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Published: July 12th 2015
The second part of my trip was Ayuttaya, the old capital of Thailand before the Burmese invaded and destroyed it in 1767. The city was abandoned for the next 150 years and the current city is surrounded by impressive ruins.
First though, I checked into the Hotel Kantary where my friend was Jamie was staying while she worked there for the week. I arrived around 1pm and they still had not cleaned the room, so I figured I would head to town. The reception desk recommended the Floating Market and provided me with my first tuk tuk ride. He was quite nice and we arranged for him to pick me up at 3:30. The market was not really a floating market, per Thai standards, as all the shops were on the walkways and not on boats. But it was quite nice and a bit lively with lots of music and people. I bought a pair of the popular elephant pants and a cross over handbag as well as some ice thing with various fruits on top - I don't even know what they all were. I headed across the street to the other market, but was put off by seeing
the elephants tied up and performing. They even had a small tiger cage; thankfully, no tiger.
That evening I went with Jamie and her coworker to a nearby mall for dinner. Afterwards, we went to Cafe Kantary at our hotel and did a dessert tasting, the local staple being the honey toast. The next day, I slept in and relaxed in the room before trying to venture out into town again. This time, I looked at the tourist map and indicated another market in town. I got dropped off and while it was an impressive array of stores there was nothing for me to see. And it is just soooo hot and muggy, so after wandering around the museum grounds, I just decided to head back to the hotel and grab some lunch at the cafe.
Jamie and her coworker took me that evening to a restaurant on the river as recommended by their coworker. He did not steer us wrong! This is the first time I felt like I was having a true Thai experience. It was a local restaurant called Kankitti and we were definitely the only tourists about. The cute little girl who was one
of the family practiced her English by saying "Hello!" many times as we walked in. Our server was one of the many lady men you hear about in Thailand and was very friendly. We each got a dish and split it, starting with the Thai crispy salad (I liked, but did not like the crispies), followed by green chicken curry with what I thought were peas but turned out to be very small eggplant, stir fried chicken and vegetables, and a fish roasted over an open flame in front of us. Of course Craig and I each had a big beer as well. Everything was absolutely delicious and we got to watch the late night boat traffic with very few other customers. When we left, the little girl enthusiastically said "goodbye!"
The next day, Jamie and I packed up our stuff and were picked up by a bike tour company. Apparently it was just the two of us and Amm, the tour guide. He was so incredibly friendly and knowledgeable. Jamie and I each wore sandals and were given a pretty sturdy bike to cover the 25km. We bike often together, so we were ok, but it was a
very incredibly hot day and it would be difficult for someone who is not too familiar with biking, especially with the heat. Amm took us along back roads first to a temple where he was very informative about the lives of Buddhists. The ordination hall had the big Buddha and all along the walls were paintings telling the life of Buddha. The beginning, where his mother gave birth to him by standing and holding onto a tree after having a dream of a pink elephant. Once he was born, he took seven steps where lotus blossoms grew. Then his teaching of the monks, ending with old age when he imparted his wisdom while laying down (hence, the reclining buddhas). Outside, he explained how cremation releases their souls so they can move onto another body. Wealthier families tend to buy chedis, which can hold the ashes of up to 50 people, keeping them together forever. Less wealthy people can put their ashes in small spaces along the wall. When he described their practices, he made it sound so beautiful and peaceful, showing his respect and passion for the religion without us feeling preached to.
He next took us along backroads
to the nearby rice paddies, stopping for water along the way as needed. The rice paddies were really pretty, very green - he said that they were about a month away from harvesting, when they would turn golden. He explained that there are 100 different types of rice grown in Thailand (100!?!?!) with the most popular being Jasmine. They also plant by seeding or throwing. Seeding produces the best rice, but throwing is much quicker and were the types of fields we were observing. He also explained it used to be a community event, with everyone coming out to harvest and having big dinners afterwards, but now with modern technology, there is no need. This also explains why many of the younger people have moved to the cities.
