Ayutthaya:

An ancient Siam capital

11.01.2017 - Jordan

 

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City in the world heritage of UNESCO.

 

Ayutthaya, is a kind of fortress, not fenced by walls, but by a river. It is impossible to access it without using a bridge or cross with the aid of a boat! Built in the fourteenth century, the city was for a long time the capital of the territory that became Thailand.

 

With Sixtine, we rent two bikes in the morning. The bright sun motivates us! Soon we discover a way different city compared to what we have seen the night before. Obviously the wide three lanes roads are always present, but they are surrounded by many ruins and temples.

 

The Wat Racha Burana is our first visit. As the white stucco has already gone, the red bricks are being honored. Except on the ancient tomb of king. Thanks to some restorations, the huge 'pyramid' is still covered by its beautiful white / grayed frills, based on characters from Buddhism. We visit the inside through the glow of the flashlight. For accessing the old looted tomb we have to go underground. It’s looted but has still golden frescoes, amazing with their drawings of Buddhas.

 

The place is surrounded by a huge park, a mix of greenery and ponds. We spend almost our morning there due to all the other beautiful sites there is in this area. Like the Wat Phra Si Sanphet: a suite of three huge ' Chedis' (some kind of stupas) where previous kings are also resting.

 

We stop to eat in a sort of market for tourists (besides, we are very few in this city), where we find some kind of colourful crepes stuffed with sugar filaments. Pretty improbable candies! After a heavy meal, here we continue for the temples’ hunt.

 

We quickly pass by the famous giant lying Buddha. He does neither hot nor cold: as a creation from the 50s, it has no charm. The quality of work is low, it is even a shame for the rest of the city!

 

We won’t say the same about the fabulous and immense Wat Chaiwatthanaram. Extremely geometric, it is probably the most beautiful temple of the city to our eyes. The architecture is well preserved, there are even some vestiges of fake wooden ceilings under the ' Arches'. And then the choice of the location is perfect: at the edge of the river. One after an other we fell asleep on the lawn. It's hot, and we’re stunned by the sun.

 

Randomly we fall on the most what the fuck spot of Thailand: a Buddhist ’Amusement’ Park. Come have fun by donating ! Absurd mix between human scale statues of Buddhas, Super-Hero, Santa Claus and robots of the movie ' Transformers'. The colours are glaring, neon lights everywhere, statues that activate for each coin given. Animals and parrots are in cages for the entertainment.

 

Come on!

Come and goal your pieces on this beautiful shooting range!

A coin in the urn turning and it's won!

 

A little flustered by this really weird place, we're biking back to see the sunset on the Wat Phra Ram temple, which is high and gives a view of the surrounding area. On the road we see a local night market, we can't help from stopping by! Besides lot of Thai people are there: before going home after work, they halt to get tonnes of food! This place is magical. We're testing a lot of different improbable and unknown beverages and dishes. It's all small and welcoming and the locals are nice!

 

As expected we finish off the day on the temple, alone, enjoying a beautiful sunset. In the distance a music resounds: commemorations are performed for the king Rama IX, who died a few months earlier.

 

Ayutthaya, you're nice and calm in fact.

But Chiang Mai is waiting for us!