Again we waited for half an hour for our tour guide who turned out to be the same guy who greeted us as yesterday. Only today it was wat day. We were visiting the temple ruins of Ayutthaya.
We spent all morning wandering around different temple ruins, burning in the hot sun and sweat inducing humidity. We visited wat Phra Mahathad, wat Lakaya Sutha with the 37 feet long reclining buddha, and wat Pra Sri Sanphet, amongst others. We also took a long tail boat ride around the island city of Ayutthaya during which we saw many more temples and temple ruins. Along the river we passed eight or nine huge cargo barges which were grouped in threes, each accommodating a family, pulled along by a tug boat, also accommodating a family. The boat trip provided me with a slight breeze and rest which made me feel better.
Lunch was a repeat of yesterdays lunch although in a different restaurant where they also served us some pineapple for dessert.
After lunch we saw some more ruins including the palace temple ruins. There I was besotted with a young girl who had only recently learned to walk, who had on a pair of shoes that squeaked as she walked. She was fascinated with kicking small fruits around. It was a lovely sight. There we also saw the insides of a traditional Thai style house.
There were some Asian elephants trekking along the side of the road, another tourist attraction, which reminded us of our experience with Moka and his orphaned friends in Victoria Falls.
We went to an Italian for dinner along Thanon Khao San. Our starters were nice and the restaurant was very popular. Despite the present flavour of carraway seeds I continued to eat my pizza, stopping abruptly halfway through when I discovered an insect in the middle of my food. It had obviously found its place at some stage during the cooking process although it still had its legs and body very visibly intact. I refused to pay for the pizza and declined to accept a replacement. We then left and wrote our journals in the quiet pub which was showing 'Resident Evil'. What a remarkable film.
Copyright 2003 Helen Fuller. All rights reserved.