When you are looking for gems to buy, maybe sapphires and rubies, there’s nothing like going to the source. In Thailand that is a place called Chanthaburi, some 220 km southeast of Bangkok. Even if you aren’t looking for gems, Chanthaburi is a great place to visit. It’s beautifully situated on a quiet river, making it picturesque, and it has the oldest Christian church in Thailand. And its noodles are world famous.
 
I had a friend coming to Bangkok, Dave Arnold, an amateur photographer and the owner of a gift shop on the Avenue of the Giants in California. He was looking for Asian artifacts and gems for his shop and wanted to check out the gem mines in Chanthaburi. I had not seen the mines and, at the same time,  I was curious about Chanthaburi as a tourist destination. So, we hired an Avis car through Royal Orchid Holidays programme and Dave, my wife and I took off for two days.
 
Having our own wheels proved to be a great advantage. There is some mighty beautiful countryside along the route from Bangkok to Chanthaburi. Rather than travel the inland route, we decided to follow the coast line and I could show my friend places like Patthaya and Jothin Beach. The problem with a plan  like this is that when you travel with those who have never seen Thailand before, they want to spend more time at each stop and there just isn’t enough time. We only had two days. Finally, with one stop after another and a seafood lunch in Patthaya, we reached the outskirts of Chanthaburi in the late afternoon. It came as a pleasant surprise. The town is picturesque with a river flowing through the very center of town and it also flows with history.
 
From 1893 to 1905, while negotiating with the Siamese over the borders for Laos and Cambodia, the French occupied the town. As a result of French rule in Vietnam, a large part of the population to this day comprises Vietnamese Christians who fled religious or political persecution in Vietnam from the French. The first wave arrived in the 19th century as refugees avoiding anti-Catholic persecution in Cochin Ghina (southern Vietnam); the second came between the 1920s and 1940s, fleeing French rule; and the third wave arrived after the 1975 communist takeover of southern Vietnam.
 
Chantaburi's most recent claim to fame arose in 1993 when 1500 tonnes of war material were found cached in 12 warehouses throughout the province. The arms were thought to have been destined for the Khmer Rouge communist rebels who held parts of western Cambodia at the time.
 
Upon our arrival, and after looking over a list of hotels, the River Guest House looked promising, being right on the river. We soon discovered being right on the river might be true but getting to the Guest House by car was impossible. The streets  along the river are too narrow for vehicular traffic. We had to park some distance away and carry our luggage. But the view at night, with dinner on the terrace, was worth it. 
 
Before setting out to see the mines, we first had to explore the city. The Vietnamese-French influence has resulted in Chantaburi having some interesting shophouse architecture - particularly along the river. At times, one feels he or she might be in a small town in southern France.
 
The major tourist attraction in Chantaburi, of course, is the French-style cathedral, the largest in Thailand. A small missionary chapel was built on this site in 1711 but, after undergoing four reconstructions between 1712 and 1906 (the last carried out by the French), the structure has changed into its current form. The doors are open to the public and plaques along the wall tell of its amazing history.
 
Aside from the cathedral and French architecture, Chantaburi is noted for its tropical fruit—rambutan, durian, langsat and mangosteen—and its rice noodles. I was able to steer Dave away from the durian but for lunch we feasted on the famous Chantaburi noodles.  The noodles, they say, are exported all over the world. They were delicious, both fried and steamed.
 
We didn’t have to go far to find the gem dealers. They are everywhere and Dave was like a kid in a candy shop. He went wild and ended up spending far more than he anticipated. But he was thrilled.

The gem dealers in town are found mostly along Th Si Chan, Trok Kachang and Th Thetsaban 4, off Th Si Chan.  All day long buyers and sellers haggle over little piles of blue and red stones and Dave was among them. According to Dave, the prices are incredibly inexpensive and he confirmed it when he wrote from California and told me how he almost sold out his stock in the first week at home, that is, what his kids didn’t want first. 

During the first week of June every year there is a gem festival and we were told Chantaburi can get very crowded. Most of the gems bought and sold here come from places other than Chantaburi - chiefly Cambodia, Vietnam, Myanmar and Australia.

It wasn’t until the next morning that we managed to get to the mines. They are not what I thought, deep pits dug into the bowels of the earth. These are open pits with huge shovels scraping away the red earth and sloughs awash with torrents of water being hosed at high pressure. How the miners manage to find priceless stones among the sludge is quite amazing but there are stories about the “big one” that was found “only last month.” Fortunately, the miners are friendly and don’t mind visitors climbing around the pits.

However, spot a stone in the mud and it might be another thing.

For the casual visitor not looking for gems, there are a few places of tourist interest.
 
King Taksin Park is a large public park with gazebos and an artificial lake near the centre of town—nice for an evening stroll. A few kilometres north of town, Khao Phloi Waen (Sapphire-Ring Mountain), which is only 150m high, features a neat chedi on top, built during the reign of Rama IV. Tunnels dug into the side of the hill were once gem-mining shafts.                                  
 
Wat Khao Sukim, a fairly well-known meditation centre, is 16km north of Chantaburi off Rte 3322. A museum on the wat (temple) grounds is worth a visit. Another meditation centre is at Wat Sapchan, 27km west of Chantaburi in Tha Mai district; Wat Sapchan is a branch of Sunyataram Forest Monastery in Kanchanaburi.       
 
Next week I am informing readers on how to learn to dine with the natives—on things that aren’t necessarily appetizing.

Questions & Answers
 
Dear Mr. Stephens  Do I recall correctly that there was a thriving boat and yacht building center in Patthaya?  I attended a party one evening in Singapore, over thirty years ago, aboard a nicely built trimaran.  I vaguely recollect having been told that it had been built in Patthaya. EGB, North Carolina

Dear EBG, Where there may have been a boat yard or two in Patthaya thirty years ago, there are dozens today. Phuket has become a major yacht building and repair center. In fact, with the Thai government dropping the tax on imported yachts, Phuket is rapidly becoming the major yachting center in Asia, and it may soon be the world. —HS

Harold Stephens
Bangkok
E-mail:  ROH Weekly Travel

Note: The article is the personal view of the writer and does not necessarily reflect the view of Thai Airways International Public Company Limited.

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  Welcome to Chanthaburi sign. Sometimes spelled
Chantaburi.

Houses along the river

  Built by the French in the 18th century

  A view inside the church

  Parked at a temple

  Figurines in a niche in a temple

  For the boys of town, the river is their playground

  Michelle and Dave look over gem collection

  A fortune in small gem stones

  Gem dealer’s wife designs jewelery

Miner knee deep in mujd, and gems

When it rains it’s even worse

  Tough but it has its rewards

  No gems for the author today

Next week we dine on exotic food