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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