The Koh Chang Sun - The Real Koh Chang Guide

The Food & Fun Festival came back to Koh Chang again and so we popped down to see what all the fuss was about just at the north end of Klong Prao. You cannot miss it by the sheer numbers of flashing lights and parked bikes all along the road… If you’re looking for brass knuckles, samurai swords, oranges, Dragon fruit, grilled octopus, electric oxen, dazzling clothing, “Ding Fong” drinks, grilled chicken, plastic toys, mattresses, umbrellas, a funny T-shirt,  crossbows, sunglasses, Chinese watches, wild rice dishes, hot dogs on a stick or just want to play a few rounds of pop-the-balloon… this is the place to be on the island… Actually just head down and see what they have and what small items that are actually on sale… always a good time just for the sheer bulk of things you forgot to get last year. Like a crossbow, forgot to get the crossbow and the brass knuckles last year – they are still in stock this year though thank goodness! It will make a great addition to our collection of medieval home defense systems. We were also able to pick up sushi for just 5 Baht a piece and it was pretty good… Of course there is a  lot of food and small stage at the end with a beer garden to sit, have some entertainment and slug back a Singha and a grilled octopus if you are up for that. The real part of the Festival is the chance to run into people you know and actually have a good time. We do like pop the balloon and there are some good deals on the cheaper end T-shirts, shoes and clothing for sure. And if you need some kitchen bowls and plates this has to the largest store on the island to get all that at. Tomorrow is the last night so be sure to head down and actually see some cool things and meet some friends.

Robert

The Koh Chang Sun - The Real Koh Chang Guide

The Temple in Klong Prao is all setup and ready for Loy Krathong. Not quite as busy as the last few years but still a good place to pick a new pair of combat pants, a buffalo skull, headlights for your Honda, pop a few balloons, eat some food, get a blessing from the local monks, play with some radio controlled cars, listen to some local music and karaoke, buy some stuffed toys, get a deal on sunglasses and perfume, and overall have a nice night. Oh, and try the food that is offered up – there is a lot of food to be had! Loi means to float and Krathong is a lotus shaped container. On the 10th everyone will be floating this down the river in Klong Prao or out to sea, we recommend the river – as the sea tends to flow towards the shore… The lighting of a candle and letting it go out to sea or down a river are symbolic of letting go of ones pains, fears and anger while the candle is symbolic of the Buddha. Celebrated all over Thailand the festival is quite beautiful. So find a nice Krathong and get ready for the 10th.

Robert

The Koh Chang Sun - The Real Koh Chang Guide

Seen quite a bit and always splendid these butterflies can be found on Koh Chang: just about anytime – all year long. Certainly one of the most beautiful things we have on the island. There are probably dozens of types, but we are showing just a few of these – enjoy and keep an eye out for any in your neighborhood! If you do get a chance to photograph one of these, you are quite lucky!

Robert

The Koh Chang Sun - The Real Koh Chang Guide

It has been quite the year. Economic downturns, flooding, great people, new friends, new shops, road repairs… the list goes on. we thought we would just add a few articles and photos of the best of 2010. We sincerely hope that the New Year brings everything you want and 2011 is a great time for you and yours!

Robert

The Koh Chang Sun - The Real Koh Chang Guide

We had some really good photos sent in and we had to pick a few, so here they are and just as we promised – in time for New Years! Brian from the Chang Coffee gets first place for making us think a bit about all that has gone in the island for the last few years. His photos are taken on the same spot but 12 years in between. makes one think about where we come from in the island and where we are going to! Sanna Dullaway who runs a pretty beautiful gallery on the web wins for one of the best natural shots of the island. We were really amazed at the quality of this shot! Her web gallery is: click here and really worth checking out! Mark Werklund got best action shot, no need to explain it, I think the picture shows itself quite well!

Robert

The Koh Chang Sun - The Real Koh Chang Guide

These Koh Chang photos were taken over the last few years. Ranging from quick picture shots, festivals, songkran,party nights, beach stills with a tripod, early night and late morning.  Lots of good candid shots, a few good nature shots and hopefully some inspiration about Koh Chang! We hope that they inspire you to take a look at what the island has to offer. One of the things we have found is that Koh Chang is a great place for some great photos, videos and of course even painting… painting we cannot do. But a great sunset picture is within our limits.

