Thursday, March 15, 2018

2018 Grand World Voyage, Day 68, Ayutthaya, Thailand (Part 2 of 2)































































Our guide Vee met us at 7am and we departed for Ayutthaya...our first stop was the town of Bang-Pa-In to visit the former Royal Summer Palace of the King of Siam (Thailand). This stunning residence and grounds set on the banks of the Pa Sak River represents a fine example of Thai architecture...an excellent stop...On the outskirts of Ayutthaya we made a brief stop at the Japanese Village...a tranquil setting with monuments dedicated to the early Japanese foreign settlers to Thailand...unfortunately nothing remains of the original Village/quarters. Once in Ayutthaya proper we started, our tour of Buddhist temples...first to Wat Yai Chai Mon Khoi Temple with its huge reclining Buddha and then Wat Suwandaram. Ayutthaya is the former capital of Bangkok is 50 miles north of Bangkok is a perfectly preserved UNESCO World Heritage site ...many ancient ruins and art works can be found in Ayutthaya. We had an excellent Thai lunch at the Kantary Ayutthaya Hotel. Our afternoon continued visiting Wat Mahathad Temple with its iconic Buddha head entwined in roots of a tree. Our visit continued to Wat Ratchaburana, Wat Thammikarat, Wat Naphramen and Wat Sri Sanphet...this wat is the largest temple in Ayutthaya, and where the Royal Family worship. Vee arranged with the Wa Po Massage School for me to have a two hour massage at the hotel...nothing better to relax you after a full day of touring...the girls went for the foot and leg massage. After a quick dinner we went out to experience a night-market in Bangkok...very close to our hotel is Khao San Road night market in the middle of backpacker central Banglamphu...a very high energy place with an abundance of restaurants, bars, pad Thai street food including all kinds of delicacies like scorpions, cockroaches, grubs, grasshoppers to bamboo worms, vendors galore and massage places...the streets were crowded with tourists...we had a wonderful day and evening.

 

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