---

---

Ruins and….well, that’s about it

Sukhothai has proved to be different than any other area we have been to so far here in Thailand, and, to our surprise, almost everything shuts down by 8:00 or 9:00 p.m. at the latest. People pretty much come here for one of two reasons; you need some time to chill out and recuperate, or you’re coming here to see the ruins of the old city. Since we were here on the weekend, there were a couple of little street fairs and a very small night market, but nothing that would consume much of our time. We couldn’t help but notice all of the random dogs here, though. There are literally 4-6 dogs in your view at all times. At night, it’s been kind of fun to watch Jessie jump away from the hussling cockroaches on the street who seem to be anxiously awaiting the next foot to pounce on. They better be quicker if they want HER feet, because I promise, any little movement on the ground and she’s ready to jump! Speaking of cockroaches, last night we were at an upstairs bar having a couple of beers when we looked up directly above our heads at the fan and noticed there was a huge cockroach pinned against the screen from the strength of the breeze coming from the fan blades. We couldn’t help but be paranoid he was about to drop on top of one of us. We watched cautiously until finally we made his way to an opening. Knowing he was about to drop down, we quickly scurried over the other side of the table and just in time. Plop, onto the floor and immediately being smashed by a size 12 flip flop, and just for good measure, the leg of the bench we were sitting on to ensure the job was done. We starting thinking, I wonder what all these other people thought when they saw us staring up and then quickly moving out of the way as if someone was about to drop a bucket of water onto our heads. At any rate, another conflict with a cockroach averted, for now.

The food here has been…a little different. Very, very few signs here are in English when it comes to ordering something to eat. It seems that the most popular treat here is pork balls, yes, pork balls. Nate just HAD to ask Jessie if she thought those were actually made of pork, or if they were really the balls from a pig. We were praying it wasn’t the second answer. Actually, the only reason we found out they were minced pork balls was because we visited the 7 eleven (our daily stop) to get a water and saw a sign in English that said, “Spicy chili pork balls”. Nevertheless, neither one of us felt brave enough to try one of them. Grasshoppers are one thing, but mystery pork meat is another. It’s funny how the bugs people were trying as an adventurous thing to do in Bangkok on Khao San Rd are really a tasty snack for the locals who were enjoying the street fair entertainment, which included a Thai man singing and a few Thai women dancing, or kind of, on stage. We were pretty much gawked at the entire walk up and down the street, but we were greeted by some of the friendly locals and provided a bit of excitement for the cute little Thai kids who loved the fact that the foreigners smiled and waved back to them.

Our main reason we stopped in Sukhothai was to see the ruins of the old city, and we have to say, they were pretty cool. We made our way down the street to the “bus station” to find a local songthaew driver jumping up and down to flag down the only white people in the street, so we paid 40 Baht (about $1.30) for both of us to get to the ruins and were on our way. Once we arrived, we rented a couple of bicycles for about a dollar a piece and started to explore. The place was filled with amazing statues of Buddha and carvings into the stone at every turn. We took our typical tourist shots, along with some shot of us acting like idiots, and made our way outside of the main center and into another area not visited frequently by, well, anyone. The first hill we hiked up was very interesting. Half way up we noticed there were about 6 dogs that seemed to be on the lookout for anyone coming up the hill. As we reached the top, we saw 3 little puppies running back to their little den as they realized they had visitors. We got a little bit closer when the puppies started to snarl and one of the other bigger dogs at the top (1 of about 5 more) raised the alarm. As the parents of the puppies ran up the hill barking and growling fiercely at us, we quickly realized that this was where a lot of wild dogs were living, and we backed away slowly to let them be. We REALLY didn’t feel like being bitten. Nah, no thanks. Onto the next. Starting to tire from our miles of bike riding and walking, we made it to a large, steep hill with a standing Buddha at the top. We debated for about 5 minutes if we really wanted to make the hike up, but in the end, we went for it, stopping a couple of times on the way up to catch our breath. The statue did not disappoint and we got some great pictures, not to mention the view over the valley from on top of the hill was worth the trip up as well. We started back down the hill when half way down I heard Jessie slipping on the dirt and loose rocks behind me. Smack, right down on her butt! At least she was ok. After the ruins we made it back “home” only to look in the mirror and realize the SEXY farmer’s tans we both had, especially Nate. Well, I wouldn’t exactly call it tan, more like fried! Of course he didn’t listen to Jessie when she told him he should put sun screen on at the beginning of the day. Instead, he put some on when he was already red later on. I guess that’s what he gets for not listening to some good advice. Yes I know, it was a typical guy moment. Oh well. I slathered on the baby oil and woke up the next morning to find that a good part of the burn was already gone. Thank God because we have a 5 and ½ hour bus ride tomorrow to get to Chiang Mai.

So, nothing else to exciting to report yet, but we’re both looking forward to our stop in Chiang Mai. I mean, tigers, elephants, cooking classes, and did I mention Nate is probably going to go get a massage from a lady at a women’s prison while J is at her class? THAT could be interesting. Stay tuned for that story! By popular demand, we added another video. Make sure to check it out!

Xoxo Nate and Jessie

Traveler Tips
Getting There
The bus station is really small and there isn't much going on late at night. We arrived after 6pm and had to take a autorickshaw to our Guesthouse. You can take the blue public songthaew to the main road which will only cost you 10B each.
Staying
We very highly recommend T.R. Guesthouse, located on a small Soi by the bridge. The rooms are cheap, very clean and there is free wifi. The owner and his family are super nice and very informative.
Eating
There are a handful of restaurants that have an english menu but you will be paying Farang prices to eat there. If you are into sausages and mystery meat there are plenty of street food stalls.
Transportation
Walking is the way to go around new Sukhothai. To get to the Historical Park take the blue public songtheaw again for 20B there and back. Renting a bike for the day is the easiest way to see the ruins.

---