Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
yang mâi sài nûn;
literally 'no kapok inserted'), which makes the big ones viable as
souvenirs.
If you want to see monkeys, have someone point you to
Don Ling
, 5km out of town at
Ban Tao Hi.
The village is 20km from Yasothon on Rte 202, then 2.5km south of Ban Nikom. Any
Amnat Charoen-bound bus can drop you at the junction (20B to 25B, 45 minutes) where a
motorcycle taxi will zip you in for 20B.
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Roi Et
POP 34,557
There has been a settlement at this spot for at least 2800 years, making this one of Isan's
oldest cities. At one point, legend says, it had 11 city gates, and in ancient writing '11'
was expressed as '10-plus-1'. Somehow this morphed into the city's name, which means
'one hundred one'.
Except for extensive stretches of the old city moat, Roi Et's long history hasn't fol-
lowed it into the 21st century. Still, the city retains a charm and sense of identity all its
own. You can't call Roi Et sleepy, but, perhaps taking its cue from the beloved walking
Buddha on the island in the city-centre lake, it does seem to move to its own urban beat.
