04 January 2009, 3:03 am
The village of Tatsawang, also known as the Brocade Silk Village for the gorgeous cloth they produced for the world leaders who gathered for the APEC meeting in 2004 is located about 10 kilometers north of Surin just off Highway. Many people in this part of Thailand and from around the world appreciate the beauty and feel of fine silk.
Today I accompanied Gordon, Dawn and Elaine, three of our current volunteers on a trip to Surin Province in order for my guests to purchase some presents for their family members and friends back home in Canada, Australia and England. This initial foray turned into a nearly all-day event when the girls discovered how beautiful and relatively inexpensive this wonderful handmade silk is. Shop til you drop.
Their shopping lists appeared suddenly and methodically they went down each name deciding what was best suited to each of their tastes. Before we left the village they had bought several large bagfuls of elegant silk and cotton cloth, bedspreads, pillow covers, and loads and loads of silk and cotton blend scarves in a wide variety of colors.
The village of Tatsawang also had the honor of producing the ornate brocade gold silk cloth that was presented as gifts to the 29 heads of state who were in attendance at the 60th anniversary celebration of the coronation of His Royal Majesty Bumibol Ayudelej in June 2006.
The shop which we often frequent is operated by Boonmee and Aye, a warm and helpful mother-daughter team. They have operated a small shop here in the village for the past five years. Today we were pleasantly surprised by how beautiful the shops there have become thanks to the support of the Toursism Authority of Thailand who has done a magnificent job in providing the village shop-keepers with modern comfortable and convenient shops in which to display the workmanship of the village silkmakers. Plenty of parking is available behind the shops area. The walkway park to the designers cottage is a lovely place to stroll and admire the peaceful surroundings.
If you are looking for a great place to purchase elegant silk cloth for whatever reason, Tatasawang Village is definitely the place to be. A walk through of the center where you can see the local craftswomen at work on their looms carefully and lovingly producing the cloth is worth the time spent. They are ready to answer any questions you have about how the silk is produced.
While there and while sauntering down the alleyways between the many shops we encountered not one, but two curious snakes who apparently had come along for the visit. Fortunately they were non-poisonous varieties and we halted to watch as they slittered off to enjoy the beautiful warm day. Tatsawang Village is also endorsed by the Tourism Authority of Thailand as an approved site for homestays. Friendly sales people are standing nearby to greet, assist and advise you in your search for that very special present. Shops and the production center open for business at 8 a.m. and remain open until 5 p.m. daily.
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