Lotus position

Thursday, April 17, 2008
Ayutthaya, Thailand
Avoiding the worst aspect of Songkran was uppermost in our minds when we left Banhkok on the day before. Reasoning that a smaller place, with less of a Backpacker entral feel to than some in Thailand we decided on Ayutthaya or อยุธยา. Which is a little easier than Phra Nakhon Si Ayutthaya or พระนครศรีอยุธยา, its Sunday name. As to the pronounciation we think it might be ay oot ee a but we're not at all sure. Ccording to the experts it can be spelled Ayotaya, Ayothaya, Ayudhya, Ayutaya, Ayuthaya or Ayuttaya so what chance have we of getting it right.

It was the ancient capital of Thailand and has more ruins than any sane person would wish to see in a week even when the temperature below the 40C we enjoyed during our stay. I use the word enjoyed loosely as most of my visit was spent is the air conditioned comfort of one of Baan lotus' new bedrooms. Nothing life threatening, at least not very, I only had one fit of the shakes and my temperature can't have been much over 100. Despite this we managed to see a couple of the sights and eat most days.

This was our first experience of Thai railways and what a difference form India and Sri Lanka. First of all there enough classes and train type in Thailand and a sufficiently complex fare structure to make BR jealous. We checked the online timetable and fares very carefully and went along to Hualamphong Station in time for the nine thirty but according to the ticket desk there was no train until 11.20 and that was ordinary class. Further questioning revealed there was a train at 10.50 but that was second class a/c. We said ok until asked for 315B each when the website said 66B. We capitulated and travelled ordinary class for 15B. The station, however, was immaculate, all the Thai passengers sitting neatly in rows waiting for their trains and food stops everywhere. Inevitably the one we tried ddin't open until ten o'clock but they were happy to serve us tea and coffee while we ate our pastries obtained from the in-store bakery across the main concourse.

The trip took one and a half hours and not a single water throwing backpacker in sight. We were a little perplexed by the instructions we found to take a ferry from the train station to the old town but then we didn't know that Ayutthaya's lies on an island. The road to the ferry wasn't too clear either but we did find it and discovered the first of the local scams. There are two ferries. One goes directly across the river to near the two or three guest houses which back onto the river and costs two baht. The second crosses diagonally and advertises much more brazenly, it even has a desk positioned to catch every stranger who walks down the road and costs 3baht. That's fine if you want to reach the market and go directly to backpacker central, otherwise known as Tony's Place. What we hadn't considered was that some of the Thais might share our attitude to water throwing. Onw which certainly did was the owner of the guest house which we were heading for - he simply closed for three days as did a number of the shops and restaurants.

Abandoning the riverside we followed our noses and landed lucky. Within a few hundred metres of the market lies Bann Lotus and old family home now run by one of the sisters as a guest house with help from another when she decides to go travelling. When we arrived she was in china to discover how they celebrate Songkran there. Her next trip is to Spain and Morocco so there's hope for us yet, she must have been more than a few years older than us. She and her sister are both clearly delighted to look after travellers. They only sell a fixed breakfast but that's reasonably priced and quite filling but other food is easily obtainable within a few minutes walk. There is also a large fridge full of water, soft drinks and beer and all at prices below those of most bars. Alison did ask if they served snacks one day when I was too weak to attempt the stairs but they don't, however, it is a mark of their generosity and sense of hospitality that they gave her a great bag of sticky rice and almost half a chicken as a gift.

The most amazing aspect of Ayutthaya is its scale. It seems every road is a grand dual carriageway and mostly flat so ideal for cycling. We attempted a couple of trips but after ten in the morning the sun is simply too fierce for comfort. I you like wats then this is the place for you, they fill whole city blocks and bits of ruins stand on every corner. It is almost like Pompeii with a modern town built on top. The old market is worth a wander and filled with the most amazing range of foodstuff we have ever seen. Not just fresh vegetables, fish and meat but also a huge array of cooked food.

There is an ancient royal palace but only low lying ruins remain and the entrance isn't so easy to spot. We thought we had it cracked when we found the Royal Elephant Kraal but that is simply a palce for elephant rides and to watch elephants doing tricks their bodies were never designed for. You can also feed the elephants but the cost of a few bananas here would price an elephant's daily diet at around 4000B. the elephants didn't appear to us to be too happy either, continually moving from foot to foot where they were chained in a row for hours on end. Reaching the royal palace from the elephant kraal involves negotiating a modern tourist shopping mall. There are no signs but plenty of tourist tat and inevitably, lots of food. There is a huge wat beside the palace but we retreated before the press of coach loads of tourists; there are plenty of less commercialized wats in Thailand.

Having had a few rough days we decided to treat ourselves to a first class sleeper to our next destination. Alison had never travelled on a sleeper before and this seemed like a good opportunity.

Photos & Videos

Comments

2025-02-13

Comment code: Ask author if the code is blank