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 Popularly
used as a base by travelers visiting the nearby ruins at Sukhothai,
Phitsanulok has attractions of its own. Called "Phi-lok” by the
locals, the towns draw includes the Wat Phra Si Ratana Mahathat (known
locally as Wat Yai), which contains Phra Phuttha Chinnarat, one of the
most beautiful and revered Buddha images in Thailand.
A destination in itself, Phi-lok’s youth hostel is a shady retreat of
rambling walkways and salvaged architectural details. The rooms are
individually decorated, some with four-poster beds and stained glass.
There is a friendly restaurant/café and breakfast is included in the
room rate.
A HI membership is mandatory. More plaudits: the manager speaks English
well and can field question like a pro. The hostel is 1.5 km east of the
city center.
 Near
Th Phuttha Bucha is the London Hotel. Visitors find this wooden
converted shorefront cute, smelling of wood polish and sporting a lime
and lemon paint job. You can walk here from the train station; go to the
main road and turn left, then take the first right turn on to Th
Sailuthai. Rooms are with shared bathrooms.
Phitsanulok is a market crossroads for the country’s vegetable
production and in turn has pick of the harvest.
Shop display cases proudly present bunches of greens and fresh baby corn
that don’t need a lot of fuss to be delicious; good sampler dish is phat
phak and other veggie dishes at the food stalls, just west of London
Hotel near the cinema.
In the night market along the river, a couple of street vendors
specialize in preparing phak bung lawy faa, which translates as ‘flying
vegetable’—referring to the way the dish is prepared as it’s tossed in
the wok. The dish is glorious to vegetable-lovers but it’s ingredients
are nothing special; water spinach stir-fried in soya bean sauce and
garlic.
Floating restaurants on the Mae Nam Nan fill the evening meal slot. The
old favorite of Phae Fa Thai (Th Wangchan) is very filling.
 If
a culture could be summed up in one broad generalization, the average
Thai outing to Phitsanulok accurately captures the full of people will
unload at Wat Phra Si Ratana Mahathat for merit-making, then they all
head to Pa Lai (Th Phuttha Bucha) an equally esteemed noodle shop. Its
famous kuaytiaw hawy khaa (literally, legs-hanging rice noodles) comes
from the way customers sit on a bench facing the river, with their legs
dangling below.
Hanging out in Phi-lok means beer served with ice (keeps the beverage
cool) and lots of squeaky guitars. Most of the action can be found on Th
Borom Trailokanat near the Pailyn Hotel in the southern part of the
city.
How to get there:
Phitsanulok is a major juncture between the north and northeast. Most
buses stop at the government bus station on highway 12 about 1.5km from
the town center. Buses for Bangkok depart from private Bus Company
offices in the town center on Th Ekathotsarot south of the train
station.
Available bus trips include Bangkok, Chiang Mai, Sukhothai, Si
Satchanalai, and Khon Kaen.
The train station is in the center of town on Th Ekathosarot and Th
naresuan. Trains to Bangkok are more convenient option, since Bangkok’s
train station is in the center of the city. Trains north to Chiang Mai
usually depart in the afternoon.
City buses run between the town center and the airport (bus No. 4) or
bus terminal (bus No 1) for 4B. The TAT office distributes a local bus
route hand-out. A couple of the lines also feature air-con coaches for
6B. the terminal for city buses is south of the train station on Th
Ekathotsarot near the Am Pm store.
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