NAKHON PHANOM: The water level in the Mekong river has dropped quickly and was only about 1.90 metres deep in this northeastern border province on Monday, the lowest this year.
The lack of water is being blamed on the many dams upstream in China, and this year's poor rainfall. Levels in the Mekong's tributaries are also very low.
As a result, rock formations on the river bed are clearly visible. They include a rock where, according to legend, a Buddha footprint was left in the middle of the Mekong river about 2,000 years ago.
The footprint, highly revered by the local people and regarded as sacred, normally does not appear until well after the New Year, during the river's seasonal drop.
It is in front of Wat Ban Woen Phra Bat in Tha Uthen district.
Tambon Woen Phra Bat has built a walkway from the river bank to the rock formation, so people can take a close look and pay respect to.
It is expected to continue drawing visitors from now until the Songkran holiday in April.
