Boat cruise to Koh Kret island by Murli Menon

One is writing this from one's city facing room at the Siam City Hotel in downtown Bangkok,
conveniently located opposite the BTS Phaya Thai Station, making it accessible to reach almost
all of Bangkok's tourist attractions. One has just returned from a boat cruise down the Chao
Praya River after visiting a village known for its beautiful pottery. The Mon village of Koh Kret
is a tiny island on the Chao Phraya river, located in Nonthaburi Province. One can reach Koh
Kret from Sathorn pier in approximately 90 minutes by long-tailed boat.

The island dates only to 1722, when a canal was constructed as a shortcut to bypass a bend in
the Om Kret branch of the Chao Phraya river. As the canal was widened several times, the
section cut off eventually became a separate island. Here, live a community of craftsmen
famous for their distinctive style of pottery which dates back many centuries! The potteries
are known for their fine, red-black glazed surface and intricate design. They are all hand-made
piece-by-piece and one can see the process, if one wants to. People live on Koh Kret and
nearby are the descendants of the Mon people, and they have managed to retain the skills of
their forefathers.

Koh Kret is a center for "kwan arman", a style of Mon pottery, which is fundamentally just
baked unglazed red clay carved with intricate patterns. Prices for the simplest and smallest
pots start from as low as 5 baht a piece, but can go up to hundreds or even thousands of baht
for large ornate pieces. Particularly popular among visitors are candle and incense holders
with ornate patterns of holes to let the smoke or light out, averaging around 200 baht. There
are some 20 pottery workshops on the island and one can see many kilns as you walk around.

The other attraction at Koh Kret is the Wat Poramaiyikawat temple which is constructed in
Mon style, and was built about 200 years ago. In 1873, King Rama V visited the temple and
ordered the renovation and later on reconstruction of the main temple. There are many
villages producing potteries and other decorative items. They are made by hand and follow
the old traditional Mon style and are not only extremely attractive to the eyes, but Mon
potters also make pottery which can be used in our daily life, like soup bowls, night lamps and
aromatherapy lamps.

One starts one's boat cruise at Sathorn pier (adjacent to Saphan Takshin BTS Station) and
makes one's way to Nonthaburi pier which is a one hour ride on the fast flowing waters of the
Chao Praya river.
One alights at Nonthaburi pier to hire a long tailed boat which will take one to Koh Kret and
return after an hour's halt on the island. This cruise takes almost 90 minute both ways and
much of the cruise is through the rural outskirts of Bangkok making it a pleasurable trip. One
gets down at Koh Kret pier and makes one's way through the narrow streets. Both sides of the
streets are filled with shops selling pottery of various kinds. Aroma therapy candle holders,
night lamps and large pots in a distinctive style are arranged one on top of the other in endless
rows. Street vendors selling everything from fried potatoes to papaya salads are found along
the way. One walks about two kilometers to sight several typical Buddhist temples whose
spires can be seen from the distance.

The entrance to the temple is small but one can sight a golden coloured statue of Quan Yin
from the opening of the entrance. Behind the temple is a pottery museum, which details the
history of Koh Kret village and about the Mon tribesmen who came settled here and continues
to make pots since generations! Several attractive large pots and vases from this Mon village
are displayed and look gorgeous with dim lighting. illuminating the pots in the museum. One
returns back to one's boat from the museum stopping at the roadside pottery stalls to buy a
few souvenirs including Thai herbal compress bags for steam massage, Thai herbs and a few
pieces of pottery which can reach home and which look sturdy enough to last the airport
conveyor belts and luggage handlers.

How to get there?:

Bangkok is connected by direct flights from New Delhi, Mumbai, Kolkata, Chennai and
Bangalore. The easiest way to reach Koh Kret is to take the once-weekly Chao Phraya Express
Koh Kret tour, which leaves the Central Pier (BTS Saphan Taksin) every Sunday at 09:00 a.m.
and visits a number of attractions before returning at 3:30 p.m. The cost of the cruise and
guided tour is 300 baht (no lunch). Many other companies also offer similar tours, often just as
a stop on a longer upriver trip to Ayutthaya. The other option is to take the regular ferry by
paying 13 Baht on the boat and get down at Nonthaburi pier and hire a long-tailed boat at
Nonthaburi. The return trip to Koh Kret with a one hour wait included, costs 200 Baht.

Where to stay?:

Siam City Hotel, located adjacent to the Phaya Thai BTS sky-train station is a convenient
location to stay, as almost all tourist attractions including Grand Palace, Wat Arun and Sathorn
pier are easy to reach. Also the hotel is itself located opposite Suan Pakkad Palace, which is a
tourist attraction in itself owing to the treasures of art housed in this palace. There are no
hotels or guesthouses on Koh Kret. Most visitors visit Koh Kret as a day trip from Bangkok.

Where to eat?:

Many small restaurants serving Thai cuisine are found all over Bangkok. The food at the high
profile hotels is only for the gastronomically adventurous who like greasy food. Fresh tropical
fruits including durians, mangosteens, pineapples, tender coconuts and jack-fruits are
available at the local market. Siam City Hotel's buffet breakfast has a selection of fresh fruits,
raisins, water-melon juice, orange juice, fresh vegetable salads and sautéed green vegetables
for vegans who don't consume any product of animal origin or products which contain minute
traces of any product of animal origin. Koh Kret is known for its rice preparation named "Khao
Cher" which is similar to "pakhalo" in Orissa or "kanji" in Kerala. This dish is a Mon specialty of
rice served with chilled fragrant water and is eaten with green papaya salad and roasted
peanuts. It is a favorite for hot summer days.