Cha-Am blog by onlychaam

Asian leaders arrived yesterday in Thailand for the 14th Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) summit in Cha-Am. I mean Hua Hin. Or is it “Cha-Am, Hua Hin” or “Hua Hin, Cha-Am”? The two cities and the two provinces are of course trying to take the credit. The summit is actually held in Cha-Am, at the Dusit Thani hotel, but it is very close to the boundary with Hua Hin and Prachuap Kirikhan province. As Hua Hin is ahead of Cha-Am in terms of popularity and development, and poor old Cha-Am is sort of lagging behind (which is why Cha-Amers love Cha-Am, of course), it’s not surprising to see that there is some competition going on.

I won’t take any pictures of the summit, as of course I wouldn’t be able to get close enough to take any interesting pictures (apart from the soldiers and the police who are everywhere, but I heard they’re not keen on modelling). I would have liked to take pictures of the big welcoming signs, though, and of the national flags flapping in the wind on the road leading to Cha-Am. But the thing is, my house was “visited” last Sunday before the wee hours of the morning, and the bastards stole my camera. I have very strong suspicions about who did the job, but I can’t prove it and I have to admit my level of security was pretty low (that was already changed radically).

The office close permanent on March 20, 2009 and move the office to Singkhon Immigration in T. Klongwan A. Mung Prachupkirikhun province. This is the message that can be seen at the Immigration Office in Hua Hin. No map, no directions, no telephone number! While they are thinking of giving Hua Hin the status of a province because its economy is developing quickly, things will not be any easier for the “Farangs”, who will have to travel 200 km down south to renew their visas. A few days before it seems that they also passed a law so that foreigners are required to go to a specific office, depending on where they live. So don’t even think of going to Bangkok if you live in Cha-Am. The re-entry permit office at Suvarnabhumi having been closed too, you will probably have to go to Prachuap even for a re-entry permit.

So, where exactly is the new Immigration Office? First of all it’s not new, it is actually the old place where everybody had to go before they opened an office in Hua Hin 6 or 7 years ago. Old timers will know the way, and for the others who want to drive there by themselves, here are the directions: go south on Phetkasem (highway #4), pass Pranburi and Prachuap Kirikan, then turn west just after km 331, in the direction of Khlong Wan and Dan Singkhon, and drive for about 8 km.

Personally I don’t mind the change too much, as I drive down south quite regularly and it’s just on the way, but I can imagine that many people will be angry and disappointed at the news. I will post more pictures and information when I go there myself, but people say that there is a nice furniture shop near the border, as well as restaurants. Unfortunately the border is not opened, so a trip to Burma is out of the question.

The proposal is not new, but it’s being pushed again: unifying Hua Hin and Cha-Am in a same, new province. The project dates back from 2003, under Thaksin’s administration, but it had been shelved until recently. The idea is to make things easier for people conducting business in an area which has known a rapid economic boom over the last several years. But the proposal meets a strong opposition from local leaders and local population. MPs from both Phetchaburi (Cha-Am’s province) and Prachuap Khiri Khan (Hua Hin’s province) are concerned that it will remain not much of the two provinces if Cha-Am and Hua Hin are taken away. People fear that the new province will drain up human resources and state funding, thus depriving the outlying areas. They also point that each province has its own cultural identity and that they are not willing to merge.

Most people here in Cha-Am are not worried and are convinced that the project will never see the light of day, precisely because it meets too strong an opposition. But whether it happens or not, there is already a proposal for a name: the new province would be called Klai Kang Won, which means “far from worries”. It is named after Klai Kang Won Palace, built in Hua Hin in 1928 under the reign of King Rama VII, as a summertime retreat for the royal household. If the province is actually created, it would be the 77th province of Thailand. But some people, like Hua Hin’s mayor, suggest that Hua Hin be only upgraded to a “special administrative entity”, like Bangkok and Pattaya, to have more independence in the way it is administrated.

If you happen to be in Cha-Am at the moment, you can’t help but notice that Valentine’s Day is coming. Red heart-shaped cushions or soft toys are everywhere, as you can see in our pictures below. It is not a traditional Thai holiday, of course, but Thai people can be shy and romantic too, so this kind of occasion sort of makes things easier for young people to declare their love.

Another thing you must have noticed is that there is some serious roadworks on the road going to Hua Hin. Dozens of gardeners are also at work on the central reservation. No doubt, Cha-Am is getting ready for the ASEAN summit that will take place in Hua Hin at the end of this month.