Jui Tui Shrine (Phuket Town)

Yesterday afternoon I took a walk around the streets near Jui Tui Shrine, one of the largest Chinese shrines in Phuket Town. It's just along Ranong Road road from the old market (which has now been demolished and a new building looks like it will be complete sometime soon - great! No more smelly old market!) - easy to find, and certainly worth a look if you are in Phuket Town. Ranong road near the market is busy enough at the best of times. The local buses leave from and arrive at Ranong road. From here you can get a bus to most parts of Phuket island.

During the vegetarian festival, much of the road is packed with food stalls and little restaurants selling Jae (vegetarian) food. I parked a couple of blocks away and wandered along Ranong road. Half close your eyes and ignore the mopeds squeezing through the people, and the road has a very old feel...



And if you look the other way ... a traffic jam. I mean, these people must know what's going on down here. There are plenty of other roads to drive on!



When the vege festival is over the road still has plenty of interest with all the market stalls and local buses, but it's not this crowded! A couple of food stalls...

 

Ah yes, the shrine. Jui Tui is somewhat hidden behind all the food stalls, but follow the smell of incense and you can find it! Yesterday was the day before Jui Tui's street procession, and there were many people heading to the shrine to pray. These shrines are fascinating, very colourful with amazing displays of Chinese gods, a very heady smell of incense in the air, combining to make something you just don't find back home!

 





I have tried to take a couple of short videos too... Practice for tomorrow. I want to take some video tomorrow morning for the Kathu shrine procession to Phuket Town.

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Kathu Shrine

Well Friday night was a bit disappointing! I guess I should have checked local sources (like the schedule posted on the wall of the shrine), but instead believed the festival schedule on the "official" vegetarian website that I copied on this blog.. but there was no bladed ladder climbing or oil bathing at Kathu shrine on Friday night. And there were lots of other similarly confused people there too! I met a big group of tourists who'd come over the hill from Patong. Well, hope you at least enjoyed the local atmosphere. I like Kathu village. I just posted about a walk in Kathu village, now a few more pictures of the shrine.

Compared to the big shrines in Phuket Town like Jui Tui and Bang Neow, Kathu is much quieter, yet it's an impressive building for such a small local community. You have to remember that Kathu was where the festival originated, and it seems the whole village takes part. Hardly anyone around not wearing white, young and old. Kathu village and shrine is worth a visit any evening during the festival...









And a little video of Kathu Shrine too...



Next entry... Jui Tui Shrine - I took a walk around that area yesterday evening. Oh, and the scary bloody face piercing photos will come later. I will drag myself out early tomorrow morning for the Kathu Shrine procession.

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The Vegetarian Festival: An evening walk in Kathu village

Kathu village is one of those quiet backwaters of Phuket that barely seems touched by tourism and development. Yes, there are some new houses and appartments around, yes you can see Mercedes and new pick up trucks outside some of the houses, but this is old Phuket. The Kathu area was the center of the tin mining industry which started in the 18th century. Many of the miners were Chinese, and they settled in this part of Phuket. And it was in Kathu that the vegetarian festival started many many years ago.

At this time of year, walking in the village in the area around the Chinese shrine, you can get a real time warp feeling. The firecrackers, the white clothes, the old shophouses, the shrine... I do recommend a visit. I took a walk around this evening with my wife to buy some vegetarian food and take some photos too! Tomorrow will be interesting as there will be "bladed ladder climbing" and bathing in hot oil at the shrine. See you there! Tonight I did not see any other foreigners. Hard to believe in Phuket, but as I said Kathu is a little off the beaten track, and yet the village and shrine are only about 5 miles from Patong Beach!






(above) local shops in Kathu village


Fireworks over Kathu shrine



The shrine was busy with devotees. We made a donation, kids were throwing mini fireworks left right and center, people were heading into the shrine to pray.. everyone wearing white. See you again tomorrow!

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Vegetarian Festival - The Food

The Phuket Vegetarian Festival is not just about skewered cheeks, Chinese gods and firecrackers, although that's the fun part (and the first of the street processions is tomorrow morning). The food is also very important. Local people (not all, I might add) follow a strict diet which is vegan rather than just vegetarian - no meat, no eggs, no dairy, and for some reason (if someone can tell me, please do!) no garlic or onions. The diet is to cleanse the body and spirit.