Our next stop was the Elephant village (kraal?). The elephants were still chained up, but they seemed to be in better conditions than what I had observed my first day. The main attraction was the nursery, where four moms guarded their four babies and begged for food. So, I got to feed an elephant and pet the adorable babies. One of the elephants was super cheeky and excited. They called her
bad, but I just thought she had personality. I would get antsy if I was chained up all day too! There was another area where the older female elephants hung out - they wanted food too and when we were done handing out what we had, one snorted snot at Jamie. haha! Elephants are just incredible creatures, smart and friendly, it is a shame to see them chained up. But this is how they have lived in this area for hundreds of years - same use as horses or camels - so who am I to judge?
After this, we rode another twenty minutes to lunch. During the ride, we went through many back roads and up on simple levees; Amm said that during the floods in 2011, the water was up to his hip while sitting on the bike. Many homes were destroyed and it was obvious the roads had suffered significant damage. By the time we got to lunch, my shirt was pretty much soaked in sweat. They gave the three of us a set lunch and another awesome thai meal it was: steamed rice, shrimp soup (tom yum goong?), chicken and cashews, and the spicy chicken
Great dinner at Kankitti
green curry, stir fry chicken and fishwith green beans and eggplant. So yum. Amm told us about the different thai flavors and some of the differences between areas of Thailand (for instance, they do not like coconut milk in the north). While we ate, we saw "crocodiles" swimming in the river - we were told it was a giant lizard, but they sure looked like baby crocs to me! Amm then told us next up were the ruins, which sounded like an awful lot of riding!
We entered the ruins and first saw Wat Worachettharam. Here is a large Buddha outside, sitting in front of a chedi. Next we quickly made our way over to the Reclining Buddha, Wat Lokayautharam. Here, our guide instructed us in the way to pray by first buying the fire sticks and flowers, then we lit the candle and placed it in the holder, followed by lighting the three sticks and bowing with the flowers, placing the sticks in the ash urn, and laying the flowers on the alter, and lastly placing a piece of gold paper on the small buddha statue. Following this, we had another short ride to Wihan Phra Monhkhon Bopit, one of the largest bronze Buddhist
statues in Thailand; it had previously been damaged by lightning and was fully repaired in 1956. The queen donated a lot of money 25 years ago to restore it and it was done so in her honor. This is one of the more touristy areas and was very busy with people going inside the hall. Plus there was a nearby market we walked our bikes through. On the other side of the hall are vast ruins of Wat Phra Si Samphet and its nearby ancient palace. This area was completely destroyed by the Burmese in 1767, including many valuables taken from the kings' chedis. There is a scale model at the entrance to the site, so you get an idea of how many buildings and temples and chedis there were, not just for kings but for high politicians. It is an amazing area. Also, one of the areas was damaged by the 2011 floods and show some of the structures sinking and leaning. One of the chedis is open and you can go in, but there are bats and a very strong smell of (I think) urine. So I just stood on the steps.
After this we rode our
bikes through the beautiful parks and across the bridges over the lakes and canals to Wat Maha Tat. This is another large temple ground where Buddha's relics were supposedly kept. There are many headless buddhas all over the ruins. As our guide explained, people would make the body and put the head on last and insert valuables into the heads as an offering. So, when the city was destroyed, the raiders or later grave robbers would remove the heads and take the treasure. One of these heads was placed at the base of a tree and over time, the roots grew around the head so you have a fascinating image of Buddha within the ruins.
At this time, while we were really enjoying our day despite the heat, we really had to go as a car was coming to pick us up at the hotel and take us to our next stop. We cycled to get the boat crossing and were treated to "coke in a bag" which was something we discussed at lunch. Our guide was absolutely terrific and friendly and knowledgeable. I highly recommend this tour! It was a solid 5-6 hours of biking, but I think
he said it is not usually as hot as today was. Next stop: Pattaya!
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Katha Turbostern
Kathas World
Great post!
What an interesting story, was really fun to read. Your descriptions of the food made me want to have some of it right now :-) And very nice pics as well. Look forward to the next story! Katha