WorldTeach volunteers in Thailand will live and teach in the Nakhon Phanom Province in the eastern region of Thailand known as Isan. Isan is the area of Thailand which borders Laos, and therefore its culture is predominantly Lao. This can be s
een in various parts of Isan culture, from architecture and art to the language and food. The food is distinct from Thai and Lao foods, but shares similarities with both. The most distinct characteristics of Isan food are sticky rice, rather than regular rice, and spicy peppers. Popular dishes include tam mak hung, or in central Thai, som tam (papaya salad), larb (meat salad) and gai yang (grilled chicken).
The Nakhon Phanom Province is in the far northeast corner of Isan, along the Mekong river, on the border of Laos. The name Nakhon Phanom means "city of mountains," although the province is mostly plain. The mountains that the name refers to actually belong to Laos, which can be seen across the Mekong river from the provincial capital. This area was once the center of the ancient Sri Kotrabun Kingdom.
There are many ancient religious monuments in Nakhon Phanom. The most highly revered is Pra Thad Phanom in Amphoe Thad Phanom which dates back to the time of the Sri Kotrabun Kingdom. It is also the site of many other ancient Buddhist temples. Nakhon Phanom Province is also the location of Phu Lang Ka National Park, 50 square kilometers of forests and hills, with attractions such as the waterfalls Tat Kham and Tat Pho. This park is in the Ban Paeng district in the northern part of Nakhon Phanom and stretches out to Say Ka district in the eastern part of the Nong Khai province.
Important festivals in the province include the traditional dances of the Phu Thai ethnic group held during May and June every year. The Phra That Phanom temple fair is held every February, on which occasion many locals go to the temple to pay homage. At the end of the Buddhist lent in November an illuminated boat procession is done.
Some of the most serious fighting between North Vietnamese insurgents and the US forces during the Vietnam War took place near Nakhon Phanom. During the 1960s, 73 of the 131 subdistricts were said to be infiltrated by the Vietnamese and Lao communists, it was known as the "heartland of insurgency". Thai forces established a base at Nakhon Phanom where the Thai military hosted the 56th Air Commando Wing which conducted special operations against the Ho Chi Minh Trails in Laos while conducting search and rescue operations primarily within Laos and North Vietnam. An interesting point of trivia is that Ho Chi Minh resided at a small village near Nakhon Phanom between 1928 to 1931. Both his home and a new modern museum are now open to the public.
Special thanks to Lance Webel for the use of his photos ©2006 Lance Webel, http://webel.net
