Day trip to Ayatthuya

We woke up this morning, and it was heavy going. We had plans for a day trip, but I got up late and Mer even later. 

We finally did get going around 9 for breakfast and then had two morning chores: 1) we were both nearly out of laundry and 2) we needed a ride to the large Bagkok airport (Suvarnabhumi). We got our clothes dropped off and a van ticket purchased. Onto the day trip. 

Now, if there was one more place in Thailand I wanted to see, it was Ayatthuya. It was the seat of Thai power that unified the country as we know it today (and they overran the Khmers of Angkor Wat) before it fell to the Burmese. However, the Thais rebounded and moved their capital to Bangkok where they've since thrived.  

We were following the guide advice from travelfish.org to get a minibus from the Victory Monument. It was 7 km away. The taxis and tuk tuks were offering to bring us for 300 baht ($8.50), which was exorbitant. Mostly, they wanted to sell us a tour or drive us to Ayatthuya for an even higher price. I finally did hear the offer for a 10 baht ride, which was a well documented scam to take you no where you wanted, instead to a highly confrontational gem sale. I laughed in his face. 

Also, I was frustrated. We'd asked about 10 drivers and all we were offered was inflated prices. We'd made it out of the tourist district and Mer was not willing to walk it ("That would be our day trip!") but I wasn't willing to succumb to ridiculous pricing. Arg! Finally, a tuk tuk driver drove up behind us. Mer asked again and he said he could do it for 150 baht. Fine!

We got to the victory monument and quickly found the minibuses. Unfortunately, all the destination signs were in Thai. We did a couple laps of the bus stands before a police officer reached out to help. He took us to the right stand (where we then saw 'Ayatthuya' written in English.) It was another 120 baht ($3.40) for the hour and a half ride. (Which was more than our ten minute tuk tuk!)

However, the bus didn't take us to the center of Ayutthaya, but to a mall on the outskirts. Of course there were more tuk tuks waiting, offering tours for the day or another 200 baht just to take us to the market (where we wanted to rent bicycles). There was a Spanish couple in our minibus that I tried to negotiate with to combine a tuk tuk ride, but they wanted an expensive tour. I was not going to overpay for a short 3 km ride!

Not only did I want to use the bathroom in the mall, but I needed to cool off from this targeted, tourist pricing. We did, and then exited from another side. There were minibuses again that locals were using. They were only 10 baht each! But I wanted to make sure they were going to the right market. Mer just wanted to go. We bought the tickets and then piled into the van. Finally, to Ayutthaya!

We were dropped off a few blocks short of the market, but we were fine to walk it. But once we got there, we couldn't find any bikes for rent. We went around another street looking for more. Finally, there were bikes! But the guy wasn't open today, it was Monday after all (apparently the day many things close in Thailand.)

So we kept walking. None of our guidebooks had good maps or listings for Ayutthaya, but Travelfish.org did. Unfortunately, we didn't have wifi here. Also, it was hot. Like Hue hot. The sun was out and beat on us until sweat was again coming from everywhere. 

Finally, we managed to walk to our first site (Google maps still worked!) of Wat Maha That. It is the oldest and largest in the Ayutthaya area. We paid our entrance fees, and then we were in. 

We noticed a lot of similarities to styles in Angkor Wat. The biggest difference was the use of bricks. 

Some places still had stone coverings, but it seemed the building material of choice here was brick. 

Soon, after we'd circled the whole complex in the hot sun, it was time to move on to the next stop just a hop through the park. My Google maps showed there were a couple of ways to get through. The shade was wonderful and we even got a few breezes off the lake. 

Pretty quickly, though, it began to unravel. We thought we could take a bridge through. It only led to an island (albeit with a huge Buddha statue). 

We wound our way back, crossed the right bridge, and made our way to the next ruins. 

But they weren't the right ruins! There was a huge wall blocking them off with no apparent way in. I consulted the map. We turned left when we should have gone straight. We went back and retraced our steps to go straight. 

Lost again! I checked my map and this time we managed to turn right! How was this happening?

At this point, I became frustrated. I was hot. I was hungry. Now I couldn't follow a map. Mer tried to help as her guidebook said where the entrances are. We finally agreed (maybe she succumbed) to heading back left. 

