Geography of Thailand political development of this region. International access through the Andaman Sea and the Gulf of Thailand made the south a crossroads for both Theravada Buddhism, centered at Nakhon Si Thammarat, and Islam, especially in the former Pattani Kingdom on the border with Malaysia. Thailand's regions are divided politically into a total of 76 provinces plus Bangkok, which is a special administrative area. Thailand's climate is influenced by monsoon winds that have a seasonal character (the southwest and northeast monsoon). The southwest monsoon, which starts from May until October is characterized by movement of warm, moist air from the Indian Ocean
Western Thailand resources. The region is home to many of the country's major dams, and mining is an important industry. Many village names in western Thailand rely heavily on the physical geography of the region. According to the six geographical regions established by the National Research Council of Thailand, the western region includes the following provinces: Western Thailand Western Thailand is a region of Thailand bordering Myanmar on the west, Southern Thailand on the south, and central Thailand on the east. Thailand's long mountainous border with Myanmar continues south from northern Thailand into western Thailand following the Tenasserim Hills. This narrow region