Current Time in Mueang Nonthaburi, Thailand

Mueang Nonthaburi is the capital district of Nonthaburi province in central Thailand, lying on both banks of the Chao Phraya River immediately north of Bangkok. The two cities have grown into one another so completely that the boundary is invisible on the ground, yet Nonthaburi keeps a distinct character, with riverside temples, canals and surviving orchards among the apartment towers and shophouses. The land is flat and low, barely a few metres above sea level, and the climate is tropical with a monsoon season from May to October.

Around a quarter of a million people live in the municipality, and well over a million in the province as a whole, making it the most populous urban area in Thailand after Bangkok itself. The economy is closely bound to the capital, with large numbers of residents commuting each day, but Nonthaburi also hosts several national ministries, including public health and commerce, which moved their headquarters here to relieve congestion in the centre. Retail, property development, light industry, food processing and public administration provide most employment.

The town was established in 1549, during the Ayutthaya period, and was moved to its present position on the eastern bank in the seventeenth century when the course of the river was straightened by a new canal. Fortifications were built to guard the approach to the capital, and the district long supplied Bangkok with fruit from its orchards. Nonthaburi durians, in particular, were regarded as the finest in the kingdom and still command extraordinary prices, though flooding and urban growth have reduced the number of surviving groves.

The old provincial hall beside the river, a graceful teak building from the reign of King Rama V, is the most photographed landmark, standing next to the pier and the market. Wat Chaloem Phra Kiat, built by King Rama III in honour of his mother's family, is admired for its Chinese-influenced decoration and glazed tiles, while Wat Chomphuwek and Wat Prasat preserve fine mural paintings. Just upstream lies Ko Kret, an artificial island created by a canal cut in 1722, inhabited by Mon people famous for their unglazed pottery, its car-free lanes and food stalls making it one of the most popular weekend excursions from Bangkok.

Life along the river still revolves around markets, temple fairs and boat travel, and the local food scene is known for noodles, river fish and sweets. Several universities and colleges have campuses in the province, including institutions specialising in health sciences, and the national institute of public health training is based here. Transport has been transformed by the MRT Purple Line, which runs through the district and connects to the Bangkok metro network, supplemented by express boats on the Chao Phraya, bridges, expressways and a dense bus system.

Mueang Nonthaburi is important as the administrative heart of a province at the edge of the Thai capital, a place where riverside tradition, temple architecture and rapid metropolitan growth exist side by side.