Robert

The Koh Chang Sun - The Real Koh Chang Guide

We were asked to come and give a hand with a festival here on the island and help out with the local festival,Chao Po Koh Chang festival,  so being the kind of people we are we headed out to the local Chinese Temple about 1 km before the ferry Ao Sapparot. It seemed like your average Thai festival with huge amounts of food being donated, some small sellers and of course a lot of Thai dancing and such. That was until the night time, just amazing and really, honestly – you need to come to this! At night several people who have gone through ritual fasting and cleansing are said to be with the Spirit of the Guardian of Koh Chang. We did not think a lot about it until we saw what they actually do. They actually have walked over crushed glass, after beating themselves with a sword…! One man went head down into the glass and motored through it, another dragged himself chest fist, another had people stand on him and jump up and down on him. We checked the glass and it was razor sharp, real glass and could cut you up like a bad knife fight. But here nothing happened. they came through unscathed… The men were fine and after some women walked over the glass… we have never seen anything like it. Just simply blew us away and if you have any time get here and take this festival in.   View Chinese Temple in a larger map

Robert

The Koh Chang Sun - The Real Koh Chang Guide

The night kicked off with the buffet at Bario Bonito. Excellent choice of pastas, Mexican dishes and of course a lot of Thai. We can safely say that nobody went away hungry, nor thirsty. Checking with Pascal Rebuffel, the originator and all round good guy, the turnout was around 40-50 people and there were more than expected for the event. Seriously, Pascal has spent a lot of time, effort, sweat and days of work getting this together and he deserves a few accolades to his thoughtfulness, kindness and charity work… We at the Koh Chang Sun thinks his efforts go way above and beyond… did we mention he runs Bario Bonito Restaurant in Lonely Beach Drop in and say hi! to him (Yes, a blatant plug for the restaurant, but they deserve that!) After Bario Bonito it was across the road and down to Ting Tong Bar, a long time favorite of so many here on the island, live music, drink specials and as always a lot of fun. After that it was across the street to Himmel Cocktail Bar. We at the Koh Chang Sun have not been there before but we will definitely reviewing them in the future! Himmel Bar went out of their way to make everyone welcome with several fire shows, both inside and at the bar! A fire show outside was not enough for them and they decided to move inside and ignite the top of the bar and had a couple of what I would call Molotov Cocktail Jugglers showing their skill at how to handle fire! Real excellent and please see the video below! It was a night of excellent music, a lot of laughs, good dancing and probably today will be a few people sleeping in! Hopefully the event will become a yearly event and we hope that Pascal can keep this going. But of course best of all was that a good amount of money is going into the childrens schools here on the island! [nggallery id=21]

Robert

The Koh Chang Sun - The Real Koh Chang Guide

Located in Klong Prao the local Buddhist Temple serves as the center-point for the spiritual needs of the community. Under construction will be the largest Temple on Koh Chang but until it is finished there are several areas for the monks to live in and for visitors to see. There are several full time monks at the Temple with many part-time or short time initiates that take from their daily lives and head into the Temple for a few days to a few months. The Temple itself is a little oasis in central Klong Prao, worth taking a few minutes to take in on your trip here to Koh Chang. Usually peaceful and serene, the temple also has some of biggest festivals on the island, when it is not serene or peaceful at all, but very busy! The Temple is worth a look when you are in the area just for the beautiful carvings and paintings on the Temple proper.

Robert

The Koh Chang Sun - The Real Koh Chang Guide

The rain has been mild, and there was a great turnout for the annual Koh Chang Food and Fun Festival.  This year saw it run in north Klong Prao, so parking was up and down the road, but with a good police turnout traffic was behaving well.The usual festival consists of many food stalls,live entertainment, small booths selling everything from clothes, to chia pets, kids rides and of course the beer garden (a great place to wash down the food with!). See you next year!  

Robert