Surat Thani’s Best Temples and Dining Spots

Surat Thani is the name that you might not hear much of compared to Samui, Tao, Pa Ngan – the popular island destinations. Actually, not many know that the islands belong to this province’s territory. We got a chance to explore the mainland of Surat Thani and discovered that despite the lack of luring beach paradises, it makes a wonderful holiday escape because of its strong local Thai culture, the slow pace of life, beautiful rain forest, and the fact that it sees much less visitors. You can easily spend a few days here if you look for a change of air from the islands. 

Surat Thani province today is now home to just over a million people. Translated ‘the city of good people,’ the name Surat Thani was bestowed by King Rama 6 who noted the intense devotion of the locals to Buddhism and that the city’s landscape was similar to Surat, a city in India which he visited. In 2015, the city will celebrate the 100^th year anniversary since it was named, even though it actually ages much more than that! The first civilization found in Surat Thani date back as far as 1,200 years ago when the city was a part of the ancient Sri Vichai kingdom.

We started our morning off in Chai Ya district at the peaceful Wat Suan Mokkh, Thailand’s famous forest Dharma hermitage. Founded in 1932 by Buddhadasa Bhikkhu, a renowned and influential ascetic-philosopher, the hermitage is well-known as a meditation center and for learning religious study and practices for both Thai and international seekers.    

We arrived just in time to see the monks and devotees taking breakfast. Every day at 8 o’clock, the monks gather at the dining hall, take their alms from the shared food-carrying cart while the devotees chant the prayers.

Eating out of the alms bowls, Suan Mokkh

 Life at Wat Suan Mokkh starts as early as 4 in the morning. Days are spent mostly on anapanasati meditation which focuses on the quiet awareness of one's breathing pattern while other time is devoted to cleaning the temple’s facilities, self-studying, and listening to the monks’ preaching. 

Wat Suan Mokkh makes a great visit even though you’re not registered for the retreat program. Peace seekers usually find it a perfect refuge even if they are here only for a short time. The temple’s facilities sit in the jungle’s area of 23 acres shaded by tall Moke and other trees, and wild looking vines. It has the excellent atmosphere for assembling with nature and is a fine reminder to devotees of a simple life. Stone sculptures, objects, and sign boards with Dharma written on will only make you ponder on life and carry you closer to the peaceful state of mind.

The Theatre of Spiritual Entertainment displays pictures of Dharma riddles of different religions and doctrines. It’s nice to let the paintings drive your imagination and in the same time absorb the intellectual messages.

A wall painting in the Theater of Spiritual Entertainment, Suan Mokkh

Dharma Hall is a multi-purpose building now used to accommodate visiting monks. Human skeletons and other objects are to gently remind the audience to rid themselves of vanity, materialism, and so on.  

Towards one side of Suan Mokkh, there is a pond with a sole coconut tree growing in the middle. Nalikae Pond looks like a normal fresh water source but it is actually symbolic. The coconut tree symbolizes Nirvana which exists amidst the circle of birthand death.

In the Buddhadasa’s Hall, the monk’s picture stands prominently amidst the books he wrote and cassettes recorded during his preaching. He was an innovative reinterpreter of Buddhist doctrine and Thai folk beliefs. Through his life, he worked to produce a complete set of references for present and future research and practice. His approach was known to be scientific, straight-forward, and practical.

On the way out of Suan Mokkh, we found a natural spring. Busier in early morning, it now sees a few locals dropping by with their cars to take a bath. The water feels warm and comfortable. One pipe releases the mineral hot water from the mountain while the other regularly draws the water out of the pond to create a flow.

A hot spring near Suan Mokkh

In the afternoon, we left Chai Ya district and headed back to Surat Thani’s downtown. Pattanaram Temple is another sacred site of the local Buddhists. A hundred-year-old temple hall is surrounded by the guard statues, some are of giants, and some of the soldiers. If you take a closer look to the soldiers’ faces, you’ll see they are of different races. This confirms to the historians how Surat Thani a hundred years back were a prominent port city full of multi-national visitors.

Sitting further from the monastery’s entrance is the mausoleum of Luang Poh Pat. The miracle that happens to his corpse is the word of mouth that brings hundreds of Buddhist devotees a day. It’s said any wishes made in front of him always become true.

And then it was time for dinner. We decided the downtown night markets would were the best places to forage. Narit Bridge Pier is a short dining promenade lined up with cook to order, somtam and grilled chicken, and numerous fruit stalls. From this point you can also catch night ferries that leave around 11 to arrive on Samui, Tao, and Pa Ngan islands in the morning.

In the same time the promenade started to become alive, the San Chao night market was already way super busy.

A dessert stall at Narit Bridge Pier Promenade 

A coffee cart, Narit Bridge Pier Promenade

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