Home Town – That Phanom – Retirement Reimagined: Thailand

We are living here

Our small rural town of That Phanom is situated in Nakhon Phanom Province in northeastern Thailand. It is bordering Laos to the east across the Mekong River. The provincial capital, is also called Nakhon Phanom. This image shows the location of Nakhon Phanom Province relative to other locations & countries. It is where we now reside.

That Phanom’s location on the bank of the Mekong River has made it a prime agricultural area. Tomatoes, in particular, are one of the more profitable crops. It is also the only district in the northeast where scrap metal or discarded metal is processed into machetes. It is classified as a community enterprise that generates an annual income of up to 30–40 million baht. As in other areas of Thailand, there are numerous small farms, rice crops dotted around, as well as banana plants.

Town of That Phanom

The district of That Phanom (shown in red where it is located in Nakohn Phanom Province) is divided into 12 sub-districts (Tambons), which are further subdivided into 142 villages (mubans). The town itself is fairly small with about 12,000 residents, while the whole district area has a population of around 84,000. In our Tambon (township) area, there are about 6000 people & we are located only a 5-minute drive to the town center. We are located in a rural forested area, but I must say, the views along the nearby Mekong are very picturesque.

What’s it Like?

Having resided in the recent past in Sydney, Australia and then Chiang Mai, Thailand we have been used to larger, urban city experiences and services. Moving to this small rural area was not a concern for either of us. We were no longer concerned with big city amenities and lifestyles. Ace grew up around this town and when I was living in Canada I grew up in a small town. During my time with the RCMP I was posted to many small towns and rural outposts in the north of Canada. I am comfortable in this environment thanks to my past experiences.

Check out the Youtube link below of a town driving tour I made – you get the flavor of our new environment. Also below a few pictures taken around town to give you an idea of what it’s like.

What it’s like living near a small Thai town on the Mekong River

That Phanom Streetscape Pictures

Government Facilities

We have the usual array of Thai Government offices to cater to most requirements. There is a fairly large That Phanom Crown Prince hospital that is getting a new, much larger multi story building (yellow bldg in picture) that will open later in 2025. I have used the current facility a number of times for my health issues & found the staff helpful. For more complex cases they transfer patients by ambulance to Nakhon Phanom Hospital. (I have used this service as well).

We have a city hall and local district office, (where I was able to update my yellow book & pink ID card to reflect our new address). There is also the Land Transport Office for motor vehicle registrations & drivers license. There are a number of Police stations & a full time fire station. Ace’s cousin is a local policeman here & crime is very low & of a minor nature apparently.

Town Park

Our town has a nice, & fairly well maintained central park. It is surrounded by water ponds with fountains and lots of trees & greenery. It is the location for a few fairs & events annually. It is a tranquil spot.

Waterways

Beside the lake in town, we have the mighty Mekong River flowing past town with it’s seasonal water levels that rise & fall depending on the time of year & the upstream management of various by China & Laos. There is also the Kam River that flows down to the Mekong from the Nong Han Lake in Sakon Nakhon. The Waterworks Authority have created a diversion dam to hold the water level in the river high all year round & controlling the release into the Mekong River.

Shopping & Services

It has been fun to explore our small town for food, necessities & services. There are only a few main streets with shops and market areas. The things you need for day to day living can be found here, it just takes exploring, looking and asking.

The town has most of what is needed to live day to day. There is a large Lotus shopping center for groceries & other essentials (KFC & Dairy Queen). There are six 7-11 stores, along with a variety of other shops to cater for needs such as hairdresser, lots of pharmacies, hardware, phone & IT, a central market and the list goes on. It has a nightly food market & small weekend walking street. Luckily there is also an Isuzu Dealership here for servicing to our vehicle.

There is also a large Loas Street Market held twice a week that caters to food & agricultural produce. Vendors from across the Mekong River in Laos travel across the river to sell goods, along with other Thai vendors.

Buddhist Temples

Temples are important to Thai people and are as much a tourist attraction as a religious facility. Our town is known for the huge, ornate Wat Phrathat Phanom Woramahawihan temple, a significant religious site in Northeast Thailand and said to contain the Buddha’s breastbone. It had been first been constructed in the 12th century. There are numerous other temples dotted around town including two that are just down the road from our house, not far – Wat Khok Sawang & Wat Kularb.

Coffee & Food Scene

With our new indoor & outdoor kitchen we do enjoy more cooking at home. Depending on how busy the day is with work around the house & garden, will dictate if cook at home, eat delivered food or head out to enjoy a local spot.

While the town is much smaller than Chiang Mai & not such a vibrant tourist hot spot like what we were used to, we can still enjoy a good number of restaurants and coffee shops. We found lots of Thai and Western food options in That Phanom, Nakhon Phanom and even more in the large cities of Mukdahan & Sakhon Nakon. While we both eat mostly Thai food, it is good to have the occasional meal of western (Farang) food. Suprisingly there is also a motorcycle food delivery service with a large range of food from the many places around town, if one is lazy to cook at home or go out.

That Phanom

There are many small, independent & nice coffee shops to frequent, usually for lunch or afternoon refreshment. We have the popular Amazon cafe chain – 3 around town. Here are a few pictures of places that we enjoy, to give you an example of the offerings.

A few smaller, casual spots. The A-List Cafe has lovely home made cakes along with a selection of hot & cold drinks.

The Sweet Factory & P Cafe are regular spot for lunch in air conditioning. They do some nice food & have lovely ice cream treats.

Restaurants for Meals

There are no shortage of Thai traditional eating spots. Many are simple open air, side of the road noodle or cooked food offerings. There are also some nice air conditioned restaurants as well for a more refined dining -nothing 5 star, but its all good.

Here are a few we frequents including That Phanom Pizza (great pizza & Italian offerings), Sisters & Quan Quan Kitchen with both western & Thai food & a couple of places along the river road with views over the Mekong.

Exploring Around Us

Nakhon Phanom – is north of us and trips here, where Ace’s mother lives, are regular outings for us. It’s about 50 minutes. We also go here to visit with my specialist Urologist & for shopping for things not available in That Phanom – like Global House, Big C & Makro for groceries. When there we occasionally enjoy riverside breakfast with great views, and lunch or coffee at some of these spots pictured.

Mukdahan – We also visit Mukdahan, 40 minutes south of our place to check out some bigger stores & the Robinsons Shopping Mall where there are more offerings for food, supplies & household items. They have some nice Vietnamese restaurants here that we usually treat ourselves to.

Sukhon Nakhon – we travel here less frequently but on occasion for the larger city feel about 70 Km from our house. They have a slightly larger Robinson Mall along with all the usual big stores like Home Pro, Mackro, etc. It is a larger city located on a large freshwater lake. The area is also know for its raising of very good beef.

Farther Afield – around 3 hours away is Udon Thani & Ubon Ratchitani for even greater selections shopping & food.

Our Slice of Thai Countryside – So there you have it – thanks for taking a look at our new hometown environment, where we are living in retirement. This is the country lane leading to our new home.