After a really good night rest, because I was indeed exhausted after the day prior, the morning really got going together with my good friend over a delicious breakfast at a local cafe. Meeting up with, let’s continue to call him Oat, for breakfast, we discussed how to spend this brand new day in the absolutely best way. Oat had taken a day off from his own business venture in order to be able to spend as much time as he could, being my guide and company for my visit. We hadn’t seen each other for quite some years already, so it therefore really fantastic to have time to spend together.
To read: My Pride, My Thai part 1: The Preparation (opens in a new tab).
To read: My Pride, My Thai part 2: The flight (opens in a new tab).
To read: My Pride, My Thai part 3: The arrival (opens in a new tab).
To read: My Pride, My Thai part 4: The first morning (opens in a new tab).
To read: My Pride, My Thai part 5: Big C (opens in a new tab).
To read: My Pride, My Thai part 6: Bangkok (opens in a new tab).
To read: My Pride, My Thai part 7: 200 THB to heaven (opens in a new tab).
To read: My Pride, My Thai part 8: Bangkok - Ubon Ratchathani (opens in a new tab).
To read: My Pride, My Thai part 9: Being a celebrity in Thailand (opens in a new tab).
To read: My Pride, My Thai part 10: From Sisakhet to Sakon Nakhon (opens in a new tab).
In the days after visiting his north eastern city, I thought a lot about how incredible it is to friend like this. If you have ever had a good friend that never ignores you, that replies to all your messages no matter what time of the day it is, makes you laugh again and again, that you know you can trust with full force of your heart, that sends you various acknowledgements through different social medias several times each day, that respects you, has a lot of business-smart and is pushing you forward when you are stuck, then you will know the value of such friendships. To be honest, I have never been very spoiled when it comes to really close friends like this, throughout several decades of my life, so Oat means more to me than anyone else. Oat is a good friend that makes me try harder and better at many thing I try to do. If you never in your life have had a friend like this in your life, I truly feel sorry for you, because it is the absolutely best feeling in the whole world. Simply said, there is no people in the world I have more respect for, than those who plants trees in which shade they'll never get to sit.
Anyway, back to the perfect day in Sakon Nakhon, we ate great food, we drank lots of coffee, we toured the city and naturally, we visited some really beautiful temples as well. Perhaps not a strange thing, but away from the busy streets of any city, within temple-grounds, a serene and wonderful atmosphere can almost always be found.
Sakon Nakhon can be found in the Isan (also known as Esan / Esarn) region where spicy foods such as for example Som Tam is a very famous dish. The city has a population of about 76.000 people, a little less than half of my own city in Norway, Trondheim. If I’m not mistaken, the city name can literally be translated into "the international town". Sakon Nakhon province has a calculated land area of 9605 square kilometers, just slightly bigger than Rogaland county in my own country.
If we go further back in time, this city had also been known as Nongharn town, because it lies in the middle of vast farmlands, at the south western bank of the largest north eastern Thailand lake, Lake Nong Harn. Records of the town can be found in history as far back as the 11th century, when the Khmer ruled this region. When the Khmer lost their power, the town came under the rules of Lanxang or the Laotian kingdom. At that time, the city was then renamed Muang Chieng Mai Nongharn, but when the town later joined Siam, it was once again renamed and given the name Sakon Thavapi. In 1830, during the reign of King Rama III, the town finally got the name Sakon Nakhon (some books even calls it the very similar name Sakhon Nakhon).
As you may remember from my many previously written stories, where I wrote about time not being important in the country side, this day felt like one of the shortest days of my life ever. I often caught myself thinking that I wish the day would never end. I truly had such a great time, and I felt like I got to meet not only my good friend Oat, but also other equally wonderful people living there. To meet other people and to make new connections is such a wonderful blessing and adds the perfect flavour to any journey in life.
Making the journey to this city was indeed a very long drive, but I never questioned myself whether or not I should make the trip. I knew that this was a trip I had to make, and that I really wanted to make. I’m so glad I made the trip, it would become one of the absolutely best experiences of the year. As many of you already know, there is no greater present, than giving time.
