Another traveling scene eginning with a four-wheeled vehicle and cheerful music throughout the journey temporarily halted the commotion of big cities.Approximately four hours from the point of departure in front of the Agricultural Land Reform Office on Rajdamnoen Avenue, we drove pass the idyllic scene of highway 305 on the Rangsit - Nakhon route. We turned left at Kabinburi juncture into highway 304 and stayed on the road for another 100kilometers to our destination at 'Dong Payafai' the deserted evergreen forest of Nakhon Ratchasima.
For nearly half a century, the evergreen forest was turned into a fertile green belt of vegetable farm and fruit orchards and the site of a new district south of Nakhon Ratchasima called 'Wang Nam Khiao'.Our first stop on this trip was Suchada Garden, a garden that boasts more than 30 species of anthurium including the Tropical Montana. A short distance from there, one can have a magnificent view of an eight-acre vineyard of 'dark purple black Opal' seedless grapes which are almost like the artery of the farm providing it with the main source of income. I took along pause to take in the beauty of Suchada Garden, only awaken by the beckoning of the agricultural sage who reminded us it was time to leave for the next leg of the journey.
By twilight. our car moved slowly on the laterite road through the thick fog. As it came to a halt, it was at the foot of the mountain in front of the Sufficiency Economy Settlement of Wang Nam Khiao district. The agricultural sage gave us some background to the place that "This plot of land was estblished by Nakhon Ratchasima Agricultural Land Reform Office in 2003 under the Ministry of Agriculture's policy to address the issue of poverty. The land was allocated to farmers who had no farmland of their own to allow them
to make the most out of the farmland. Today, the scheme under the Agricultural Land Reform Office has already benefited 200 households.
Under the scheme, each farmer was allocated one acre of land where they grow chemical-free vegetables and raise cattle. Farmers are also given the opportunity to co-invest or become members of the tourist enterprise where eco-tourism in Wang Nam Khiao Sufficiency Economy Settlement is promoted as another means to raise supplementary income".
With the brief knowledge. it was time to enjoy the scenic views around Wang Nam Khiao.
The name Wang Nam Khiao - the Green Water Palace - is so called because of its topography and the glass-clear water with the reflection of the greenery in the immediate environs. The highand, approximately 200 - 700 meters above the sea level, together with the surrounding mountain ranges are responsible for Wang Nam Khiao's mild climate with year-round rain, fog and fresh air, the very features that make it the world's seventh high ozone region.
When combined with the vegetable belt and fruit orchards, Wang Nam Khiao emerges as one of Thailand's top tourist attractions where tourists can enjoy its natural beauty as much as a rang of activities relevant to ecotourism in the Sufficiency Economy Settlement.
A trek or a bicycle-ride will give tourists a glimpse of the livelihood of the farmers who work on their vegetable patches, fish from their rowboats and raise cattle which freely graze in the field. On the way, tourists can pick up fresh, inexpensive chemical-free vegetables like carrot, broccoli, tomato and capsicum, all the good things of nature direct from the vegetable patches.
At these vegetable patches, one can easily become oblivious to the fleeting moments even the darkness that shrouded Wang Nam Khiao went on unnoticed. By then, it was time to retire indoors. Wang Nam Khiao Sufficiency Economy Settlement provides tourists with dam-side home-stay accommodation that includes two large bungalows and ten smaller ones, each capable of taking between two to six persons. Camping site is also available to those who prefer to enjoy the night in the open.The light of a new day reminded everyone that it was time to bid farewell to Wang Nam Khiao. I left it with fond memories and let the wind bear my promise to the plants that I would one day return to 'Wang Nam Khiao Sufficiency Settlement'.
For nearly half a century, the evergreen forest was turned into a fertile green belt of vegetable farm and fruit orchards and the site of a new district south of Nakhon Ratchasima called 'Wang Nam Khiao'.Our first stop on this trip was Suchada Garden, a garden that boasts more than 30 species of anthurium including the Tropical Montana. A short distance from there, one can have a magnificent view of an eight-acre vineyard of 'dark purple black Opal' seedless grapes which are almost like the artery of the farm providing it with the main source of income. I took along pause to take in the beauty of Suchada Garden, only awaken by the beckoning of the agricultural sage who reminded us it was time to leave for the next leg of the journey.
By twilight. our car moved slowly on the laterite road through the thick fog. As it came to a halt, it was at the foot of the mountain in front of the Sufficiency Economy Settlement of Wang Nam Khiao district. The agricultural sage gave us some background to the place that "This plot of land was estblished by Nakhon Ratchasima Agricultural Land Reform Office in 2003 under the Ministry of Agriculture's policy to address the issue of poverty. The land was allocated to farmers who had no farmland of their own to allow them
to make the most out of the farmland. Today, the scheme under the Agricultural Land Reform Office has already benefited 200 households.
Under the scheme, each farmer was allocated one acre of land where they grow chemical-free vegetables and raise cattle. Farmers are also given the opportunity to co-invest or become members of the tourist enterprise where eco-tourism in Wang Nam Khiao Sufficiency Economy Settlement is promoted as another means to raise supplementary income".
With the brief knowledge. it was time to enjoy the scenic views around Wang Nam Khiao.
The name Wang Nam Khiao - the Green Water Palace - is so called because of its topography and the glass-clear water with the reflection of the greenery in the immediate environs. The highand, approximately 200 - 700 meters above the sea level, together with the surrounding mountain ranges are responsible for Wang Nam Khiao's mild climate with year-round rain, fog and fresh air, the very features that make it the world's seventh high ozone region.
When combined with the vegetable belt and fruit orchards, Wang Nam Khiao emerges as one of Thailand's top tourist attractions where tourists can enjoy its natural beauty as much as a rang of activities relevant to ecotourism in the Sufficiency Economy Settlement.
A trek or a bicycle-ride will give tourists a glimpse of the livelihood of the farmers who work on their vegetable patches, fish from their rowboats and raise cattle which freely graze in the field. On the way, tourists can pick up fresh, inexpensive chemical-free vegetables like carrot, broccoli, tomato and capsicum, all the good things of nature direct from the vegetable patches.
At these vegetable patches, one can easily become oblivious to the fleeting moments even the darkness that shrouded Wang Nam Khiao went on unnoticed. By then, it was time to retire indoors. Wang Nam Khiao Sufficiency Economy Settlement provides tourists with dam-side home-stay accommodation that includes two large bungalows and ten smaller ones, each capable of taking between two to six persons. Camping site is also available to those who prefer to enjoy the night in the open.The light of a new day reminded everyone that it was time to bid farewell to Wang Nam Khiao. I left it with fond memories and let the wind bear my promise to the plants that I would one day return to 'Wang Nam Khiao Sufficiency Settlement'.
