Nothing wakes you up in the morning quite like flying towards oncoming traffic down a one way street in Bangkok on the back of a motorbike taxi with an oversized backpack in tow and travel guitar in hand. I arrive at the train station feeling like I just survived sky diving without a parachute.
After bidding a bittersweet goodbye to Bangkok, promising her I'll be back before too long, I coast an hour or so north on a train to Ayuthaya. A former capital of Thailand, the city was originally founded back in 1350 as the royal headquarters. The train chugs along past shanty towns hovering precariously over canal waters, and a seemingly endless series of cement pillars lovingly decked in some coolest street art I've ever seen.
We've arrived! Ayuthaya is an island of sorts, flat and surrounded on all sides by rivers. Countless crumbling temples cling to the arid landscape. I wonder what it all would have looked like during the city's heyday, with Thailand's king residing in one of these withering palaces. Peddling around from ruin to ruin on a rented bike (only $1.25 for a day, cheap cheap), I do what I can to explore every nook and cranny of the eroded orange brick temples.
My favorite of all the ruins is the ancient royal palace, Wat Phra Si Saphet. Three enormous bell shaped chedi stand side by side in the center of the complex, while dozens of smaller stupas surround the perimeter. Some lean precariously to one side, flirting with gravity until they inevitably topple over.
A love letter from a leaning stupa: "Dear Gravity, I think I'm falling for you. Eternally yours, Stupa"
I pass a chain of tired looking elephants being ridden by some Chinese tourists. Elephant riding just isn't for me. The handlers control them by wielding sticks with metal hooks on their ends, and the elephants appear jaded, sad, and tired. It all just seems so - parasitic.
Past the elephant path I enter the temple grounds and instantly go into Indiana-Jonesing-it mode. Curiosity bids me to climb around and see what secrets I might be able to unearth. These mysteries aren't going to unravel themselves you know!
A hauntingly beautiful site from another ruin nearby
The central chedi is the only one who's door is open. Darkness beckons me to enter. As I stumble into the tomb, I notice the ground is blanketed with powdery little pellets that thicken with each step forward. The choking stench of ammonia oozes into my nostrils and I begin to hear something stirring up ahead. Or...somethings? I slowly creep inwards and peer up to hear the shrill squeaks and chirps of hundreds, perhaps thousands of bats. All of the winged pipsqueaks cling upside down and glare down at me as I've disturb their peaceful slumber. Maybe I'm the one who's upside down, staring down at them.
After I nearly pass out from the guano stank (I probably still smell like ammonia), I climb down the chedi and sit atop a nearby wall to render one of the mighty structures into my sketchbook. Time turns slippery when I go into drawing mode. Hours pass like minutes; I don't even seem to notice my hiney has gone numb after sitting on the bricks for so long.
Next I walk into the neighboring temple, this one the the biggest I've seen yet, fully decked out and full of Buddhists praying on their knees. It's comes complete with a towering Bronze Buddha figure that must be at least three stories tall. Am I intruding as I stroll into these temples? I am not Buddhist and know little of its traditions...to quote the great Wayne and Garth, "I'm not worthy!" Regardless, it's quite a sight to see.
That's a big ol Buddha right there
This is Thrift Shop Awesome.
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