Day 5: Ayutthaya

Waking up early i caught a cab to the train station to take a day trip up to Ayutthaya, which is the old capital of Bangkok. The train ride was definitely an experience. The plan was to take a 2nd class train but i ended up buying a 3rd class train ticket. I met a girl on the train that was hoping to study in Canada but didn't pass the test required to go to university in Canada. I sat mostly with locals since most tourists take the 2nd class trains. One lady gave me some exotic fruit. I haven't been able to find the name of it yet, but it was amazing and looked a little daunting.

I toured around the island in a taxi since the sites are all far apart. One of the tour guides said that i was crazy for only spending a day in the city. It was Bangkok's capital for 417 years. I climbed the stairs at Chedi at Wat Phu Khao Thong, which was quite the hike in the heat. The view was amazing, i could see the whole city. One of my favourite places to see was the Wat Yai Chaimonkorn, Courtyard with Buddha Images. The courtyard was filled with palm trees that had scripture written on them, and Buddha images everywhere. There was also a covered Buddha near the courtyard.

I also visited the remains of the reclining Buddha. The Buddha's are massive, and hard to capture on camera because they are generally crowded by by other temples. I tried to see as much as possible through out the day, but I found the trip to be very exhausting.

The train ride back seemed like it took 5 hours. It was neat to see the majority of the city, the highs and the very lows. Tomorrow I am heading down to the islands and I am definitely looking forward to it, leaving the madness of Bangkok behind.