With Southeast Asia's two most spectacular ancient sites - Angkor (Cambodia) and Bagan (Myanmar) - on our agenda for the coming months, Jen and I decided to warm up for those by spending a day in Ayuthayaaaaaaa on the road between Bangkok and Chiang Mai. The city is actually spelt Ayuthaya, but any pronunciation of the place by a local seems to add several "a"s to the end of the word, so I've decided I like writing it that way as well.
Ayuthaya (ok, I'm bored with it now) is a legendary ancient capital of Thailand, a dominant city-state and centre of the old kingdom for more than 400 years. It was sacked in the 18th century and Bangkok has been the seat of power in Thailand ever since, so Ayuthaya's glory days are long past - but the city's great history is marked by a host of impressive ruins dotted around a modern city that has built up around them.
Two of the finest monuments are Wat Phra Sanphet, the old imperial palace complex...
...and Wat Chai Wattanaram, a particularly beautiful ruin set in lush green grounds and set by the river.
Chai Wattanaram is, like many of the ruins in the city, of Khmer design and so was a good prelude to the temples of Angkor in Cambodia, which are of course the crowning example of Khmer architecture. The majority of the most impressive monuments are topped by the signature spire, or Praang, a word which coincidentally enough rhymes with what it looks like:
Very impressive no doubt, but Freud would have a field day.
So a lovely day in Ayuthayaaaaaaa (I've decided to go with it again) came to an end, and we look forward now to getting all cultural in Chiang Mai.
Things Jennie will remember:
1) That when Sean says "it's ok we'll walk", to not believe him as it's going to be miles in the blistering heat between temples ;)
2) That an umbrella is the most useful thing to travel with - especially in the heat.
3) That tuk-tuks (Sean eventually relented on the final home stretch) are not made for tall people (no head room)
Link to the full photo album here:
Great stuff! I love the photos and concur with Sean on his dificulty in the tuk-tuk's. My experience, having no hair cover, was a nasty scratch that I feared might get infected. So, add a crash helmet to the list with the umbrella of useful items to carry in your kit! :D
ReplyDeleteHee hee!
ReplyDeleteWill pick one up in Vietnam.
And also maybe some antiseptic! ;)