Ko Si Chang Island
take a step back in time
Tha Bon Fishing Village on Ko Si Chang
The small island of Ko Si Chang just off the east coast of Thailand may very well be the perfect place should you want to avoid the bustle and commercialism of the more popular resorts in the vicinity. Don't bother looking for fast food outlets or shopping malls like the ones found in other parts of the country. You won't find any of them here. In fact you won't even find any motorized transport other than the three-wheeled motorcycle rickshaws that are unique to this area.While the island may be small in size, it does however pack a big punch which usually happens the moment you disembark the ferry from
Sriracha
on the mainland. But before I tell you about all the hot spots, you need to get in touch with a little island history. I promise not to hold you up to much as I am sure you would rather go sightseeing.
The Island Coastline
Though the island of Ko Si Chang has but a few beaches, most of the coastline is rather rugged so for the most part you will find it relatively quite here. The island once functioned as the customs checkpoint for ships bound for Bangkok but more importantly it was the former summer haunt of King Chulalongkorn (Rama V). The rather ramshackle fishing village of Tha Bon situated on the eastern side of the island is the the only real town here. Just north of it is the Chinese Temple also known as Saan Chao Paw Khao Yai. The temple is a fascinating hillside complex of colourfully decorated shrine caves that overlook the main town and offers you some excellent sea and cliff views. Inside one of the caves is a sacred stalagmite where pilgrims pay homage to a monkey god called Sun Wu-Kong. Legend tells us that the role of this monkey god was to guard a seventh century pilgrim named Hsuan Tsang on his travels across the Gobi Desert in China to all the way to India. In Thailand this monkey god is known as Heng Chia.
Shrine Cave at the Chinese Temple
Ko Si Chang Island Attractions
The Chinese Temple
Since you are here why don't you light a few incense sticks or perhaps a candle or maybe even shake a numbered siam si stick out of one of the brightly colour coded cups you'll find in the shrine. While the locals pay respect to the deities, tourists can have their fortune told. All you have to do is choose one of the cups you see filled with several numbered long thin sticks. Then shake the container until one of the sticks falls out. After that go to the board of fortune outside the cave to match your number with a fortune slip. And there you have it. The message you get is very much like that which you get from a Chinese fortune cookie. Go on and make your day. After you are done in the cave don't forget to climb the five hundred odd steps to the Buddha's Sacred Footprint on the shoulder of the Kayasira Mountain. From there you'll be rewarded with panoramic views of the island as well as it's smaller neighbours. When you leave take the alternative stairway for a different view as you descend the mountain.
Kayasira Mountain on the Island
Located on the west coast of Ko Si Chang are the island's only real beaches of which Hat Tram Pang is the most popular. The beach stretches about a kilometre long and is lined with deck chairs and and beach umbrellas for your convenience. You can rent a kayak for a the whole day or hour if you prefer, by the hour from Uncle Juk's water sport stall. If you like you can also rent inner tubes snorkeling equipment and or fishing rods.Two other beaches on the west coast are those of Hat Sai and Hat Khao Khat with the later being little more than an actual beach. Here you will find a public park with several white pavilions that offer some spectacular views across not only of the ocean but also the rugged cliffs and headland too. From the pavilion you can walk down some paths to a few fishing spots hanging precariously over the waves.
Pavilion over Khao Khat Beach
Ko Si Chang Island Attractions
Rama V Summer Palace
Perhaps the most famous site on the island is the partially overgrown ruins of the Rama V Summer Palace which occupies a huge chunk of a sprawling hillside midway down the east coast. You will find the palace just behind the pebbly beach of Hat Tha Wang and though relatively easily to reach on foot, you can get there on a three wheeled samlor taxi. The palace was built around 1890 as a kind of health resort for members of the royal family to come and relax. It also formed part of an elaborate complex comprising of homes for royal advisers, quarters for concubines and chalets for convalescents but in 1893 the palace was abandoned after a fleeting occupation by the French. Then in 1901 Rama V lost interest in his island project and subsequently had his enormous golden teak palace moved to
Vimanmek Mansion
at
Dusit Park
in Bangkok where it was reconstructed. While restoration work on the remaining structures of the palace complex on Ko Si Chang Island have been carried out, for the most part only the foundations remain with a riddle of staircases, a couple of rock pools, some tattered mosaic floors and an alleyway of hundred year plus frangipani trees. There are however two elegantly restored pistachio green villas.
Shrine Cave at the Chinese Temple
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