Monday 18th February
I didn't get the impression that there was too much to see in Ayuthaya to justify spending more than one night there. I was on the 'old ruins and temples' leg of my journey through Thailand, and had learned from my experiences in India that it is important to ration these visits, or risk over-exposure and the inevitable 'temple fatigue' that follows. I was moving on to the even older city of Sukhothai in the north, and my research told me that this was the most impressive of all the ancient sites, so I decided to save my energies for here.
Nonetheless, I was still keen to see some of what was on display in Ayuthaya, and so got up around 07.30 and headed out to take a look around. I thought the ruins themselves were quite impressive, and also well maintained, making them pleasant places to wander through and take photos.
After a late breakfast, I took a tuk-tuk to the small bus station on the outskirts of town, and boarded the bus to Sukhothai, and a very nice once it was too. There are different classes of bus in Thailand – VIP, First Class, Second Class, and Third Class – and this one happened to be a First Class coach, with the 270B ticket buying me a seat on a coach with an attendant, toilet and more comfortable seats. After a comfortable journey of over five hours, I checked into 'Ban Thai' guesthouse in the 'New City' of Sukhothai, and it was a nice, clean, family-run place with a good atmosphere, and spent the rest of the evening just chilling out, had some dinner (Masaman or muslim-style curry), did some reading before turning in for the night.
