THAILAND – AYUTTHAYA

JANUARY 27 – 31, 2026

Ayutthaya was a Kingdom or Empire in Siam (present-day Thailand) between 1351 and 1767. It was considered one of the three great powers of Asia, along with India and China. Archaeological evidence has proven that the area was a powerhouse pre-1300s, as far back as the 11th century. The kingdom’s internal struggles gave the Burmese an opening to invade. In April 1767, after a 14-month siege, the capital city of Ayutthaya fell to Burmese forces. The city was completely destroyed. Siam quickly recovered and moved the capital to Bangkok within a few years.

There continued to be wars, uprisings, and all sorts of mayhem throughout its history. We came because it was the former capital city of Siam, that was still in pretty good shape, despite the sacking by Burma. We were not disappointed.

The thing to remember is, these temples, statues, stupa or chedi (bell shaped) and prang (corn cob shaped) and walls were all built out of bricks. The bricks were stacked flat-side down, and in many cases, interwoven to create a solid and very strong structure. The bricks would have had to been hand made in those days. They were extremely heavy.

All of the temple sites are basically the same, but each has its own uniqueness. Some were in fantastic shape, while some were not so fortunate.

Even though the Burmese tried to destroy everything, it was nearly impossible, considering the way things were built. They lopped the heads off most of the Buddha statues, however. It is surprising that the Golden Buddha that is now in Bangkok was spared, or at least not discovered that it was solid gold.

There were structures seemingly everywhere we turned. Some were at traffic circles.

Some were in the middle of a field, across from shops.

Some were sadly forgotten, with abandoned cars and power lines resting on them. I felt sorry for this one (WAT YANNASEN) and had AI clean it up.

I saw a group of boys playing football beside one stupa. It struck me that they are growing up with these marvelous structures strewn across their backyards. They are so common that they play around them, and probably crawl over them playing hide and seek or king of the mountain, while I flew half way around the globe to see them.

We were fortunate that our hotel was within walking distance of many of the sites. Using my trusty GPSmyCity app, we headed out. As usually happens, as we were going to a certain site, we came upon other interesting sites that caused us to detour. We laughed that we would never make it to our destination if we kept stopping at other places. Oh well, we were in no hurry.

Our first detour was at WAT NA PHRA MERU RACHIKARAM. It was literally around the corner from our hotel. What caught our attention was the number of people standing outside of the temple with incense in one hand and chanting.

Inside was the typical Buddhist temple with a large Buddha at the centre, flanked by smaller Buddhas covered in gold gild that people were continually adding to.

WAT THAMMIKARAT caught our eye because of the number of rooster statues. There are rooster statues all over Thailand. I have read different reasons for them. One says it is to honour King Karesuan the Great, symbolizing “gratitude for fulfilled wishes, protection and good fortune.” Another says the rooster symbolizes resilience, courage, and new beginnings. The third is that there was a bet between a prince of Ayutthaya and a prince of Burma in a cock fight. The Siamese Prince’s rooster won and caused the Burmese prince great humiliation. Cock-a-doodle do!

The key feature at this Wat was the CHEDI LINGH LOM (LION SURROUNDED CHEDI). The bell-shaped chedi has an octagonal base and is surrounded by about 28 lions made of brick and mortar (I don’t remember the exact number of lions)

WAT MAHATHAT was built in 1374. It was expanded a few times by succeeding kings. Its big drawing feature is the Buddha head entwined in the roots of a banyan tree.

WAT RATCHABURANA was built in 1424 by the king as a cremation site for his two older brothers, who fought each other, to the death in a duel, for the succession of their father for the throne. Never underestimate the younger sibling, who probably supplied the weapons.

The central prang is the one of the best in Ayutthaya, with lots of its original stucco work still visible. We climbed up the prang and were able to look down into the crypt of the brothers. Sadly, looters made away with priceless Buddha figures and gold that were interned with the brothers, most of which has never been recovered.

SIDE NOTE:  Bon Jovi’s 1995 “This Ain’t a Love Song” features scenes shot at Wat Ratchaburana.

The next day we walked to WAT PHRA SI SANPHE, which I think was the nicest of all the temples. It was the holiest site of the old Royal Palace and was used exclusively by the royal family. The three stupas are crypts for three royal members. This is about all that was left of the Wat after the Burmese attack.

We returned one evening, just to get a picture of the three stupas lit up. It was worth the walk and the wait for the sun to set.

This temple once had a Buddha statue that was 16 m (52.5ft) high, on a pedestal that was 8 m (26 ft) long. Although the core of the statue was made of bronze, it was covered with 343 kg (756 lb) of gold. It weighted 64 tons and took 3 years to complete. When the Burmese invaded, they melted down the gold. The bronze core was later moved to Bangkok where it was interned in Wat Pho.

