A new addition to my bag this year, my first foray into the Mirrorless camera system since switching from film to DSLR some 15 years ago.
This incomplete government offices stand on ground located on Thakreng Rd, near Rama IX Park, in Chalong Phuket.
Interestingly the Car park is completely finished and beautiful, but sadly inaccessible by vehicles as the road to it has not been finished either. There is also an event hall next door, also complete and used by government officers.
After the new Provincial Hall is complete it will become home to over a dozen of official agencies, including the Provincial Labour Office and the Provincial Governor’s Office. The current Phuket Provincial Hall on Narisorn Rd will be converted into a museum.
The new Phuket Provincial Hall will be big enough to provide seats to some 1000 clerks. The administrative complex will have 295 indoor and 25 outdoor parking spaces for cars, 2 parking spaces for buses and 200 slots for motorbikes.
Walking round it I could see how lovely it will be when it is finally completed. Hopefully the new contracts will be awarded and this building will be finished before it becomes too derelict. So for the meantime all we have is this!
Wat Chalong
My first Wat visit here since i moved from the mainland to Phuket.
Fighting with glare, and blazing sun, and shadows, and loads of tourists(whoops, I am a tourist) and outdoor and indoor natural light. Quite a challenge.
My first visit to Wat Chalong as a visitor, also known as Wat Chaiyathararam. Of the many temples found on Phuket island, the Wat Chalong temple is the largest and most revered. The temple complex was built in its current location in 1837. Some remains of older structures have been found, however it is unknown exactly how old they are. The large grounds of Wat Chalong that is officially named Wat Chaitararam contains a viharn, a mondop, a ubosot, a chedi containing a secret relic, a sala and a crematorium. The most recent building on the grounds of Wat Chalong is a 60 meters tall ‘Chedi’ sheltering a splinter of bone from Buddha. Walls and ceilings are decorated with beautiful painting illustrating the life of Buddha, as well as many donated golden statues. Wat Chalong Chedi is built on three floors so feel free to climb all the way to the top floor terrace to get a nice bird view on the entire temple grounds.
One of the best attractions on Phuket Island is our Giant Buddha on Nakkerd Hill in the town of Chalong(where I live).
Looking down on the town, i get a feeling of safety and calm when driving my partner to work, like he’s watching over us all. When up there the came and quiet, and of course on sunny days the amazing views across to Chalong Bay and the Islands are in my opinion, un equaled.
Phuket’s Big Buddha is one of the most important and revered landmarks on the island. The huge image sits on top of the Nakkerd Hills between Chalong and Kata and, at 45 metres tall, can be seen from as far away as Phuket Town and Karon Beach.
The lofty site offers the best 360-degree views of the island, with sweeping vistas of Phuket Town, Kata, Karon, Chalong Bay and more.
Known among Thais as the Phra Puttamingmongkol Akenakkiri Buddha, the main statue was built in 2004 and is 25 meters across at the base. The whole body is constructed with reinforced concrete, layered with beautiful Burmese white jade marble that shines in the sun. The views, and the actual image itself are breathtaking.
The road to Nakkerd Hills is in good condition, most parts are newly built but it has many curves and some steep climbs, which less-powerful scooters can struggle with. Some young tourists enjoy hiking up, even though it usually takes them over an hour to reach the top. Nakkerd eh?
Rawai, is one of my favourite places on the whole Island so far. I often come down here late afternoon, or the weekends. A very short drive takes me to one of the most unspoilt popular beach areas, not for swimming so much, but when the tide is out popular for people to explore the small pools and watch the crabs!
My relaxing place for you…
Since I have moved to the Island of Phuket, I have found that not only are the people calmer, but so am I. I love nothing more than getting down to the nearest body of water, be it Cape Panwa or Rawai. I hope you enjoy and relax with the scenes here.
Visiting Phukets Old Town is a camera-persons delight at the best of times. During my recent visit on one of my “Walkabouts” along with some architectural photography of Phukets Sino-Portuguese buildings, I took the time to capture some of the street art that now has become no longer the preserve of the “spray can tag crowd” , but serious artists too.
The street art in Phuket Town has not appeared randomly, it’s part of an organised attempt to brighten up the town’s street administered by by a group known as the 4studio with the blessing and assistance of the Phuket Office of the Tourist Authority of Thailand.
The street art in Phuket very much fits in with the themes of the broader South East Asian street movement. Like the street art in Penang and Ipoh, the street art in Phuket Town focuses on themes which are important to local people and relate to local life on the island, even if in an obscure way. Not all street art in Thailand is following this path.
Music is ; Fix One Thing At A Time- Max McFerren
Free under creative commons licence from You Tube music library
