Phetchaburi ( th, เพชรบุรี, ) or Phet Buri () is a town (''

thesaban mueang Thesaban ( th, เทศบาล, , ) are the municipalities of Thailand. There are three levels of municipalities: city, town, and sub-district. Bangkok and Pattaya are special municipal entities not included in the ''thesaban'' system. The m ...

'') in southern

Thailand Thailand ( ), historically known as Siam () and officially the Kingdom of Thailand, is a country in Southeast Asia, located at the centre of the Indochinese Peninsula, spanning , with a population of almost 70 million. The country is b ...

, capital of

Phetchaburi Province Phetchaburi ( th, เพชรบุรี, ) or Phet Buri () is one of the western or central provinces (''changwat'') of Thailand. Neighboring provinces are (from north clockwise) Ratchaburi, Samut Songkhram, and Prachuap Khiri Khan. In the w ...

. In Thai, Phetchaburi means "city of diamonds" (''buri'' meaning "city" in

Sanskrit Sanskrit (; attributively , ; nominally , , ) is a classical language belonging to the Indo-Aryan languages, Indo-Aryan branch of the Indo-European languages. It arose in South Asia after its predecessor languages had Trans-cultural diffusion ...

). It is approximately 160 km south of

Bangkok Bangkok, officially known in Thai as Krung Thep Maha Nakhon and colloquially as Krung Thep, is the capital and most populous city of Thailand. The city occupies in the Chao Phraya River delta in central Thailand and has an estimated populati ...

, at the northern end of the Thai peninsula. As of 2005, the town had a population of 26,181 and covers the two ''

tambon ''Tambon'' ( th, ตำบล, ) is a local governmental unit in Thailand. Below district ('' amphoe'') and province ('' changwat''), they form the third administrative subdivision level. there were 7,255 tambons, not including the 180 '' khwaen ...

'' Tha Rap and Khlong Krachaeng.Department of provincial administration
The

Phetchaburi River 250px, Sign of the river. The Phetchaburi River ( th, แม่น้ำเพชรบุรี, , ) is a river in western Thailand. It has its source in the Tenasserim Hills, in the Kaeng Krachan National Park, Kaeng Krachan district and flow ...

runs through the middle of the city. The region is mostly flat, save for a single hill (called ''Khao Wang'') on the outskirts of town. The royal palace named Phra Nakhon Khiri and one of the many wats are on top of Khao Wang. The hill and town is the site of an annual festival, called the Phra Nakhon Khiri Fair. It lasts for eight days in early February and includes a sound and light show and classical Thai dance. The official city flower is the leelowadee flower or

frangipani ''Plumeria'' (), known as frangipani, is a genus of flowering plants in the subfamily Rauvolfioideae, of the family Apocynaceae. Most species are deciduous shrubs or small trees. The species variously are endemic to Mexico, Central America, and ...

. Phetchaburi is known for its traditional Thai

desserts Dessert is a course that concludes a meal. The course consists of sweet foods, such as confections, and possibly a beverage such as dessert wine and liqueur. In some parts of the world, such as much of Greece and West Africa, and most parts of ...

. The most well known is a

custard Custard is a variety of culinary preparations based on sweetened milk, cheese, or cream cooked with egg or egg yolk to thicken it, and sometimes also flour, corn starch, or gelatin. Depending on the recipe, custard may vary in consistency fr ...

dessert called khanom mor gaeng. Other popular desserts include Portuguese-influenced thong yip, thong yod, and foi thong.

Climate

Education

Phetchaburi has numerous private and public schools from K-12. Several have English programs taught by native English speakers to ready students for higher education. Some of the schools are

Benchamatheputhit School Benchamatheputhit School (BMP) (Thai:โรงเรียนเบญจมเทพอุทิศ) is a high school in Phetchaburi Province, Thailand. It is a large secondary school that receives co-education students and open from grade 7 to ...

, Prommanusorn School, Benjamaputit Mattayom School, Wat Don Kaitia Prathom School, and Arunpradit Prathom/Mattayom School. There are also several universities, including Phetchaburi Ratchabat University.

Transportation

In the city proper, the primary mode of transportation is by motor vehicle with motorbikes being the most popular. Cars are the second major form of transportation. Locals also travel by hired motorcycles and songthaews.

References

External links

*
Kaeng Krachan National Park, Phetchaburi
{{Authority control Populated places in Phetchaburi province Cities and towns in Thailand