Finally, after what felt like hours, we found Wat Phra Si Sanphet. This was the palace of the Ayutthaya elite. No monks. No commoners. Apparently, the raiding Burnese wanted this place destroyed (as they melted off the gold of a huge Buddha here) but we found massive structures still in place. 

Including entire columns of a former royal court area. 

There were some great picturesque doorways and windows for us. 

And the most photogenic of all were the 3 chedis of a Thai king's dynasty. 

We even climbed some. 

And Mer found a new hat. 

Soon, it was late afternoon. Both of us where hot, tired, and hungry. We decided to deal with the last of that by finally eating. We started to walk back to where the minivans could whisk us back to Bangkok when we finally found a roadside restaurant. Pad Thai and chicken with rice and vegetables. Yes, please!

Feeling much more content we walked back to the market area where, indeed, there were minivans to take us back to the Victory Monument in Bangkok. Amazingly, it was the same price, 120 baht. We waited a few minutes for other passengers to fill the van and we were off. 

During the hour and a half ride back, I plotted away to get back to our guesthouse without the exorbitant taxi price. Bangkok has an elevated train, or BTS, stop at the victory monument. That connects to the river where we could board the Chao Phraya express boat northwest that stops a block from our place. Mer decided she was up to the task. 

As we pulled into the monument, there were immediately stairs up to the BTS stop. We checked out the map, saw where we needed to transfer, asked the lady for help, and bought two tickets for 84 baht ($2.40). So far, so good. As we boarded the train, Mer commented, "It's just like Japan!"

We then made our transfer (on a much busier train!) and were off to the pier!

That's when disaster struck. As we got off the BTS and went down the stairs to the pier, there was an enormous line for the boat. I tried to verify that the line was for the Chao Phraya express and the folks there wobbily shook their heads. We waited in that line for about an hour. Night fell before we finally made our way onto an available boat. Mer actually got a seat as everyone else piled in around us. The boat took off and then I sunk my head. 

"Are we even going the right way?" Mer asked me. I shook my head 'no.' We wanted to head north. This boat was heading south. It took about 15 minutes to head to a tourist pier with lights, shopping, restaurants, and a Ferris wheel. 

We were hot, tired, salty, building hunger again, and definitely not in the mood for taking a tourist boat the wrong way. My eyes ached from my contacts. I just wanted to get back. By now it had been nearly two hours since we first arrived near the victory monument. My attempted 'cheap cut' had failed miserably in time spent. 

We got to the end and tried to negotiate our way back on the boat. The first guy said 'no more boats' but then a 2nd lady kindly let us on as they began re-loading passengers. 

Mer just looked at me. "My guy that's 99% of the time easy-going is now upset. I don't even know what to do with you, but smile because this happens so rarely." The frustrations of the day just mounted against me. The overcharging tuk tuks, the indirect travel paths, no bikes to rent, getting lost between sites, and now waiting in line forever for a boat going the wrong way. I could only peer out at heat lightning flashing in the night sky. It looked like a battle going on in the clouds. It seemed to mirror the storms inside me: Lots of flashes, but no sound or rain. 

Finally, we landed on our original pier. We got off and tried to find our intended company. That service ended at 7:30. It was now 9 pm. We walked out to the street trying to get a tuk tuk or taxi back. 

"300 baht"

"200 baht"

"Two people, 250 baht"

Grr, we made it to the main street and waved a taxi. "How much to Khao San Rd?"

"Meter," he answered. 

"About how much?" I inquired. 

"150 baht."

We got in to get home. As we rode off, we noticed there was no meter. I didn't care anymore as the price was right and I was nearly done. 

We got back on the wrong side of Khao San Rd, but I didn't care. I was back in control of where I was going and how much. We traversed the loud tourist street and to our own quieter soi where our Guesthouse was. Once back, I was able to shower off the long day and take the contacts out of my aching eyes. 

Although Mer said she preferred our roadside kabob place, we walked down our little soi to see if we could find anything else. I inhaled a 7 Eleven iced coffee along the way, but ended up right back for kabobs. It was pretty filling. 

We then set out for some night shopping. Mer really liked some shirts in me. We tried to look around a bit, but then my tummy started rumbling. Maybe it was the day or maybe it was the rushed iced coffee, but I needed to go home. 

We got back in and I settled in for sleep. It was our last sleep of the trip. It had been good and long and we had seen so much at a torrid pace. 

But now we were both ready to go home. One more morning in Bangkok and then we were on the plane. Today prepared me for it.