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Previous Brunei
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Capital: Bangkok
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I just love Bangkok, some find it noisy, dirty and crowded but I love its bustle, activity, smells and sounds. This was my fourth visit here so I did not take many pictures in the city. I took advantage of the occasion to visit the ancient capital city of Ayuthaya which I had not seen yet. |
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I always stay here in Khao San Road when I'm in Bangkok. It is a bit too touristy but it is lively, it's central (close to the National Museum & Royal Palace) and it's quite cheap (10 US$ with bath and air con). This is also one of the best places in Asia to find good deals on airline tickets.
There are several fine hotels in this southern part of town near Silom Road which is lined with banks and modern office buildings. One of Bangkok's sin centers, Patpong Road is just up Silom Road, not far from here. (The other center for that important Bangkok industry is along the tourist ghetto of Sukhumvit Road in the east end.)
I must have a dozen pictures of the Royal Palace so I don't know why I took another one. Seriously, it is a great place to visit along with the National Museum and all those beautiful, beautiful temples (more than 400 of them). Visiting temples may be why I like Bangkok so much; I always end up by having a great conversation with some open minded Buddhist monk about the meaning of life or absence thereof!
Ayuthaya was the capital until 1767. It's on an island in the Chao Phraya about 90 km north of Bangkok and can be reached by boat or by bus. I generally avoid organized tours but I took one for this visit because there was a lot of ground to cover and the tour included a 20 km river boat ride to the Bang Pa Palace, part of which is shown here.
The Bang Pa Palace is a strange collection of buildings of various styles, some quite beautiful like the pavillion above, some interesting like this Chinese palace and some not worth wasting a photo. The grounds were lovely and the boat ride was nice but I think our guide lost a lot of time here that would have best been used visiting the ruins of the old capital.
Wat Phanan Choeng is one of several well restored "Wats" or temples around and on the island of Ayuthaya. This one features a big seated golden Buddha on a golden dais. I don't think the building is very old.
This Wat called Chaya Monghit is one of the more interesting sites on this tour. It is still active, people come here to pray. It also features a huge reclining Buddha and long rows of seated Buddhas. After this place we had a late lunch stop before going on to the other older sites which to my mind were the best part of the tour. By that time, the light was bad and my photos did not turn out well. This only confirms my prejudice against organised tours, we lost too much time in Bang Pa...
