Udon Thaini is the door to Indochina region. This economic province is only 50 kilometers from Laos. Its culture is a mix of Chinese, Vietnamese, Laos, and Thai. There are many beautiful temples and 5,000-year-old world heritage sites for travelers to visit. The Buddhist traditions and ‘Morlum’ music (north-eastern styled folk song) are what make Udon Thani unique.
“Thai PhuanJaew (paste) is the most delicious. We have it since our ancestors’ period for more than 200 years ago. We fry it with rice to make a galangal, sweet and delicious Baan Chiang Jaew fried rice. You cannot find this dish from anywhere else. Only at Baan Chiang.”
Baan Chiang is an original community of Lao Phuan people who migrated from Xiangkhouang State, Laos in order to escape the drought and find the fertilized area for living. When they arrived the area, they found the Paeng trees which symbolized the abundance of the geographical qualities in the area. Therefore, they settled down and became the ancestors of Baan Chiang people.
In 1966, Mr. Stephen B. Young, the son of the United State of America’s ambassador in Thailand at that time, did the research relating to the ethnic of Baan Chiang people. He accidentally found the scattered pieces of a bowl while he was jogging. The pieces were then sent to be examined at theUniversity of Pennsylvania, USA. It was found that the bowl lasts for thousands of years, so researchers decided to conduct the in- depth research on it.
Later on, Baan Chiang therefore became the cultural world heritage of Thailand. At present, people in town do the commerce for a living, and people in the country side still live on agriculture. There is the learning base for a black soil-digging in a rice field. The black soil is used for molding famous handicrafts of Baan Chiang. Tourists will experience the atmosphere of an open field and ancient knowledge. There are group of homestays. The Thai Phuan cultures are compiled and remarkably exhibited in the Thai Phuan Baan Chaing museum.
Recommendation
Tourists visiting Baan Chiang community must strictly follow the community’s rules and prohibitions.
Prohibitions
Do not drink alcohol in the community
Do not gamble
Do not make disturbing noises.
Do not stay outside the community at night time.
Do not break any moral rules according to Buddhism’s principles.
How to get there
From the downtown of Udon Thani, drive along the Udon Thani – Sakon Nakhon highway. Drive along the highway no. 22 for about 50 kilometers until you reach the NongMek intersection. Continue for one more kilometer then turn left to the sign of homestay community, Baan Chiang World Heritage. Continue driving for 5 kilometers and you will reach Baan Chiang Community.
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