Ayutthaya was the former capital of Thailand and remained as such for 417 years
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Recognised internationally by UNESCO as a World Heritage Site, Ayutthaya was destroyed in 1767 by the Burmese army which resulted in the collapse of the kingdom. Bangkok thus became the capital of Thailand.
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Ayutthaya has over 2000 temples
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The population of Ayutthaya is approximately 800,000
Top 5 Things to Do:
Visit Wat Mahathat, Wt Phra Si Sanphet, Wat Ratchburana - the most famous temples in Ayutthaya
Cycle around the city and explore the highlights and local culture
Take an elephant ride around the old capital
Cruise down the river and wave at the local children playing and swimming
Homestay – stay the night with locals and experience real Thai culture
What’s cool in Ayutthaya:
Chillax (chill out and relax) the afternoon or evening away on a converted rice barge, enjoy lunch or dinner on board, watch the locals going about their everyday lives, take in a temple or two and keep your eyes peeled as you may spot an elephant
Visit many of the ancient temples that once housed the elite of Thailand
Want to see a Buddha Head in a tree? Well, it’s possible if you visit Wat Mahathat and find out just how it got there.
Night food markets – you’ll find them in front of Chankasaen Palace, north of the town centre. What do they offer – Thai food of course!
Giant river prawn barbeque – HUGE prawn like you’ve never seen before. Found in the local restaurants along the river. How many can you eat?
The Ancient City of AYUTTHAYA
In 1350 A.D. King U-thong founded his own Kingdom in Ayothaya (so called during such time). It was the right place for a capital city of a Kingdom strategically. It was surrounded by three rivers; now call Chao Phraya, Pasak and Lop Buri. During such time Sukhothai which used to be the most powerful and prosperous kingdom in the Golden Peninsular (composed of Burma, Thailand, Laos, Cambodia and Malaysia) was on its decline. Meanwhile Ayothaya was getting stronger and stronger and finally could control many other kingdoms in such area including Sukhothai and the name Ayothaya was renamed “Ayutthaya”.
During the reign of King Naresuan the Great, the power of Ayutthaya Kingdom expanded to cover the whole Golden Peninsular (Thailand, part of Burma bordered by Thailand which forms the northwest part of the Golden Peninsular, the whole of Laos, Cambodia and the whole of Malaysia and Singapore). Such other kingdom had to prove their loyalty by offering annual presents to the king of Ayutthaya.
Ayutthaya was in power for 417 years, from 1350 – 1767 A.D. During such a long period its culture and arts were substantial and profound which have become. On 13 December 1991 the Ayutthaya Historical Park was praised and declared a Cultural World Heritage Site by UNESCO. It has a must for every foreign visitor who can afford at least one full day to see.
The main lifeblood of the Thai people
The legendary and significant Chao Phraya River is formed by four major tributaries, the Ping, Wang, Yom and Nan Rivers which flow from the northern watershed of Thailand to merge at Pak Nam Pho estuary in Nakhon Sawan Province. To its end at the Gulf of Siam, she flows for 379 kilometers through the central plain of Thailand the area that is the rice bowl of the Kingdom and has been over centuries gone by. She is eminent as a mother land river.
The name Chao Phraya is related to the “Title of the Highest Thai Noble” in the Royal Administration. That’s why we sometimes hear people call the river her namesake as “The River of Kings”.
The Thai community relies greatly on water transportation, thus the main rivers and the intricate system of canals became the most important trade routes for people and they formed an important communication system that brought about social integration and prosperity to the community. Along the river we can see people of different races who have different religious beliefs and different cultural backgrounds living together in peace. The Buddhist temples, Christian churches, Muslim mosques and other spirit shrines are standing right next to each other.
Rice Barge The earlier mentioned built boat means to build a boat with wood boards. Currently more than 80% of built boats that we see are Rua Krachaeng. The word “Krachaeng” refers to canopies covering almost the entire length of the boat. So the boat is called “Krachaeng”. In the olden days Krachaeng was made of bamboo leaves or Pandan palm leaves or Toei (a water plant) leaves. The leaves were sewn by using needle to form a sheet, and then sew the sheets together to form Krachaeng using as canopy. Subsequently, Krachaeng made of such materials became expensive. It was hence changed from nature to galvanized iron sheet. Therefore a canopy made of natural material has no longer to be seen.
“Krachaeng boat” can carry many cargoes, be they rocks, soil, sand, firewood, paddy, rice, etc. If it is used for carrying paddy or rice, it would be differently called “Rice Boat”. When loading cargo, especially paddy or rice, the Krachaeng canopies would be moved to one side to ease the loading. Occasionally, when there is nothing to carry, the Krachaeng canopies would be opened to sun the interior of the boat to get rid of small. Size of Krachaeng boat is decided in accordance with the number of paddy or rice it can maximally load, such as 700 sacks, 1600 sacks, etc.
Note: The above explanative statement is cited and translated from an article “Differences between Krachaeng Boat and Iamjun Boat” published in a Thai most popular travel magazine in Thailand called “Aw Saw Thaw” periodic of April 2001, by Nithi Subhongsang (Nutty).
