can not believe this is taken in Bangkok unless you have experience it yourselves...their buses were old...look at those wooden planksThe railway station was very tourist friendly. They have set up tourist information counter and there were also tourist ticketing lanes. We managed to get our ticket on 2nd class deck to Ayutthaya at 245Baht each. It cost much more than we expected. Phaik read that this route should only cost us 15Baht and this was the reason why we chose to travel on the steam powered train besides wanting to be adventures.
the Hua Lampong Station
the Hua Lampong StationThe train was scheduled at 8.20 which left us with 5 minutes for breakfast. So we grab a croissant and a ice coffee from the Dunkin Donuts...the croissant was ok but expensive compared to those sold in 7-eleven, the coffee...left us speechless, perhaps sugar was very cheap her :S
We boarded our train at platform 10 or 11...could not recall...the train was old...what could we expect from a steam powered train right? Luckily it was pretty comfortable in the deck. We got our seat in an a/c compartment. As it was a covered space, there was less noise from the engine room...good for Phaik and Stella to get some rest in the train despite the all time shaking seats. For me, this ride was superb, I got to enjoy those green paddy fields.
our 2nd class a/c seats...I am thankful with what we have in Msia
Arriving at Ayutthaya, we first checked out on train schedule for our way back to Bangkok. Then we bargained for our charter tuk tuk. We finally settled at 500Baht for 4 hours...the tuk tuk system here were based on hours not by distance...so you can name the temples that you want to visit as long as it is within the time frame.
In Ayutthaya, we managed to cover a total of 8 temples. We started with Wat Yai Chai Mongkol. The Stupa of Great Victory and the Reclining Buddha were astonishing. The golden cloth wrap around contrasting on the artifact made them stand out from far.
the reclining Buddha in the golden robe
填香油 for the 7+1 days
2 giant Buddha statue next to the giant stupa
Buddha and followers i think...
taking a small statue on the stupa...in macro mode
lots of Buddha around me...may I be blessed!
another shot of Buddha and followers
Stupa of Great Victory
reclining Buddha over the windows to the world
We continued our visit to Wat Phananchoeng. This was the richest temple in terms of religions essence. There were a grand Golden Buddha sitting in the main hall with lots more goddess and deities from the Buddhism, Taoism and Hinduism. We rushed through the whole complex within half hour to maximize our Ayutthaya trip and value for tuk tuk.
Grand Golden Buddha...a very huge statue...look at his hand
zoom in to Buddha's hand
there were thousands of them on the wall...each hole housing 1 statue
the golden robe
there were many safe in temples...puzzle with that they actually stored in...
nice roof deco...this was one of the few temples similar what we have in Malaysia
the great pillar...with 4 goddess
ringing the bell...part of the ritual
Next was the Wat Chai Watthanaram. It was said to be build as according to the Angkor Wat in Cambodia but to me personally I see them differently. The similarities were both were build with a tower stupa in the middle and surrounded by many smaller stupa and the Buddha seated along the walkway with missing heads... The differences were notable to me...the wider and lower steps, less layering, build with red bricks and of course the scale were different....
panaroma view of Wat Chai Watthanaram
thanks to the smoke from open burning...this photo turned out so fake...seem like 3 of us standing in front of a poster
lots of smoke
a close up shot minus the smoke...blue sky and green grass
the beheaded Buddha along the way
another shot of the main phrang
me...
poor beheaded Buddha
The forth wat for the day was Wat Lokaya Suttha. This was the only none paying wat around for there wasn't much left in the wat other than a huge reclining Buddha made of brick. Anyway glad that we were here for this was the only reclining Buddha which we can capture as a whole. As most sculpture were indoors, their full view were blocked by pillars and etc.
the reclining Buddha
We then rushed to Wat Phra Mongkol Bophit. This temple was last restored in year 1957 where the current main building was build to cover one of the largest bronze Buddha statue in Thailand...surprised to see the bronze statue which now shiny gold. It was now covered with golden leaves since year 1990.
