After you have been blinded by the mirror mosaics of the Royal Palace complex, whistled in wonder at the size of the reclining Buddha, eaten yourself silly at all the food vendors, been pummelled into submission in one of Bangkok’s many massage parlours and shopped yourself into bankruptcy in the glitzy shopping malls and irresistibly kitsch tourist markets you will, I promise you, find yourself looking for a little down time or even a little bit of soul food. When this happens then I suggest you catch your breath by visiting the magnificent temples of the World Heritage site of Ayutthaya two and a half hours train ride out of Bangkok, Thailand’s capital.
To give you a little background, Ayutthaya, the capital of Siam, was founded in 1350 and by 1700 had become the largest city in the world with over 1 million inhabitants. Seafaring traders from as far afield as China, India, Portugal and France proclaimed Ayutthaya as the most beautiful and most refined city ever seen. However, all this grandeur came to a rather sudden end when the Burmese invaded in 1767 burnt the city to the ground, and unceremoniously chopped the heads off all the Buddha’s in the Royal Temple complex.
You can visit the island by boat, car, tuk-tuk or mini-bus but we decided to visit the Island by catching the local train that departs from Bangkok’s Hualamphong Train Station and is by far the cheapest (R10 a ticket) and most scenic way of reaching the island. At the end of the line you need to catch a quick ferry boat across the river, hire a bicycle and head off down the ring road of U Thong to the temple ruins on the north-west side of the island.
My favourite complex on the island is Wat Phra Mahatat on Naresuan Road which still, after all these centuries of neglect, exudes an undeniably powerful presence. The beautiful tombs and spires of the praang and chedi soar mythically towards the sky and are framed by the hanging branches of the Banyan trees. Stone Buddha statues sit serene, adorned in gold cloth, doves perching on their shoulders. Deep earthy smells, orange clad monks, humid sunshine and bird song take you into a nostalgic dream where one can almost catch glimpses of the grandeur that once was. One of the highlights here is an ancient Buddha head enshrined in the tentacle like tree roots of a Banyan tree.
Being in the confluence of three rivers: the Chao Phraya river, the Lopburi river and the Pa Sak river the whole island is exceptionally atmospheric and you can easily spend the whole day exploring the island by bicycle, visiting the many ruins, temples and museums and eating delicious Thai food at the unassuming restaurants.
If you are a real temple aficionado then I would suggest staying over at one of the many budget and mid-range guest houses on the island, as there is truly too much to see in one afternoon.
This was one of the highlights of Bangkok for me and I was sorry to leave. Next time I am in Bangkok I will definitely make a pilgrimage back to the Sacred Capital and spend a little more time contemplating my navel and a little less time scooting around the island on a rusty old bicycle.
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