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Phitsanoloke is a medium sized town of 75,000 people which sits on the Nan River some 390 Km north of Bangkok on the northern railway line. An interesting town in itself, Phitsanoloke also makes a good base from which to visit the ancient capital of Suhkothai 50 Km away.
A local attraction are the "flying vegetable" vendors at the Phitsanoloke night markets - chefs stir fry wok-loads of morning glory then propel the contents up in the air to be caught by a waiter ready to be served up. Quite a spectacle at times although the actual dish ( ask for "pak bung" if you want to order some yourself ) wasn't to my tastes at all !
Another local curiosity are the house boats along the river - no where else in Thailand can you (legally anyway) live on a houseboat permanently. A walk along the Nan River in the morning is interesting and reveals a hive of activity.
A temple not to be missed in town is Wat Phra Si which contains one of Thailand's most revered buhdda images, the Chinnarat Buhdda. Aside from the spectacular buhdda there are some interesting temple structures and a huge standing buhdda image just outside the compound. Be sure to set aside an hour or so for this spectacular temple and the nearby river banks.
There are plenty of hotels around town so check out the special deals offered by Hotelz Asia.
There are lots of food stalls and restaurants in Phitsanoloke and the local cooking is both cheap and tasty. You best bet for dinner is to wander down to the night markets where you will find a bewildering array of hot dishes and fresh fruit to choose from. Watching people throw around fried "pak bung" serves as entertainment whilst you eat.
If you tire of the markets there are a number of floating restaurants to try out. Prices at these floating restaurants are reasonable albiet more expensive than eating at the markets. Still, you are paying for the view and the chance to enjoy river life over a meal.
Phitsanoloke makes a good stopover if you are heading up to Chiang Mai - I would recommend taking the train from Bangkok. There are also plenty of buses in all directions as well as direct flights from Bangkok.
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