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Ayutthaya

After a good week in Bangkok, I was ready to see more of Thailand. For just 40 cents I took a train north to Ayutthaya. It was certainly nothing fancy, with mostly locals, but it did the job for 2 hours. Inside the car we got a bit wet when it rained...

The ancient capital Ayutthaya was a grand island of temples until being destroyed by the Burmese in 1767. Today it offers a quiet reprieve from Bangkok with newer temples next to impressive ancient ruins. A boat tour around the island provided a glimpse of local life (mostly fishing and tourism), and brought us to a few temples just in time for sunset.


Relatively reasonable traffic within the small geographic area makes it suitable for bicycling from temple to temple, though the heat made for an exhausting workout.




Free breakfast at the hostel meant I got the first Western breakfast of my trip, which I had been missing. Toast, cereal, and fruit just goes down way easier than pork and noodle soup on a hot morning.

People rave about the north of Thailand, especially Chiang Mai and Pai, with their mountains and milder temperatures. So I hopped a 10hr overnight sleeper train (comfortable!). With a view of mountains and the coolest breeze I've felt so far...I'm already liking it here in Chiang Mai.




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