Giant golden bronze Buddha
Emerald Buddha
giant Buddha head covered with gold leaves...every patch are generous gift of devotees
Next to Wat Phra Mongkol Bpphit was the Royal Palace cum Wat Phra Si Sanpet. This was one of the largest wat complex around. Wat Phra Si Sanpet consisted of 3 stupas and these were the best preserved artifact in this whole complex. Though it was under the hot sun, we could still make some stupid move there...we tried shooting ourselves in the sky with timer and failed very badly...nothing turned out right...exhausting but FUN!
in the royal palace
the Wat Phra Si Sanpet
the east stupa of Wat Phra Si Sanpet
the door is really huge...high walls and doors
the stupa was really very big compared to our size...wonder how build them centuries ago
Wat Maha That was the temple which we have the highest expectation. We have seen photos of the famous tree root covering buddha statue head and have been anticipating for something really huge...something like in Ta Phrom in Cambodia but it turned out less as expected. The size of the buddha head was approximately 30cm width. Though it was small, it was still a great wat to visit to. The temple was huge and house many better preserved stupa and phrang. It has also many beheaded Buddha along the walkway.
remaining parts of Buddha statues
only 1 head left...thanks for keeping Buddha complete
lots of giant trees in the temple complex
the center of attraction...
i guess this can not be seen years later...
me at the magical view
trying to push it straight...but helpless
thanks to the restoration worker...this site can last for many more years or decades
after restoration process
Our last temple in Ayutthaya was Wat Ratchaburana. This was a smaller wat compared to the Wat Maha That next door. However this temple was better preserved. This was the only temple in which we were allowed up the phrang. Besides, there was a passage way down from the top of the phrang....but we were too tired for that.
from the main entrance
sister guides in Wat Ratchaburana
i think that was garuda
from the top...
love this photo very much
Finally we were back in the railway station at 2.30pm...we really maximize our 4 hours tuk tuk tour round Ayutthaya. We were very hungry. We quickly walked to the 7-eleven across the road...ting ting...our lunch was ready. For lunch we have green curry chicken rice and pork rice with a giant Melon slurpee.
our yummy lunch...looks ok but tastes good
Back in railway station, we bought our ticket back to Bangkok at 3.30pm train. This round we were smart to demand for cheap tickets. Finally we paid 20Baht per person...this was like one twelve of what we paid to get there. The ticket was on 3rd class or the economic class....no a/c and without numbered cushion seat.
The train finally arrived at 4pm. It was quite crowded. I have to stand for a while before I managed to get a seat. Anyway great to have experience traveling the local do. Got to see how the locals made living on the train, school children exciting after school hours and Bangkok traffic...even trains were jammed...too many heading into the station at that hour.
We finally arrived in the Hua Lampong station at close to 6pm. The station seemed to be more crowded now. Many tourists were seating on the a/c waiting hall floor. For 3 of us, we rushed to the MRT station and headed to the Silom station.
We have our dinner there in a restaurant which seem good but turned out to be rather so so. After the filling but less satisfying meal, we went window shop at Silom Complex.
Back in our room at about 9pm. Then out to a nearby massage center and got a full body massage for 180 Baht for one hour. It was so cheap and we enjoyed it very much. Slept early....
We enjoyed our short trip to Ayutthaya. This was really a world heritage city. So much to see...every streets we past seemed to house either a luxury new temple or ancient artifact...
rare sight...
our 2nd class a/c seats...I am thankful with what we have in MsiaArriving at Ayutthaya, we first checked out on train schedule for our way back to Bangkok. Then we bargained for our charter tuk tuk. We finally settled at 500Baht for 4 hours...the tuk tuk system here were based on hours not by distance...so you can name the temples that you want to visit as long as it is within the time frame.
In Ayutthaya, we managed to cover a total of 8 temples. We started with Wat Yai Chai Mongkol. The Stupa of Great Victory and the Reclining Buddha were astonishing. The golden cloth wrap around contrasting on the artifact made them stand out from far.
the reclining Buddha in the golden robe
填香油 for the 7+1 days
2 giant Buddha statue next to the giant stupa
Buddha and followers i think...
taking a small statue on the stupa...in macro mode
lots of Buddha around me...may I be blessed!
another shot of Buddha and followers
Stupa of Great Victory
reclining Buddha over the windows to the world
We continued our visit to Wat Phananchoeng. This was the richest temple in terms of religions essence. There were a grand Golden Buddha sitting in the main hall with lots more goddess and deities from the Buddhism, Taoism and Hinduism. We rushed through the whole complex within half hour to maximize our Ayutthaya trip and value for tuk tuk.
