Aranyaprathet from 88-90; one bar town in those days.

  19. #19
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    The old guy Jake still runs the Market Motel, I find him a good source for local knowledge,as he has had businesses here in Aran for over a decade. He told me that from 5 hotels 10 years ago,there are now 70. Talk about the copying effect of Thai busnisses,there is no way 70 inns are needed.
    When we arrived in town last week and stayed in the Market Motel because going to the village was a no go for a period. My Wifes Uncle's son had commited suicide ,another casaulty of Yabaa (Tik) . Nice decent family too,parents hard working ,not drinkers or smokers and it must be terrible to bury a child. We went to the funeral,My first Thai funeral,what a way to start a holiday,saying hello to old faces that know Me and Wife when I want to shed a few tears at the tragedy. The usual chanting for ages,gambling group outside.
    The coffin was carried over to a concrete purpose made cylinder in the Temple grounds. I was surprised that there was no cremation.
    I told My Son that today You will see your vfirst dead body,and sure enough they took the lid off to throw some sort of white confetty over deceased,tied white string around him and put paper money in his hands.
    Now I had to be patcient with regards to My Wifes superstious beliefs.
    Here they are for those interested in Thai Bhuddism.
    Because it was suicide ,no cremation,only in 2 years they will barbicue his remains. The spirit of a suicide is trapped,and the Monks are the only ones who can tell it to move on. 2 year get a move on wait.
    When the coffin was being inserted into the cylinder,a dog came from nowhere and tried to squeeze itself under the coffin , now I know enough about these guys to know that is a bad omen. Yip I was right,fear,fear,the suicides spirit is angry and can pocess dogs,dogs can see spirits.
    Next day the monks had to cleans the site of the suicide,the big tractor barn where he swung from the rafters. We stayed away, because a spirit of suicide can enter our son,children are easy to pocees.
    When We did move into the village,our son cannot play or go near that tractor barn,because of the spirit looking for a new body.
    Spelling is poor,but this is not My U.K home computer.

  20. #20
    Thailand Expat prawnograph's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by Davis Knowlton View Post
    I lived in Aranyaprathet from 88-90; one bar town in those days.
    Hi - I was going to ask if you were involved in the refugee camps in Sa Kaeo but checked the date and 10 years out, they existed around 1980. A friend's father, now deceased, had an administration role at the Aranyaprathet one, but she didn't know how senior he was, what responsibilities.

    found a pic on the Teakdoor old photo thread (Siam, Thailand & Bangkok Old Photo Thread)

    Khmer Wedding at the Cambodian refugee camp at Aranyaprathet {Sa Kaeo} 1979

    and these from another site of Sa Kaeo Refugee Camp




  21. #21
    Philippine Expat
    Davis Knowlton's Avatar
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    ^There were any number of Cambodian refugee camps inside Thailand while I was there - the last closed in 1999. Most of the camps while I was there were as a result of the Vietnamese offensive of 84/85 along the Thai border. I visited several of the camps, but did not work in the camp system.

  22. #22
    Thailand Expat prawnograph's Avatar
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    ^ thanks; didn't realise so recent



    We did a cycle trip north (ish) of Aranyaprathet to the 11th century Sdok Kok Thom, about 30km, were told then that it had been land-mined and only cleared a few years before (Wiki says 2004)


    more info

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