The plan to revive the central Phuket town came as Governor Norraphat inspected Phuket Historical Park in Thalang to review progress made on preparations for the upcoming Thao Thepkrassatri and Thao Srisoonthorn Festival to be held there on March 3-17.
Preparations for the festival are now more than 50% complete, Gov Norraphat said.
“The festival will have a traditional market showing how local people lived their lives during the Rattanakosin period. Houses will be built as a part of a light-and-sound show and there will be the traditional historical play,” he added.
“Local life during that period will be imitated with examples on show of the houses, the food and the dresses at that time, and through the traditional play – all of which will make tourists feel that they have travelled back in time.”
Governor Norraphat also invited couples to join be married at the nearby Ton Tarn Field in traditional ceremonies recreating how couples were wed centuries ago in Thalang, which once served as the capital of the Phuket.
“The Thalang District Chief plans to hold a marriage certificate registration event on Valentine’s Day, Feb 14, and couples are invited to join,” Gov Norraphat said.
“They will experience being married in the Thalang field, and the Thalang District Chief himself will be the registrar,” he explained.
“We hope for this area to become a Thalang tourism landmark. Traditional Thai marriages will attract foreign tourists to come to marry here. This will help to support long-term traditional tourism,” Gov Norraphat said.
As a practical measure, the Governor also inspected a local water course amid his concerns that the area suffers recurring flooding.
“If the flooding problem has not been solved, we will have difficulty in using the place. Now this is the dry season, but we still face flood problems. When the rainy season comes, how much worse will it be?” he posed.
“We are trying to solve this problem. This place can be developed to be a Thalang landmark in order to support traditional activities,” Gov Norraphat added.