The Journey North

We left Krabi and took a VIP bus north to Bangkok. From there it was a ride across town in a shared taxi that we called the Bumpy Bus of Bangkok. They crammed 12 people plus luggage into a minivan and headed through town at high speed. The roads were bumpy and each bump sent every passenger flying up off the seats. Fun for me, but misery for Leon, who being much taller than the other passengers was sent crashing into the ceiling at each bump.
After winding our way through the northern bus station, we found the bus to Ayutthaya and managed to hop on just as it was pulling out. From there it was a quick 90 minute journey north to the historic Thai city. We found the P.U. Guesthouse, a charming place with a quirky name, and settled in.
Ayutthaya provides an interesting look at ancient Thailand. Ruins of the past are nestled in the midst of the modern city, and you never know what you might discover on a walk down the street. We visited the highlights of the town, sampled some of the local street food, and checked out the goods on offer at the local market. After two days of exploring, it was time to move on, and it was just a couple hours north to the town of Sukhothai.
Sukhothai is a UNESCO heritage site and has an amazing old town with a large collection of old Buddhist temples. We stayed in the new town, at a local guesthouse. We had a little cottage to ourselves, and a beautiful garden that we shared with four turtles, one cat, three kittens, and lots of fish and birds. It was incredibly peaceful and the family who ran the house was incredibly welcoming.
After resting the first day, we decided to spend the second day exploring the ruins. We took a local bus to the old section of town. Unlike at home, the local bus in this small town was a pickup truck with benches that lined the bed. Locals piled on with huge baskets of fruit and sacks of grain, and it cost less than a dollar for our 30 minute ride across the city.
When we arrived at the UNESCO site, we were surprised at the size of the area. We decided to rent bikes to explore the ruins and the park like surroundings. The weather was perfect, the skies were blue, and we were charmed by the serenity of the temples and the monks in their saffron colored robes.
The small towns were charming, and offered us a different view of life in Thailand. The further north we went, the more stunning the scenery, and we were excited to head to the northern capital of Chiang Mai. We had heard from others that it was a beautiful city, and we were about to see for ourselves just how right they were.

Ayuthaya and Sukothai