It all started way back in 1825 when a Chinese traveling opera troupe (or circus depending what you read) came to the Kathu area of Phuket to perform. At that time, Kathu was the main town in Phuket as it was the center of the tin mining industry that helped make Phuket quite wealthy. Many Chinese settled here during the tin mining boom years, and thus you have a huge Thai-Chinese population in Phuket, mostly around Kathu and Phuket Town. Anyway, the travelers got sick, and then followed a vegetarian diet and bingo! They all got better!

The festival has a long history and yes, I do like to go on about it, as this is something that makes Phuket special for me. See - Phuket is way more than beaches and tourists. Phuket has a rich history, and at this time of year you can really get a taste of something special. Do pardon the pun.

Later this week I'll be heading out to see some of the processions, and also some of the other rituals at the shrines such as firewalking and bladed ladder climbing. I want to get some video this year, though my camera is but a simple one... Last couple of years I stuck to still photos - see Vegetarian Festival Photos.

So, for now, I am still at work all day, but will start a holiday on Friday, so there will be time to get around the shrines. I started on "the diet" yesterday. The food is pretty darn good actually, and fortunately there's a good place to eat close to work. If you are on the back road in Karon, just opposite the post office on the corner of the little road that goes up to CC Blooms Hotel, you find a great little restaurant that is very popular at festival time (actually its pretty good year round for cheap Thai food).



Lunch today started with a vegetarian noodle soup, packed full of all kinds of things, none of them meaty, all delicious ... it's called Yentafo. The meat version I probably would not eat as it tends to include things like coagulated blood and bits of squid. Call me picky.. Little know secret, but I was vegetarian for quite a few years many years ago, so even today I am a bit picky with meat dishes!



And now a close up... And I think the same tomorrow lunchtime!



Oh, that was the starter... main dish was Phad Gaprao. Looks like meat, tastes just great...



Oh, and just to make those taste buds long to be in Phuket right now, let's zoom in...



Of course I am a hypocrite waxing lyrical about this food. By next week I'll be having eggs, bacon and chips for lunch again! But for now, for a week or so, this food is great! If you are in Phuket during the festival look for the stalls or restaurants with the yellow signs. Try something different!

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Eating Out: The Lunch Room

Update 2013. Not open any more!

I don't think there's any mention of this place anywhere on the web yet... well, it only opened a few weeks ago. The Lunch Room is in the Kathu area of Phuket, close to Kathu Waterfall (coming from Patong you'd go just past the waterfall road - Soi Namtok Kathu - and The Lunch Room is on the right side). This area of Kathu is being built up rapidly - lots of new houses around here, and it's also just a couple of minutes from the Loch Palm Golf Club. We live in Kathu and we know the owner of The Lunch Room pretty well - she used to work with my wife years ago in the dive shop - and her husband was a dive instructor too!



The Lunch Room is open every day except Sunday and does Thai food, all day breakfasts, some excellent baguette sandwiches, great big burgers, salads, spaghetti, coffee, cakes... Yes, it's not on the tourist trail, but if you are exploring in the Kathu area, it's a good option for a late breakfast, lunch or early dinner. In fact not too many other options around there except noodles and food stalls around the local market!



We sometimes just call in for a chat and a cappuccino - much bigger and better value than Starbucks. Patong Beach has about 5 of them now - I say support your local independent coffee shop! And while you're at it - have a real burger at The Lunch Room and give McDonalds a miss! The burgers are big and bold and chunky and I do like to have one now and then washed down with a couple of cold Chang beers. They have some TV's in the restaurant and I sometimes head over on a Saturday evening to watch the English football.



The Lunch Room - Location Map


View The Lunch Room - Kathu, Phuket in a larger map

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The Phuket Vegetarian Festival is Coming!

(Update 8th October) - photos are online:

• Phuket Vegetarian Festival Photos 2008

One of my favourite times of year is nearly here! The Phuket Vegetarian Festival starts on September 28th this year. The date is based on the Chinese lunar calendar and varies year to year (last year the festival started on October 11th) - this year is a bit early and I hope the weather holds, as late September/early October has a habit of being rather grotty.

This is a spectacular, gruesome, fascinating festival. There is so much to see, some interesting food to sample, a real sense of history and tradition that many people do not realise exists in Phuket (hey, it's not all beaches, you know!). Over the last couple of years I have tried to see as much as possible, and this year plan to take a week off work in order to better experience the full range of festival happenings. Last year I was in Phuket Town twice for the famous processions which take place this year every morning from the 1st to 7th of October. This is where you see the pierced faces, the purification by pain. The festival is all about purfication of the body.



If you are in Phuket between September 28th and October 7th, please try to see something of this festival. The processions are in the morning starting 7am. Getting up early will be rewarded by an experience of something extreme.



