Phra That Phu Phek (พระธาตุภูเพ็ก), about 22 kilometers west (32 kilometers by road) of Sakon Nakhon city, crowns a mountain about 520 meters above sea level. There’s a simple, modern Buddhist temple near the ruins, so you can drive most of the way up the mountain, but the final approach to the summit is along a 494-step staircase. You should probably be in reasonably good shape to visit since besides… Read More
Ku Phanna (กู่พันนา), about an hour northwest of Sakon Nakhon city, is the northernmost Khmer ruin; beating Wat Phra Si Rattana Mahathat by about 1/100th of a degree latitude . It’s one of the many arogayasala (hospital) temples built across the empire by King Jayavarman VII (r. 1182-1219) in the early 13th century. Everything was built with laterite and enough is still standing to make a visit enjoyable. The most… Read More
This page has links to all my posts about Khmer-era sites in Thailand, from the grand, inspiring monuments of Phimai and Phnom Rung to various small piles of rubble. Besides temple ruins, there are also some sandstone quarries, piers, and rock carvings. Many of these ruins have multiple names; I’ve chosen the one that seems to be most common. Background Information Arogayasala and Dharmasala Buriram Kuti Ruesi Ban Khok Mueang… Read More