Study trip to Songkhla and Satun provinces
Friday, 23 – Sunday, 25 March 2012
Leader: Senator Suriya Panjor, the Senator from Satun province
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Songkhla has long been a major center in the southern part of what is now Thailand. Situated strategically on a peninsula between Songkhla Lake and the Gulf of Thailand. Songkhla was an important component in the maritime empire of Sririjaya, which flourished from the eighth to the thirteenth centuries in the area of present-day Sumatra, the Malay Peninsula and southern Thailand. It was still an important trading center in the sixteenth century when the first Europeans arrived in Southeast Asia and called the area “Singora”. The province was key trading outpost for the south of Siam during the Ayutthaya period. Today, Songkhla is modern town, there are many good hotels, good museums, good roads and certainly good seafood restaurants.
Satun is the west coast’s southernmost province, the principal visitor attraction are Ko Tarutao National Park and Thale Ban National Park. Before 1813 Satun was a district of the Malay state of Kedah: the name “Satun” comes from the Malay “Setul”, a type of tree common in this area. At the time Kedah, along with Kalantan, Terengganu and Perlis, paid tribute to Siam. The Anglo Siamese Treaty of 1909 released parts of these states to Britain and they later became part of independent Malaysia. Satun became a province of Siam in 1925. Today an estimated 76% of population is Muslim, most of who speak Yawi or Malay as a first language, and there are 170 
mosques and 31 temples in the province.
Satun is located, some 973 kilometres from Bangkok, occupying an area of 2,478 square kilometers. Satun borders on Trang, Phattalung and Songkhla to the north, Perlis state of Malaysia to the south and the east, and Indian Ocean to the west. The area is mountainous, having a basin in the coastal area, and there are over 60 off-shore islands. There are 3 national parks and 18 forest reserve areas. Thale Ban National Park is a lush expanse of dense tropical rainforest scattered with waterfalls, which extends over the Banthat Mountains close to the Malaysian border and is a short distance from the town of Satun. It covers only 162 sq.km. but contains a variety of wildlife.
Under the leadership of Senator Suriya Panjor, the Senator from Satun province, The Siam Society is arranging a study trip to visit some of historical sites, interesting mosques, Muslim villages, museums and temples in Songkhla and Satun provinces from Friday, 23 to Sunday, 25 March 2012. Members will spend two nights at very good hotel built on the beach in Songkhla province.
The tentative programme will be as follows:
Day 1: Friday, 23 March 2012: Bangkok – Songkhla (via Hat Yai) |
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| 05:05 p.m. | Meet at Bangkok Suvarnabhumi Inlt. Airport. |
| 06:05 p.m. | Depart Bangkok to Hat Yai by Thai Airways Intl. flight TG237. |
| 07:30 p.m. | Arrive at Hat Yai Intl. Airport. |
| 08:00 p.m. | Transfer to BP Samila Beach Hotel in Songkhla province. |
| 08:30 p.m. | Arrive at the hotel for check-in. (Dinner at own arrangement). |
| - | Overnight at BP Samila Beach Hotel. |
Day 2: Saturday, 24 March 2012: Songkhla |
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| 07:00 a.m. | Breakfast at the hotel. |
| Morning: | Visit Songkhla National Museum, Wat Matchimawat and visit the old part of the city of Singora (Songkhla). |
| Noon: | Lunch at local restaurant at Songkhla Lake. |
| Afternoon: | Visit the Folklore Museum at the Institute of Southern Thai Studies at Ko Yor and enjoy a traditional folk dance“Rong Ngeng performance”, follows by a visit to some of local textile shops on the island. |
| Late afternoon: | Visit Khao Tang Kuan and Muslim village. |
| Evening: | Dinner at local restaurant and overnight at the hotel. |
Day 3: Sunday, 25 March 2012: Satun - Bangkok |
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| 07:00 a.m. | Breakfast at the hotel. |
| 08:00 a.m. | Proceed to Satun province. |
| 09:15 a.m. | Arrive in Satun, visit the Mum Bang mosque, the first mosque in the town, meet some of the Muslim’s community leaders, and visit Po Noh school. |
| - | Proceed to Kuden Palace. Visit two-storey house which was designed in the late 19th century by an architect from Penang and was the governor’s residence. At present the house is serving as Satun National Museum. |
| - | Visit Wat Chanathipchaloem and Chinese temple “Po Je Keng”. |
| Noon: | Lunch at local Muslim restaurant. |
| Afternoon: | Visit “Jea Li Bang” village and stop to buy some handicraft or visit Thale Ban National Park, follow by visiting Thai-Malaysian Borders at Ban Wang Krachan. |
| Late afternoon: | Proceed back to Hat Yai, Songkhla province. |
| 06:45 p.m. | Arrive at Hat Yai Airport, check-in for flight back to Bangkok. |
| - | Dinner at own arrangement. |
| 08:15 p.m. | Depart Hat Yai Airport to Bangkok by Thai Airways Intl. flight TG238. |
| 09:40 p.m. | Arrive at Bangkok Suvarnabhumi Inlt. Airport. |
Booking
A contribution of Bt. 18,000 per person is solicited to meet costs. Your contribution will cover airfare, all transportation as mentioned in the programme, two nights accommodation at BP Samila Beach Hotel in Songkhla province (two persons per room), 5 meals and all other arrangements to make the trip possible. An additional sum of Bt. 1,500 is requested for a single room. Please pay by cash or cheque (payable to ‘The Siam Society’). Alternatively you can deposit/transfer the money to the Siam Society travel account at the Thai Military Bank, Asoke Branch saving account no. 053-2-18000-7. Please fax or e-mail the deposit or transfer docket to us. There is a 4% surcharge for credit/debit card payment to cover bank charges
The Siam Society reserves the right to change the programme as necessary. Seats are limited. Please book your place as soon as possible.
For further information and bookings please contact Khun Prasert (ext. 504) or Khun Ekkarin (ext. 506) on 0 2661 6470-7, fax 0 2258 3491 or e-mail: ekkarin@siam-society.org. Office hours: 9:00am.–5:00pm. Tuesday–Saturday (except holidays).