It's just a bloody rock

Did I want to go on a photo trip, enquired my neighbour Nik. Is the pope Catholic? Do I mind being at the car park at 0430 this morning? Is the pope Jewish?

Of course I minded, but I dragged myself out of bed and away we went. Our destination was Khao Khitchakut and a large rock that has become a shrine for Thais to visit. This is because nobody can work out how a big rock came to be standing on the edge of a cliff; and that’s because nobody involved has the slightest bloody idea about basic geology, and chooses to ignore the many other big rocks littered around the landscape, (and you can make a load of money from shrines).

She who must obeyed informs me that “in the old days”, they could pass a piece of string right under the rock, because the rock, somehow magically, didn’t touch the ground. “No, they couldn’t”, was the only rational reply.

We were in the car park at the base of the mountain at around 0700 and then had to take two truck rides to the top. The trip starts out on a gradual slope…

…but soon becomes a winding, steep climb up a muddy track where only a four wheel drive can survive. Naturally our driver drove flat out, and we whizzed up the hill at high speed, narrowly avoiding similar trucks rocketing down the hill. Rather fun actually, although there must be the occasional dramatic accident. Half way up you disembark and buy another ticket for the next leg. This is a chance for them to relieve you of 50 baht twice; but I rather suspect that the transmission and brakes of the trucks would not survive a run over the full distance.

Alighting from the second truck I looked for the rock, but Nik then informed me we had a half-hour walk up the mountain ahead of us. Not what I wanted to hear given my brain was still dozing in bed.

But we set off up the mountain and it was encouraging that some walkers looked even older than me.

There was another option for getting up the hill, one which I would have gladly taken if it were not for my pride:

To amuse you while you climbed, there were endless bells, tolling for my imminent cardiac arrest, or so it felt.

And murdered flowers. For some reason it was deemed appropriate to buy flowers at the base of the hill and then shred them as you climbed.

Added to the mess were porcupines made of incense sticks, never to be lit; just more detritus to be cleaned up by the army of cleaners that swept away the offerings discarded by climbers,

These were stuck on a boulder, why?

Slowly we climbed. Or rather, slowly I climbed. Nik ascends our condo fire exit steps four times a day, the equivalent of the height of the Empire State Building. I take the lift to my floor. The difference in our fitness levels was evident, with me stopping to check my camera settings more often than was strictly necessary.

Finally, we were at the rock. Then we went beyond the rock and further up the hill to get this view:

Nice rock, but it’s just a bloody rock. Not according to the masses accumulated at its base.

I love you rock:

Apart from the commerce taking place around the rock, there were enterprises designed to take your money, stuffed into every spare space all the way up, and on top of, the mountain. This guy blocked the path, apart from a tiny space on the right. Staple some money to his construction as you pass and you will surely be lucky; although not as lucky as he will be this evening when he spends all those notes.

I have become immune to the small scale extortion that exists around temples in Thailand, feeding shamelessly on the gullible in search of bettering their lot courtesy of luck. But this place was at another level. More than a kilometre of tawdry nonsense, complete with Buddha images and monks, trying to hide the fact that all we had here was a fucking big boulder. Possibly fuelled by my weariness, I found the place rather sad and depressing. Fun to photograph though, here are a few more photos:

All shots taken with the Panasonic GX1, never was its light weight more appreciated.

Comments 🔗

2012-02-29 | Pomtong says

Went there exactly a year ago… same, same for me: if it wasn’t for the pride I would have sit the way up the hill :)

I was amazed how many Farangs took the tour.

Thanks for the nice pictures. Mine are not so bright

2012-03-01 | chang noi says

You sound a bit skeptical (stayed too long in Asia?). As I am not a Buddhist I have the right to decline this kind of things and so I do not have to obey the one should be obeyed. Even if you call him Nik. As of rocks … maybe we can introduce something like that on the mountain top next to Ubolrat lake where the rocks are even much bigger. Creating tourist attractions it is called.

2012-03-03 | MeMock says

Did you try and push it down the hill? That would have made the trip more interesting.