Ayuthaya was the capital of Thailand from the mid 1300s until the late 1700s, when, in line with the Thai historic trends, it was sacked by the Burmese. After all, the Burmese chased the Thais from capital to capital, forcing them downward to modern Bangkok. All that remains is the ruins of the old city, an ever-popular Unesco World Heritage Site. And during their trip out here Jenny and Ansel requested a trip to ruins of some sort, so a stop off in Ayuthaya was the quick, simple solution.
We took a night train from the north, and arrived, sleepy-eyed, bright and early at the Ayuthaya train station. Having both been to Ayuthaya before (Win on his first trip to Thailand, and then both of us as a respite from the clamor of Bangkok our first weekend after arriving from America), we knew that the entire Historical Park could be done in a matter of hours.
Turning down many a tuk-tuk driver, we opted to walk around and hit several of the main structures. The main area of Ayuthaya’s ruins lies on an island created by several rivers flowing in and around the city. Towering, and eroded down to their brick innards, the palace grounds and temples of the old city spring up in patches.
All of the seated Buddha statues, big and small, have been left headless after years of abandonment, destruction, and pillaging. But, most are garlanded with vibrant yellow sashes and flowers, incense and candles burned before them. Seemingly, the only Buddha head left in the place, and the most famous to boot, is entwined and suspended in the roots of a banyan tree.
Checking off another item from their Thailand To Do List, Jenny and Ansel took a quick ride on an elephant. Two hundred baht and ten minutes later, they arrived back at the elephant corral, safe and sound. Having successfully completed our historic interlude, we made our way back to the train station to continue on our journey south to Bangkok.
