"The City of Ayutthaya, founded in 1350, was the second capital of the Siamese Kingdom. It flourished from the 14th to the 18th centuries, during which time it grew to be one of the world's largest and most cosmopolitan urban areas and a center of global diplomacy and commerce."
It is now a UNESCO heritage site.
It lies about 80 kilometres north of Bangkok.
Noon, from cooking class, had mentioned going to Ayutthaya back in June. Then lockdowns happened, things closed and our trip was postponed. With current restrictions loosened, we decided it was best to go sooner rather than later. So on a recent Saturday morning, Noon and her friend Ann arrived at my condo to take start our adventure.
After leaving the city limits we pulled over into the rest stop for a car and a human refuel as well.
Each rest stop has the obligatory 7-11 store, Amazon Cafe, Starbucks and many more convenience shops for snacks, food and all of your travel needs.
Refuelled, we headed north once again to the ancient city.
We made a side trip to visit Noon's friend at her juice bar. Google seemed to lead us a merry dance down small side roads dissecting fields and at one point a barely passable road overgrown with bushes and trees.
Apparently, we were a novelty to the small roadside business as people started appearing out of the woodwork to casually walk by and say hello, ask where we were from or more importantly where I was from. Let the not-so-subtle flirting begin! I didn't think I was that eligible, as I sat on a small strawberry-painted chair with my knees under my chin.
As we prepared to leave we were given non-Google directions to stay on the main road!
Our first stop was a restaurant for some lunch, across the parking lot from Wat Yai Chai Mongkhon, our next stop to explore.
Not knowing the proper protocol for a temple visit Ann and Noon guided me through the ritualistic steps one takes to make merit and pray.
I hope I remember them correctly for future visits to temples in Thailand.
Our next stop was Wat Phanan Choeng located next to the river. Along the road leading to the temple were many stalls selling what looked like multi-coloured Cheesies. We stopped and purchased a bag of bread.
After praying at the temple we would make our way to the riverside and feed the fish. Surrounding the temple were vendors selling goldfish in bags to be released back into the river, another way of making merit. Needless to say, when feeding the fish it was a wild feeding frenzy and something reminiscent of your worst nightmare.
Yes, they are alive!
Our time was running short as temples close around 5 pm and we quickly made our way to Wihan Phra Mongkhon Bophit.
"A large bronze seated Buddha image (Phra Mongkhon Bophit) was originally enshrined outside the Grand Palace to the east. It could be dated to the 15th century and was originally intended to stand in the open air. Later, King Songtham commanded it to be transferred to the west, where it is currently enshrined and covered with a Mondop."...from the temple website.
We entered the temple to pay our respects and to visit the surrounding grounds and ruins.
We then decided on a nice dinner at a restaurant beside the river. It had begun to rain so our choice was made for us as we made our way to the closest restaurant to the car. A very good choice!
We had Tom Yum soup, a creamy crab dish and a tamarind seafood vegetable dish. The view from the patio was a welcome respite from the long day.
<<<Creamy crab dish
Tamarind seafood and vegetable dish.
Until the next road trip, take care.
Be safe.
Remember, Life is what you make it!
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