More Photos:

Phuket Vegetarian Festival Photos 2007
Phuket Vegetarian Festival Photos 2006


Phuket Vegetarian Festival Schedule 2008

Street Processions in Phuket Town - Try to see one!

October 1st Sapam Shrine
October 2nd Samkong Shrine
October 3rd Ban Tha Rue Shrine
October 4th Bang Neow Shrine & Cherng Thalay Shrine
October 5th Jui Tui Shrine
October 6th Kathu Shrine & Yokkekeng Shrine
October 7th Sui Boon Tong Shrine


28th September

ALL SHRINES
17:00 Lantern Pole Raising - the pole is how the gods descend to earth. I intend to be at our local shrine for this if possible!
21 - 24:00 Jade Emperor & Nine Emperor Gods Propitiation

Note: (I had to look it up) Propitiation = the act of atoning for sin or wrongdoing (especially appeasing a deity)

29th - 30th September

Not much goes on for the first couple of days - Gods are worshipped morning and evening. Visit a shrine for a real other-world experience. Eat some of the variety of Vegetarian ("Jae") food on offer all over Phuket (especially near the shrines, but you can even find it in Patong).


1st October

KATHU SHRINE
05:00 / 18:00 Worship of Gods
16:00 Warriors Propitiation
16:30 Food Offering to Warriors
19:30 Birth-Death Gods Propitiation

JUI TUI SHRINE
19:30 Food Offering to Warriors
20:45 Birth-Death Gods Propitiation

BANG NEOW SHRINE
15:00 Food Offering to Warriors

SUI BOON TONG SHRINE
15:00 Food Offering to Warriors
20:00 Worship of Gods

SAMKONG SHRINE
15:09 Food Offering to Warriors
20:00 Propitiation of Seven Stars

BAN THA RUE SHRINE
17:30 Food Offering to Warriors
18:30 Birth-Death Gods Propitiation

CHERNG THALAY SHRINE
15:00 Food Offering to Warriors
15:30 Blessing Bang Tao Village
19:00 Worship of Gods

YOKKEKENG SHRINE
15:30 Food Offering to Warriors
20:00 Birth-Death Gods Propitiation at Koh Sirey Beach

SAPAM SHRINE
07:00 Street Procession in Phuket town
15:45 Food Offering to Warriors


2nd October

KATHU SHRINE
05:00 / 18:00 Worship of Gods

JUI TUI SHRINE
Worship of Gods and Spirit Propitiation of Past Participants of the Vegetarian Festival

BANG NEOW SHRINE
Spirit Propitiation of Past Participants of the Vegetarian Festival

SUI BOON TONG SHRINE
20:00 Worship of Gods

SAMKONG SHRINE
05:30 Worship of Gods
07:19 Street Procession in Phuket Town
12:00 Worship of Gods
18:00 Worship of Gods

BAN THA RUE SHRINE
12:00 / 19:30 Worship of Gods

CHERNG THALAY SHRINE
15:00 Food Offering to Warriors
15:30 Blessing Manik and Cherng Thalay Villages
19:00 Worship of Gods

YOKKEKENG SHRINE
07:30 Worship of Gods
20:00 Worship of Gods

SAPAM SHRINE
Worship of Gods



3rd October

KATHU SHRINE
05:00 / 18:00 Worship of Gods
19:00 Oil Bathing & Bladed - Ladder Climbing - You can count on me being here for this!

JUI TUI SHRINE
Worship of Gods

BANG NEOW SHRINE
15:00 Food Offering to Warriors
20:00 Propitiation of Seven Stars

SUI BOON TONG SHRINE
20:00 Worship of Gods
24:00 Propitiation of Gods

SAMKONG SHRINE
05:30 Worship of Gods
15:09 Food Offering to Warriors
18:00 Worship of Gods

BAN THA RUE SHRINE
07:30 Street Procession in Phuket Town

CHERNG THALAY SHRINE
15:00 Food Offering to Warriors
20:09 Propitiation of Seven Stars
23:00 Worship of Gods

YOKKEKENG SHRINE
07:30 Worship of Gods
20:00 Worship of Gods

SAPAM SHRINE
19:00 Street Procession in Sapam Village


4th October

KATHU SHRINE
05:00 Worship of Gods
16:00 Food Offering to Warriors
18:00 Worship of Gods

JUI TUI SHRINE
15:09 Food Offering to Warriors
20:09 Fire Walking at Saphan Hin - I gotta see some fire walking this year!

