Thelma and Louise Take on the World: Ayutthaya or Bust!!

Sunday, April 29 was the day we checked out at the Vacation Club and headed for Ayutthaya. When we arrived at the Hua Lampong train station in Bangkok, we went to the ticket counters to reserve our seats. The train station is absolutely tourist friendly with plenty of helpful staff that can speak and understand English very well, something that we have found lacking in most Thai people. So…we bought our tickets and headed to platform 10. The train finally arrived about 10 minutes late and then when we boarded we realized that we were not going to have a seat. So…we got right back off with our backpacks and went back to the ticket counter to see if we could catch the next, nicer train. It was no problem. We grabbed a snack at Dunkin Donuts and boarded our nice air conditioned train. We were even served a meal in route. It was actually quite relaxing.

Just a little over an hour later we arrived in Ayutthaya. We snagged a taxi and made our way towards our new residence, Baifern Homestay. We were excited to see it in person, because when Thelma and I reserved it several months, we thought it looked nice. Our hopes were met with smiling faces and a very nice place to stay. Our room is small, but the AC is cold and the room looks recently renovated. The whole building is really cute and very nice despite the flood in the fall of 2011 that filled the whole first floor. Anyways, they served us some amazing fresh mango and were very helpful with everything. While on a little self led tour of the place, Thelma and I found a sign advertising river sightseeing cruises. In just a few moments, the staff had us set up with a longtail boat tour on the rivers. Awesome!!

We had no idea what to expect when we were picked up for the tour, but that is what makes traveling fun right?? We were greeted by a delightful Thai woman who was no doubt friendly and welcoming. We took a tuk-tuk to the river and waited for the other tourists to arrive. We boarded the longtail with 2 French women and an Australian man accompanied by a Thai woman. Our first stop was the Tall Buddha. We were absolutely flabbergasted by the sight of the over 40 foot tall golden Buddha from the 1300s. It was spectacular. We will never forget it. We stopped at two other temples that had their own highlights. The second was a wondrous fusion of old and new with a huge collection of golden Buddhas. The last was an ancient temple that was purely magnificent. While in between temples on the water, we passed a Chinese Karaoke Boat. Yes…drunken Chinese people singing songs. It was hilarious. We concluded the trip with a quick look at the local Night Market and then went home. The whole almost 3 hour event was just 220 Baht per person. Even though it was over 100 degrees and French ladies squealed and freaked out every time the boat rocked, it was a great deal and we both had an excellent time.

When we arrived back at the hotel, we picked up a couple drinks and went to the room to cool off. Earlier in the day, the staff asked Thelma if we were going to be around for dinner. They were going to cook Thai food. We decided that we would join in even though we had no idea what they were cooking. It turns out they cook delicious food to order from a menu that is very decently priced. Awesome!

Train Station Platform 10

Inside the Hua Lom Pong Station.

Thelma and Louise on the train!

The train car.

Our bathroom at Baifern

Our room at Baifern.

The entrance to our room.

The balcony hall. Thelma
was fighting with the door lock.
Although, there is not really
anyone staying here.

One of the main rooms.

The gardens.

Our room from the ground.

The gardens.

Baifern!!!

Our longtail tour boat.

Giant Buddha in Wat Panan Choeng.

Still amazing.

Ummm...jaw just dropped.

Just the face. This is 40 feet above us.

Just another golden buddha
outside the temple.

This is what the buddhists do.
They put little flakes of gold onto the statues
in prayer until the entire statue is covered.
Its so cool to see the beauty in the making.