AWAY

Until Saturday, the 28th Food, Fruits and Prized Products of Nakhon Pathom Fair will be held around Phra Pathom Chedi _ Nakhon Pathom's spiritual hub. Activities include the sale of a variety of food, toxin-free fruits and vegetables, its famous khao lam (grilled sweetened sticky rice with coconut milk in bamboo wood), One Tambon One Product (Otop) goods and various inexpensive goods, such as eggs sold for 1 baht each.

Nakhon Pathom is known for khao lam (sticky rice grilled in bamboo).

Call the local TAT Office on 034-752-847/8.

Flame of the Forest

Until Wednesday, the 10th Blooming Flame of the Forest Flowers Festival will take place in Chalerm Phrakiat Community Forest of Kaeng Sanam Nang district, Nakhon Ratchasima.

Hosted by the district office with support from the Tourism Authority of Thailand's Nakhon Ratchasima Office, the event features almost 10,000 blossoming Flame of the Forest trees (ton jan), exhibitions, shopping for Otop goods, tasting a variety of foods, a beauty contest and various other activities.

Call TAT's local office on 044-213-666, visit www.tourismthailand.org/nakhonratchasima or www.facebook.com/tat.korat or email tatsima@tat.or.th.

Crab Pulling in Cha-am

February is the high season for catching blue crab in Cha-am, Phetchaburi. And food enthusiasts are invited to join the 3rd ''Crab Pulling Festival'', which will be held until Sunday, along Cha-am beach.

Activities include the sale of fresh seafood and blue crabmeat dishes by local fishermen, crab pulling demonstrations and contests.

Cha-am is a beach town where many local fishermen are keen at catching blue crabs. Among the most famous groups are the fishermen of Ban Klong Thian and Saphan Hin, who catch blue crabs from the Saphan Hin canal and keep their crab-filled nets submerged in water to ensure freshness. So when buyers come to purchase the crabs, the fishermen simply pull the nets up from the canal and take out the catch.

Indeed, this so-called ''crab pulling'' practice makes Cha-am's crabmeat highly renowned for its freshness and good taste.

Muang Cha-am Municipality regularly gives baby blue crabs to local fishermen to release them into the sea in order to help promote the conservation of the traditional crab catching method. It also supports the fishing communities' blue crab banks where crab eggs are deposited for raising until baby crabs are born, then after growing to a certain size they are released into the sea. Each female crab can carry 30,000-1 million fertilised eggs, but no more than 30% of these will survive and produce offspring.

Call the TAT Phetchaburi Office on 032-471-005-6 or Muang Cha-am Municipality on 032-471-123/4.

Mon Tradition in Lop Buri

On Sunday, the 5th Thia Roem Jia Poeng Fa Tradition will be held at Wat Amphawan in Tambon Bang Khan Mak, Muang district of Lop Buri, at 6pm.

Watthanapong Phonimdaeng, director of the TAT's Lop Buri Office, said Bang Khan Mak Village is a large Thai-Mon community by the Lop Buri River, about 3km west of Muang Lop Buri Market.

At this event, people of various ethnic groups, such as Thai Phuan, Thai Karen, Thai Yuan, Thai Song Dam and Thai Mon, from the village and numerous communities nationwide don their traditional costumes, have local food, sing and play music together.

Thai Mon delicacies on the list include kaeng krajiab, kaeng bon, kaeng matad, tom yum pla yang, kaeng khilek, nam prik hoong and kanom kuan on mon.

Call the TAT's Lop Buri Office on 036-422-768-9 daily during office hours or visit www.tat7.com.

Any comments or news to share?

Email pichayas@bangkokpost.co.th.