BANG NEOW SHRINE
07:00 Street Procession in Phuket Town
15:00 Food Offering to Warriors

SUI BOON TONG SHRINE
15:00 Food Offering to Warriors
19:00 Worship of Gods
21:00 Fire Walking

SAMKONG SHRINE
05:30 Worship of Gods
15:09 Food Offering to Warriors
18:00 Worship of Gods

BAN THA RUE SHRINE
17:00 Food Offering to Warriors
20:00 Fire Walking at Shrine

CHERNG THALAY SHRINE
05:30 Worship of Gods
07:30 Street Procession in Thalang District
15:00 Food Offering to Warriors
19:30 Worship of Gods
21:30 Random Selection to Find Servants to Priests in the Next Vegetarian Festival

YOKKEKENG SHRINE
07:30 Worship of Gods
15:30 Food Offering to Warriors
20:00 Fire Walking at Shrine

SAPAM SHRINE
15:30 Food Offering to Warriors
21:00 Fire Walking at Shrine



5th October

KATHU SHRINE
05:00 Worship of Gods
16:00 Food Offering to Warriors
18:00 Worship of Gods
19:00 Propitiation of Seven Stars

JUI TUI SHRINE
08:00 Street Procession in Phuket Town
21:09 Propitiation of Seven Stars

BANG NEOW SHRINE
15:00 Food Offering to Warriors
20:00 Bladed-Ladder Climbing

SAMKONG SHRINE
05:30 Worship of Gods
15:09 Food Offering to Warriors
18:00 Worship of Gods
20:00 Bladed - Ladder Climbing

SUI BOON TONG SHRINE
19:00 Worship of Gods
21:00 Propitiation of Seven Stars

BAN THA RUE SHRINE
20:00 Propitiation of Seven Stars
20:45 Oil Bathing, Tying Children's Wrist

CHERNG THALAY SHRINE
15:00 Food Offering to Warriors
19:59 Bladed-Ladder Climbing
23:00 Worship of Gods

YOKKEKENG SHRINE
20:00 Propitiation of Seven Stars

SAPAM SHRINE
20:00 Propitiation of Seven Stars
20:00 Nail Bridge Crossing; Oil Bathing


6th October

KATHU SHRINE
05:00 Worship of Gods
07:00 Street Procession in Phuket Town - See you there! This is my local shrine - they walk from Kathu Shrine to town (about 4km) before parading in the town.
12:00 Worship of Gods
16:00 Food Offering to Warriors
18:00 Worship of Gods

JUI TUI SHRINE
20:09 Bridge Crossing for Purification

BANG NEOW SHRINE
15:00 Food Offering to Warriors
20:00 Fire Walking at Shrine
22:00 Random Selection to Find Servants to Priests in the Next Vegetarian Festival

SUI BOON TONG SHRINE
20:00 Food Offering to Warriors
24:00 Propitiation of Gods

SAMKONG SHRINE
05:30 Worship of Gods
15:09 Food Offering to Warriors
18:00 Worship of Gods
20:00 Fire Walking at Shrine

BAN THA RUE SHRINE
18:30 Street Procession in Thalang District

CHERNG THALAY SHRINE
15:00 Food Offering to Warriors
20:09 Fire Walking at Shrine
21:30 Worship of Gods

YOKKEKENG SHRINE
07:00 Street Procession in Phuket Town

SAPAM SHRINE
Worship of Gods



7th October

KATHU SHRINE
05:00 Worship of Gods
09:30 Random Selection to Find Servants to Priests in the Next Vegetarian Festival
15:00 Fire Walking at Shrine - I gotta see this!
16:00 Food Offering to Warriors
18:00 Worship of Gods
19:30 Bridge Crossing for Purification
24:00 Siva & Nine Emperor Gods and Birth-Death Gods Farewell

JUI TUI SHRINE
15:09 Food Offering to Warriors
23:09 Siva Farewell
23:45 Nine Emperor Gods Farewell at Saphanhin

BANG NEOW SHRINE
15:00 Food Offering to Warriors
18:00 Bridge Crossing for Purification
22:00 Siva & Nine Emperor Gods Farewell

SUI BOON TONG SHRINE
07:00 Street Procession in Phuket Town
20:00 Worship of Gods
21:00 Bridge Crossing for Purification
24:00 Siva & Nine Emperor Gods Farewell

SAMKONG SHRINE
05:30 Worship of Gods
15:09 Food Offering to Warriors
19:00 Bridge Crossing for Purification
23:09 Siva Farewell
24:00 Nine Emperor Gods Farewell at Saphanhin

