Bicycle, Bicycle, I Want To Ride My Bicycle

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  Sukhothai, Thailand
Monday, February 20, 2006

M: We had this absolutely fantastic plan that we would arrive in Bangkok around 5PM, hang out, get something to eat, go to see a movie and then get on an overnight bus to Sukhothai. We were really excited about how well it would work to get in first thing in the morning, not have to pay for lodging for a night, etc. So, we went to a very cheesy, but safe Thai food chain (think TGIFriday's). It was really funny. Really, really funny. (J: and also really NASTY, when we were served yellow water. Don't worry we didn't drink it.) And then we went to this absolutely gorgeous theater with VERY comfy seats to see Brokeback Mountain. After all was said and done, it was 11 PM and we were on target to go to the bus station.

When we got to the bus station, there was a lot of confusion and miscommunication, but what it came down to was there was no night bus. The Lonely Planet has failed us a lot in Thailand

Giant Standing Buddha

. By then it was 12:30. Our option was to try to find a place to stay for 5 hours or to hang out in the bus station. We went for option B. It was a long, hot, uncomfortable night, but we got on the first bus out the next morning and arrived in Sukhothai early in the afternoon.

Sukhothai was the first capital of Thailand and is interesting because the ancient city is full of the ruins of the old temples. There aren't any houses in the city walls and the best way to get around is via bicycle. That first day, we ran out of time, but did go see the museum that explained the area and a set of ruins with elephant sculptures all around the bottom, called Wat Chang Lom. Which meant that we learned the Thai words for elephant (Chang) and around (Lom). After that, we got a little lost heading back to our little teak hut, but did stumble on aerobics in the park at sunset. Apparently, aerobics is a big thing here and a number of people are taking classes in parks. We also saw a televised version of little kids in an aerobics competition one night in Bangkok. It's a little nuts.

We woke up the day we were going to bike around the ruins to pouring rain. We didn't wait too long and were rewarded by the end of the downpour. The little pick up trucks with benches serve as buses and we took one back to the old city where we rented bikes and began to cruise around the old city

I Want to Ride My Bicycle

. The ruins were interesting, especially given that they are a combination of brick, limestone and a variety of other materials. Sometimes all in one buddha. And the buddhas are ENORMOUS and in a variety of poses - sitting, standing, subduing Mara. I keep saying that I wish I knew more about Buddhism and more about Thai history, etc.

We left the old city walls and biked to a variety of other ruin sites, climbed some hills, laughed at each other on our hilarious bikes and then packed it all back in to head back to the bus station and on to Chiang Mai. Sukhothai was a funny little town that seemed to be both separate and engulfed in its own history. A good precursor to Angkor Wat. And we gleckel on...

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More Chang (Elephants)	Resting on a Wat	Sitting Buddha, Standing Missy	Wat Chang Lom
Wat Si Sawai

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