Time and tide wait for no man, so they say. Nah, that's not necessarily true, especially in Lat Chado.
When I first visited this waterside settlement in Ayutthaya's Phak Hai district in July 2007, I was told by the villagers there that, except for the absence of the once bustling trade, their community hadn't changed much from the time when they were young. Another decade has passed. Last week I returned to Lat Chado, this time with a bike, and found that the place still looks pretty much the same.
Old houses and other wooden architecture still line both sides of the waterway, which in the past connected towns by the Tha Chin River to the west with those by the Noi and Chao Phraya rivers to the east, including Bangkok. With such a strategic location Lat Chado served as a trading hub. But around 1983-1984, with the constructions of roads and highways in these parts coupled with the blocking of waterways by floodgates, the business role of this canalside market faded into history.
Admirably, the local people managed to preserve the physical appearance of their community. Unlike many other places, no one replaces their decades-old wooden houses with modern concrete ones. Over the past years, Lat Chado had been the shooting location of several Thai films that required retro setting, among them Boonchu 7 (1993), Satang (2000) and The Happiness Of Kati (2009).
These days, not all shops in the market are in operation, but those that do still stick to their original family businesses. Snacks and goods I was familiar with as a child can still be found here. One very important side note is that, unlike elsewhere, commercial eyesores such as advertisement signs and logos of international brands are virtually non-existent.
Over the past years, there have been efforts to draw tourists to Lat Chado. Luckily, somehow, those attempts were not successful. Otherwise, who knows, Lat Chado might have followed the path of more famous canalside communities such as Damnoen Saduak of Ratchaburi and Amphawa of Samut Songkhram, which sacrificed much of their original charms to commercialism.
On the day of my latest visit, Lat Chado was livelier than usual. Villagers gathered, preparing boats for the annual lent candle procession, which would take place the following day along the canal. Colourful little flags were adorned on the waterside areas for the event.
Actually, you don't really need a bicycle to explore Lat Chado. The community is not so big. But a bike (preferably a foldie or anything with small wheels, which are not so obtrusive, although some locals do use motorcycles on the alleyways) will give you a good topic for conversation with the people in the old neighbourhood. Besides, you can ride to the century-old Khun Phithak House by Noi River in nearby Phak Hai. The house, also known as Ban Khieao because it is painted green, was home to Khun Phithak Borihan, a local elite who in the past operated a boat service between Phak Hai and Tha Tian in Bangkok. The place may not be well preserved but it's well worth the ride.
Well, see you here again next Thursday. Until then, if you have questions, news or biking insights you wish to share, please feel free to send an email to pongpetm@bangkokpost.co.th or go to Freewheel Bangkok community page on Facebook.
Pongpet Mekloy is the Bangkok Post's travel editor and a mountain bike freak.
Khun Phithak House.
