Our first of three stops since you last heard from us was Ayutthaya. We weren't sure what to expect and got lost trying to find the hostel. We almost cut our losses until our tuk tuk driver eventually found the place. It was worth the wait, with a really picturesque Japanese water garden and a no shoes policy throughout the guest house, we were off to a great start. The owner was friendly and welcoming, making the hostel feel homely.
We did a bit of wandering around during the first night and eventually hired a scooter. It turned out to be the best way to get around and gave us the opportunity to hop from A to B on our own schedule. The ancient temples and monuments were huge and you could really get a feel for what it must have looked like in its hey day. In the afternoon we drove to the other side of the river to an ancient temple called Wat Chaiwatthanaram, we were recommended it by the hostel as the best place to see the sunset. It really lived up to expectations and we'd recommend going there even if its just a day trip out of Bangkok. It was a phenomenal spectacle!
That night we explored the night market, where there was a large array of food on offer. We had pad-thai and beef noodle soup to share. The pad-thai was made with fish paste and had loads of shrimps, not the safest of choices, but it's hard to order exactly what you want. The whole dish was encased in a outer layer of egg. We didn't eat the suspicious looking balls in the meat soup, but found out that they were only steamed pork balls. The island had a large Muslim community and for dessert you could choose from a great number of sweet pastries; the way in which Thai people make pancakes is great to watch also.
We hopped back on the train, next stop Lopburi. We had high expectations, this was the second ancient capital of the Ayutthaya empire. You can't pre book any hostels in Lopburi so we gambled with the Noom guest house. It was the place with the most going on. The town itself isn't hugely impressive, but is full of monkeys roaming the streets. We decided to go on a tour to a local lake that was stunning. You could hire out wooden platforms to sit on above the beach. To finish the tour off we went and watched thousands of bats leaving the safety of there caves in the mountain side as the sun set. They were accompanied by birds of prey, swooping trying to catch their dinner.
The final part of our stay in Lopburi was spent at a local bar with a Thai rock band playing. It's was an entertaining night, locals were jumping up and dancing, not very well though!
Next stop, Nakhon Sawan (the Heavenly City). We had learnt of this place from a German man we met on the train who recommended it to us. It does not feature in any of the tour guides so we knew very little about it but decided to venture there anyway! On arrival we met a taxi driver called 'Mon' and we found Nakhon Sawan wouldn't have been the same without him. He took us on a tour the second day to the aquarium and crocodile farm. The aquarium is built in the shape of Noah's Arc and cost about a pound to get in. The crocodile farm usually has a show on, which involves a daring man putting his head inside a crocodiles mouth. Unfortunately the crowds weren't substantial enough to put on a show, 'Mon' felt bad so he took us free of charge to see the monkeys.
Wat Kriang Krai Klang is a monastery/school near by, although the only monk we saw was having a crafty fag. There were tonnes of monkeys, as soon as we stepped out the taxi they swarmed it made it their home. It was a great end to a thoroughly enjoyable afternoon.
We hope you've enjoyed our latest addition to the blog, next stops are Phitsanulok, Sukothai, Lampang and Chiang Mai.
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