Following a peaceful trip to Koh Mak recently, I returned to the mainland and like many other travellers, made the most of my time exploring the historic town of Chanthaburi on the way back to Bangkok. A pleasant day trip took me back to the days when Chanthaburi was a significant gemstone supplier and marine trading port before becoming a popular resort town on the coast of the Gulf of Thailand.
Just a one-hour drive from Trat, the Cathedral of Immaculate Conception stands on the banks of Chanthaburi River as a testament to it being a cultural melting pot, in which Thais, Chinese migrants and Vietnamese Christians have coexisted in harmony for generations.
Back in the reign of King…
