Part 11: Ayutthaya and Bang Saen Beach, Thailand

Wat Klang Khlong Watthanaram in Ayutthaya, Thailand.

Even after a hair-raising day of driving us all over the mountain, our new-found friend Manat was still willing to take us to the train station early the next morning. Most people do the 10 - 13 hour journey from Chiang Mai to Bangkok in a sleeper car, but we wanted to see the countryside. It was a beautiful (and definitely long) trip, which I spent mostly typing about Chiang Mai, haha. Of course we arrived even later than expected, with nowhere to eat when we got to our hotel. Thank God for Japanese Musubi and Singha at the 7-11 a block away!

We found out just before leaving Seattle that our friend Koravee from Thailand was in Bangkok for an extended stay, and so we arranged to spend a few days together. We were so excited to see her, and meet her sister Sian, who had graciously agreed to drive us around. I can't get over how lucky we are to have such amazing friends who take such great care of us! It is so humbling.

David and I had already explored a number of things in Bangkok on our last visit, but we never made it to Ayutthaya, which was the original capital city of Siam. It was established in 1351, and was the religious center of the country until it was destroyed by the Burmese army in 1767. Kora and Sian agreed that we should spend a couple days there, and then make our way to Bang Saen beach for a night.

Poor Sian had to wrestle her way through backed-up Bangkok traffic to our hotel to pick up two complete strangers - she is so kind! Then we were off through more traffic to pick up Kora, and finally underway. These sisters made such an incredible team of hosts. Sian was able to navigate through any kind of craziness, driving us through tight spots, crowded streets, and insane map instructions with the calm patience of a saint. Meanwhile Kora had researched every fantastic restaurant along the way, and was constantly jumping out at seemingly random street carts and markets to stuff us with local delicacies - all the while telling us all about what we were seeing and doing that we would never have known on our own. Awesome road trip team!

For lunch on the way to Ayutthaya, we stopped at Michelin star rated O Pochana, for the famous river prawns that are almost as big as your forearm. Of course, that was just the beginning, and our table was piled high with whole fried fish and other local delicacies. The server there gave us some great advice on how to spend our time in Ayutthaya, which was really helpful. Even though Kora and Sian had been there repeatedly, there are literally hundreds of temples and ruins, so the insider advice brought us to some spots we would never have explored. Kora and Sian were excellent tour guides as well, teaching us about Buddhist worship and making the whole experience much more meaningful.

The first spot we visited was a complete surprise. We were expecting crumbling ruins, but found a shimmering, psychedelic, heavenly landscape. Wat Klang Khlong Watthanaram is a small temple that was not well known until a monk decided to build the main hall, which is sculpted to depict heaven and earth. The Buddha sits under his giant tree of life, reaching up to the ceiling at the far end. The floor is a poured resin "koi pond," and the walls are adorned with sculpted plaster creatures, flowers, and clouds. Everything is painted in iridescent rainbow pastels, and lit up with multicolored lights. It has all been designed and completed by the same monk, over the last 7 years, and I hope to God I can see it whenever it is done - if ever? If Jimi Hendrix ascended to the Buddha, this would be his temple.

From here we went to some other functioning temples, before heading on to the actual ruins. Wat Bong Nom Kho was the home of Luang Por Parn, one of the most famous Guru Monks in Thailand, known for creating the famous "diamond armor" that protected soldiers from the Burmese Army. Wat Suwan Dara Ram had beautiful mural paintings depicting the Siam King at war with the Burmese. Then we explored Wat Chawatthanaram, with its hundreds of Bhuddas, and Wat Yai Chai Mongkon, where many Thai Buddhists come for their pilgrimage.

By this time we were footsore and swamped from the heat, so it was time to eat. Because one Michelin restaurant is apparently not enough for one day, we were off to Baan Mai Rim Nahm for dinner on the river. Another table covered with food also was not enough - after dinner Kora magically made Roti Sai Mai appear from one of her secret stops, and stuffed us with the most wonderful cotton candy spun sugar crepes until we thought we would actually die. After that, we headed "home" for a sleepless night in an ant colony, our only questionable accommodation so far.

Breakfast was a coffee shop and grilled coconut custard treats from yet another of Kora's food carts (Kanom Krok, our new favorite food). From there we went to more amazing ruins: Wat Maha That, with a stone Bhudda head preserved in the roots of a tree, and Wat Ratcha Burana, which has the best preserved Chedi in the city, as well as a crypt that was once full of treasures. Then we went to see said treasures at the Chao Sam Phraya National Museum of royal antiquities. Pretty cool!

After a huge lunch of noodles and soup (including dessert of Thai style shave-ice with pumpkin, taro, and sweet potato), we ventured to Wat Phanan Choeng, which has a 63 foot tall golden Buddha. It was also the important Maka Bucha holiday, so we were able to see the huge and busy temple in full swing, overflowing with worshippers. Crowded and intense!

Heading on to Bang San in the afternoon, the car read the outside temp at over 100 degrees. Thank God for AC! We stopped at Nong Mon Market for donuts filled with syrup. Of course, Kora stocked up on dinner and more treats for later. We made our way to Si Racha, to relax in our place and feast on crab cakes and Khao Lam - sweet sticky rice custard cooked in bamboo trunks.

The next day was DIM SUM!!! We had a lazy exit from our place and headed directly to Kopi Si Racha, for yet another massive feast. You fill up a tray of your choices from a bank of coolers and bring them to the counter to pay. They go off to cook your food, and bring the stacks of steaming baskets to your table. We have no idea what we ate, but it was all amazing.

After lunch it was time for Bang Saen Beach. The shore of the beach is literally covered by a forest of umbrellas stretching 50 - 200 meters wide, going on for over a mile, so closely packed that barely any sun peeks through. Such a welcome break from the heat. Of course anything and everything is available from someone walking by, or at a nearby stand. After exploring (and a couple of hours snoozing), we were ready to make the trek back to the confusion of Bangkok. I'm sure Sian was excited to get her car back! It was really hard to say goodbye to such excellent hosts, we will really miss them.

Once in Bangkok, We had hoped to get a chance to visit with our new friend Lippi, who we met in Chiang Mai with Toby and Nuna. Sadly I was mistaken in that our hotel was not accessible to easy transportation at all, despite being right next to the airport. By the time we arrived, the traffic was piling up (does it ever stop?), and David was not feeling great. We were so exhausted that we slept for 12 hours that night! We were so very sorry to miss time at the Huai Khwang night market with our new friend, but we really hope to connect again in Germany. I love that we now have a reason to visit Haldensleben!

Next stop... Vietnam!