Grand Golden Buddha...a very huge statue...look at his hand
zoom in to Buddha's hand
there were thousands of them on the wall...each hole housing 1 statue
the golden robe
there were many safe in temples...puzzle with that they actually stored in...
nice roof deco...this was one of the few temples similar what we have in Malaysia
the great pillar...with 4 goddess
ringing the bell...part of the ritualNext was the Wat Chai Watthanaram. It was said to be build as according to the Angkor Wat in Cambodia but to me personally I see them differently. The similarities were both were build with a tower stupa in the middle and surrounded by many smaller stupa and the Buddha seated along the walkway with missing heads... The differences were notable to me...the wider and lower steps, less layering, build with red bricks and of course the scale were different....
panaroma view of Wat Chai Watthanaram
thanks to the smoke from open burning...this photo turned out so fake...seem like 3 of us standing in front of a poster
lots of smoke
a close up shot minus the smoke...blue sky and green grass
the beheaded Buddha along the way
another shot of the main phrang
me...
poor beheaded Buddha
The forth wat for the day was Wat Lokaya Suttha. This was the only none paying wat around for there wasn't much left in the wat other than a huge reclining Buddha made of brick. Anyway glad that we were here for this was the only reclining Buddha which we can capture as a whole. As most sculpture were indoors, their full view were blocked by pillars and etc.
the reclining Buddha
We then rushed to Wat Phra Mongkol Bophit. This temple was last restored in year 1957 where the current main building was build to cover one of the largest bronze Buddha statue in Thailand...surprised to see the bronze statue which now shiny gold. It was now covered with golden leaves since year 1990.
Giant golden bronze Buddha
Emerald Buddha
giant Buddha head covered with gold leaves...every patch are generous gift of devotees
Next to Wat Phra Mongkol Bpphit was the Royal Palace cum Wat Phra Si Sanpet. This was one of the largest wat complex around. Wat Phra Si Sanpet consisted of 3 stupas and these were the best preserved artifact in this whole complex. Though it was under the hot sun, we could still make some stupid move there...we tried shooting ourselves in the sky with timer and failed very badly...nothing turned out right...exhausting but FUN!
in the royal palace
the Wat Phra Si Sanpet
the east stupa of Wat Phra Si Sanpet
the door is really huge...high walls and doors
the stupa was really very big compared to our size...wonder how build them centuries agoWat Maha That was the temple which we have the highest expectation. We have seen photos of the famous tree root covering buddha statue head and have been anticipating for something really huge...something like in Ta Phrom in Cambodia but it turned out less as expected. The size of the buddha head was approximately 30cm width. Though it was small, it was still a great wat to visit to. The temple was huge and house many better preserved stupa and phrang. It has also many beheaded Buddha along the walkway.
remaining parts of Buddha statues
only 1 head left...thanks for keeping Buddha complete
lots of giant trees in the temple complex
the center of attraction...
i guess this can not be seen years later...
me at the magical view
trying to push it straight...but helpless
thanks to the restoration worker...this site can last for many more years or decades
after restoration processOur last temple in Ayutthaya was Wat Ratchaburana. This was a smaller wat compared to the Wat Maha That next door. However this temple was better preserved. This was the only temple in which we were allowed up the phrang. Besides, there was a passage way down from the top of the phrang....but we were too tired for that.
from the main entrance
sister guides in Wat Ratchaburana
i think that was garuda
from the top...
love this photo very muchFinally we were back in the railway station at 2.30pm...we really maximize our 4 hours tuk tuk tour round Ayutthaya. We were very hungry. We quickly walked to the 7-eleven across the road...ting ting...our lunch was ready. For lunch we have green curry chicken rice and pork rice with a giant Melon slurpee.
our yummy lunch...looks ok but tastes goodBack in railway station, we bought our ticket back to Bangkok at 3.30pm train. This round we were smart to demand for cheap tickets. Finally we paid 20Baht per person...this was like one twelve of what we paid to get there. The ticket was on 3rd class or the economic class....no a/c and without numbered cushion seat.
The train finally arrived at 4pm. It was quite crowded. I have to stand for a while before I managed to get a seat. Anyway great to have experience traveling the local do. Got to see how the locals made living on the train, school children exciting after school hours and Bangkok traffic...even trains were jammed...too many heading into the station at that hour.
We finally arrived in the Hua Lampong station at close to 6pm. The station seemed to be more crowded now. Many tourists were seating on the a/c waiting hall floor. For 3 of us, we rushed to the MRT station and headed to the Silom station.
We have our dinner there in a restaurant which seem good but turned out to be rather so so. After the filling but less satisfying meal, we went window shop at Silom Complex.
Back in our room at about 9pm. Then out to a nearby massage center and got a full body massage for 180 Baht for one hour. It was so cheap and we enjoyed it very much. Slept early....
We enjoyed our short trip to Ayutthaya. This was really a world heritage city. So much to see...every streets we past seemed to house either a luxury new temple or ancient artifact...
rare sight...
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