Take Me To… is an ongoing series of travel recommendations provided by the experts – Peace Corps Thailand volunteers who have been there! If you’ve traveled to or live somewhere interesting in Thailand, submit your recommendations to us at pctm.stickyrice@gmail.com.
Grace Teng, 134 TESS
When we all got our site placements, naturally the first thing we all did was a quick Google search of our provinces. When I Googled my province, Kalasin, all I found were dinosaurs. Now that I live here, the dinosaurs are less prevalent than I expected, but are certainly a feature that could only be this common in what I now jokingly call jangwat dinosao, or the dinosaur province. There is random dinosaur paraphernalia scattered about everywhere, statues in the center of rotaries and at the top of streetlamps, the occasional mural, the name of a hotel (shoutout to the Dino Hotel), stuffed animals and stickers sold in stores, a feature in some signs at cafes, etc. etc. Now you are probably wondering why dinosaurs are such a mascot of my province, and the answer to that is because the largest concentration of dinosaur fossils in all of Thailand was found here.
After much anticipation, I have finally toured the famous Sirindhorn Museum and, of course, that makes me the expert on Thai dinosaur history. Technically, there are two museums – the old site museum and the more newly constructed Sirindhorn Museum. I went to the old site museum first. There, I learned of one of the prevailing stories of discovery, that of the monk, Phra Khru Wichitsahatkun, better known as, Luang Pu Ha or “Luang Pu Dinosao” (dinosaur grandpa). It is said that dinosaur grandpa had a dream about seeing an ethereal moving figure, with a long neck, and a body that was distinctly larger than an elephant, at the base of the Phu Kum Khao hill, where he subsequently found dinosaur fossils back in 1994. After discovering these remains, he sent word to the District Chief and the Department of Mineral Resources, who then systematically excavated more than 600 bones. Luang Pu Ha is still alive, currently 98, and you can meet him at Wat Sakkawan,a the temple that is within walking distance of the Sirindhorn Museum.
As for the Sirindhorn Museum, was it everything I had hoped it would be? Pretty much, yes. Before you even walk into the museum, there is a garden walkway lined with statues of dinosaurs to greet you. Once inside, be ready to witness a great statue of a T.Rex in action, jaws wide ready to pounce. The museum is built so that you essentially walk around the perimeter, going through time (starting with the Big Bang and working your way to the Cenozoic Era). Of course, the centerpiece of the museum is the layout of gigantic fossils. Some of these fossils include: Phuwiangosaurus sirindhornae, the first sauropod found in Thailand, named after Her Royal Highness Princess Maha Chakri Sirindhorn (who, if you can guess, the museum itself is named after as well) and Isanosaurus attavipatchi, the oldest sauropod found here (its name comes from the region it was found in – Isan, and it is estimated that the bones are 209 million years old). As you near the end of the museum, there is also a fossil lab where you can watch paleontologists work, as they are still excavating fossils to this day. If the museum is not enough for you, there are also spots to hike around the Phu Kum Khao hill and in Phu Faek Forest Park, where you can even see dinosaur footprints (this is still on my bucket list of things to do).
As this is an article all about my extensive knowledge about dinosaurs, I will end it with a couple of dinosaur fun facts:
- The word dinosaur comes from Greek, meaning terrible lizard (although not for its fear factor as much as for its size)
- Dinosaur poop is called coprolite and the largest piece ever found weighs 20 pounds! That is the size of a dachshund.
Notes:
*Foreigners visiting the Sirindhorn Museum shall prepare to pay the “farang” tax or foreigner tax – tickets for us are 100 ฿ instead of 50 ฿.
As much as I am a dinosaur expert, I did use some research assistance to write this article:
- Information boards from the Sirindhorn Museum.
- https://www.nationthailand.com/thai-destination/30340336
- Although I was definitely a bit of a dinosaur kid, I didn’t already have these lovely fun facts in my brain, but instead, I found them here: https://www.thefactsite.com/dinosaur-facts/ (there are 100 in this link if you wish to elevate your dinosaur knowledge too)
Sticky Rice 
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