BAN THA RUE SHRINE
17:30 Food Offering to Warriors
20:00 Bridge Crossing for Purification and Siva & Nine Emperor Gods Farewell at Nai Yang Beach

CHERNG THALAY SHRINE
05:30 Worship of Gods
15:00 Food Offering to Warriors
18:30 Bridge Crossing for Purification
21:30 Siva Farewell
22:09 Nine Emperor Gods Farewell at Surin Beach

YOKKEKENG SHRINE
07:30 Worship of Gods
15:30 Food Offering to Warriors
20:00 Bridge Crossing for Purification
22:30 Siva Farewell
24:00 Nine Emperor Gods Farewell at Koh Sirey Beach

SAPAM SHRINE
19:45 Bridge Crossing for Purification
22:45 Siva & Nine Emperor Gods Farewell


8th October

ALL SHRINES
15 - 17:00 Lantern Pole Lowering & Warriors Farewell

After all this, a steak and a bottle of Chilean Cabernet. Hope the schedule is useful. For more vegetarian festival info see PhuketVegetarian.com. I hope to catch some of the other events this year - the fire walking, the bladed ladders, oil bathing, along with a couple of the incredible street processions.

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The Similan Islands

In 1999, I came to Thailand as a PADI Dive Instructor looking for work and thinking of spending a year here, maybe 2 if the diving was good. Certainly no thoughts of staying for ever or getting married or raising a family. No, first and foremost, I wanted to dive the Similan Islands. I'd already been teaching scuba diving for a year and had this romantic notion of working on a liveaboard dive boat, cruising the islands, diving every day and getting paid for it too!

It took a couple of months before I got to the Similans, first doing some local diving and teaching courses and even joining a dive boat in Burma for a couple of weeks. There was not that much freelance work and I did think of leaving for greener pastures when finally that first Similan trip was offered. 4 days on a liveaboard, 14 dives. Yes! Now, the local dive sites around Phuket and Phi Phi are good, there's lots of variety, masses of marine life, but... these sites do lack crystal clear waters. I had come from the Caribbean, where 40 meter visibility was normal. I still recall that first moment of the first dive in the amazing Similan Islands - clear water, a frenzy of fishlife, white sand... I say again YES!

 

From that very first dive I knew this was the place to be - the Similan Islands, Thailand and Phuket. The variety of dive sites is amazing - there are beautiful reefs, pinnacles and many sites which feature huge granite boulders with swimthroughs and soft coral gardens. Most liveaboard dive trips also head further north to Koh Bon, Koh Tachai and Richelieu Rock, which is surely my favourite dive site. After about 1000 dives in the area, I've seen everything from tiny ghost pipefish, frogfish and the rare seamoth up to manta rays and a few whalesharks too.





The Similan Island chain is about 40 miles west of Khao Lak, or 60 miles NW of Phuket (depending where you measure from, as the islands stretch 14 miles north to south). There are are 9 islands, which do have real names such as Koh Miang, Koh Similan, but they are normally referred to by number. Islands 5 and 6 are little more than piles of rocks. Island 4 is the national park HQ and has 2 beaches at Princess Bay and Honeymoon Bay. You can walk between the two in less than 10 minutes. On Island 4 you can stay in tents or some basic bungalows, some of which have aircon. There's also a small restaurant, but no dive operation. All diving ops are based at Khao Lak or Phuket.



The Similans are uninhabited except for the national park facilities. No hotels, no bars, no noise... but in high season one helluva lot of divers and day trippers. There is talk of limiting numbers, but I don't reckon it will happen. Maybe 10 years ago it was pretty much only liveaboards heading there, but these days there are lots of speedboats heading out from Khao Lak on day trips for snorkeling and that "remote island paradise" experience. I must say, aside from the beach at Island 8 in what is called Donald Duck Bay (where you can climb up the rocks for a great view), I have never had a problem with crowds. The day trippers generally all go to the same places for snorkeling, which does not affect the dive boats. You do sometimes get a few dive boats on the same spot (or more than a few at Koh Bon or Richelieu Rock), but I've never found this to be a worry.



For me, the Similan Islands are a special place. My reason for staying here - at least initially - was the diving. After my first season diving the Similans, I was back in Phuket. I met a girl who was working in the office for the same dive company. The rest is history.

Similan Links... You can book diving with Sunrise Divers.

• Similan Islands Information, Photos, Dive Site Guide
• Similan Islands Liveaboards
• More about Liveaboards on this blog

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