Near Wat Phra Si Sanphe was WIHAN PHRA MONGKHON BOPHIT. As near as I can figure, a replica of the melted golden covered Buddha is housed here. The centre of the was shrouded with tarps for restoration, and we could not see what was behind it. There were only pictures that gave us a hint.

There was a market nearby. We wandered through and marveled at the wide assortment of goods and foods.

WAT KUDI DAO was a bit further away so we took a taxi. This site had two buildings that looked more modern, with rectangular walls and open centre, like a hall.

In the centre of the site was a stupa with its pinnacle toppled onto the ground nearby. Other bits of the stupa were also scattered about, showing how they rolled to their present resting spot.

We went to WAT MAHAEYONG. The Temple Hall was under reconstruction so all we saw was the exterior.

Cement was made on-site in small batches.

There was a cave-like building nearby that housed a reclining Buddha.

There was also a MEDITATION RETREAT area. Students were listening to gurus.

There was a fake-cave hallway, that reminded me of cloisters, that ran beside a pond.

Above the cloisters was a lovely grassy area.

At one end of the pond was a fake waterfall.

The entire site was calming and beautiful. Even the gardens, paths, and street lights were calming. The street lights were disguised as trees. It would be a lovely place to go for a retreat.

I found out later there was a huge stupa that was supported by 80 sculpted elephants. I don’t know where it was, because we certainly did not see it.

We were told that WAT CHAIWATTHANARAM was the nicest temple. It was built in 1630 and some say it is similar to Angkor Wat, in Siem Reap, Cambodia. (I disagree) It was not as big as other sites, but the structures were in better shape.

I thought the night view would be spectacular, but we were ushered out before the sun set. The best shot I could get was from a cafe nearby. We had to buy something to enter the cafe and the view was not that good. Oh, well….

The basket lights in the trees were beautiful, however.

There was a little boy at the restaurant, who looked about 3 years old, that kept chasing after Pierre. It was so cute. In Cambodia we read a boy’s account of how he first saw “giant white men” when he was at a boarding school for landmine victims. I can only guess that Pierre was a “giant white man” to this little boy, which was like seeing a character out of a fairy tale. Lilliput come to life!

Walking back home we came across a FOOD FESTIVAL. We were sort of hungry and what better place to sample the local cuisine! The grounds were very festive, with strings of lights and archways. Even the trees were decorated.

Across from the food festival was WAT PHRA RAM. We could see the reflection of the prang in the pond separating us. We went back the next day to see it in the daylight.

The next day, while on our way to see Wat Phra Ram in the daylight, we detoured to see some ELEPHANTS. We bought some bananas and other food items to feed them. Then we took a ride. Upon our return we posed with a young elephant while the handler told it to hug us with his trunk. It was all fun, until we found out that most of these elephant places in Thailand are totally unethical as to how they treat their elephants.

The Wat was the same, same but different (a Thai saying). They were setting up for some kind of celebration, with nice chairs being set out and lanterns being hung. The lanterns were made of tightly strung together flower buds.

We took a leisurely walk through AYUTTHAYA HISTORICAL PARK. There were numerous bridges crossing over ponds.

We came across a statue of Mae Thoranee (Mother Earth Goddess). She had a wardrobe hanging in a nearby tree.

OTHER THINGS OF INTEREST:

Not all statues were ancient. There were recent statues in ancient places. Like this Buddha head at Wat Thammikarat.

Most street food was cooked over an outdoor grill. A lot have these exhaust pipes to suck the smoke away from the cooking.

Cold drinks come with a sling to hold the drink. If you buy two drinks, the sling has two pockets.

Trees have knobbly bumps.

Many trees are sculpted into bubbles.

Tuktuks have gotten modern.

Buses are wildly painted.

Monks have also gotten modern, with cell phones.

I have often mentioned how we give Canada flag pins to locals. These girls offered to take our picture in front of a temple. We thanked them with pins. They literally squealed with delight. A small gesture of kindness goes a long way!

There was a canal near our hotel. The homes had little bridges, complete with gates and mail boxes.

Eli-An Haus was a restaurant across the street. We ate there every day. This breakfast cost $4.50.

STAY: Old Palace Resort.

ATE: Eli-An Haus

We had wanted to go to Cambodia, but were told that it was dangerous due to fighting with Thailand. We met a couple who had just come from Cambodia and said it was perfectly safe. They said the fighting was on the border, but inland was fine. Based on their account, we decided not to go northern Thailand. We returned to Bangkok. Where we took a few day trips (in another blog) Then flew to Siem Reap, Cambodia.