Greetings! Chris and I enjoyed another amazing day in Thailand, and traveled to Ayutthaya on a day trip with various other Rotarians from Pakistan, the Phillippines, Canada, and US. Fun to have our own multi-cultural discussions on our hour bus ride. :-)
Ayutthaya was Thailand's capital from around 1350 to 1767. The King Ramathibodi came here to escape an outbreak of smallpox, and 35 Kings reigned here until the Burmese invaded and burned the city down. Kings were superstitious to build over dead souls, so they headed down near Bangkok after that.
We visited a ton of amazing temples, including Wat Phra Ram pictured above, which was built on the cremation site of King Ramathibodi. Many other unique areas were visited, with my favorite being the Buddha statue intertwined in the banyan tree, a tree they believe to be holy.
It was amazing to see the variety of Buddha poses, sizes, and placement in so many different ways to honor him. My favorite highlight of the day, however, was going on an elephant ride!
