Ban Dan Lan Hoi to Old Sukhothai

December 4, 2019 to December 5, 2019

We love being in Thailand. Everything is easier. Our cute little bungalow in the forest was perfect for us at the Rom Dee Resort - 400 Baht ($13.33). I have no idea why they call these bungalows resorts all over Thailand. This one had a very nice owner who told us five times that there was free coffee in the morning. In the three years we’ve been absent from Thailand it appears the Thais have been sold on the ease of Nescafe coffee mix packets which they provide for us free of charge at guest houses. There were mugs and hot water and a beautiful little area to sit and listen to all the birds in the morning COOLNESS which was unfamiliar to us.

Rom Dee Resort in Ban Dan Lan Hoi, Thailand

Almost the entire bungalow area had a thick canopy of vines to keep it cool.

We love these little bungalows in Thailand.

There was, in fact, a rather unseasonable cold wave settling down on the entire region including Myanmar. We groaned when we saw the temperatures forecast for all the cities we had sweltered in. They were ideal with night time temperatures almost termed cold. It looked as though the cold front would last for at least ten days. We were having a great time already and a cold wave could only make us happier.

We hadn’t ridden very many miles when we saw an adorable noodle soup place. These places are all open-air, roofs of course, but with lots and lots of potted plants and large ceramic pots filled with miniature water lilies and guppies. Flowers everywhere. This is Thailand. The Thais know how to make a place lovely and we are very much enjoying it.

So, in these sorts of restaurants you are basically eating outside among lots of gorgeous plants.

Again the soup woman welcomed us in and I was able to speak enough Thai to thrill her too. This was an especially lovely spot though and we just sat there enjoying it all. Oh, and the soup was fantastic. Every single woman who makes noodle soup does it slightly different but nearly always they are great, especially for biking. There are choices of sizes of noodles and whether we want pork or chicken. It’s not complicated.

We didn’t have a big day ahead of us and that was another reason we were so happy. Plus it was flat. It was just a nice short ride of a dozen miles to the ancient capital of Thailand, Sukhothai, a place I visited 45 years ago when the monuments were all overgrown with trees and bushes and pottery pieces as well as Buddha heads were lying around in the dirt. I’ve wanted to return ever since.

I nearly always ride in front of Andrea because I stop more often to take photos and she says that if I’m behind her she might not see that I have stopped. This began on a trip when her mirror broke early on but now she does have a mirror so I’m not quite sure the same logic exists. But, I think it’s best for me to ride ahead so I can take the snake bite for her! I constantly watch for the slithering and darting from the green growth that encroaches on just about every road’s shoulder.

On the outskirts of Sukhothai I saw it but it didn’t register with my brain what exactly I was looking at. It was a black snake. I saw it a few feet in front of me moving fast crossing the road but just then while mesmerized by what exactly I was seeing, Andrea asked me to stop for some reason. It was the weirdest set of circumstances. I think the instant I figured out I was looking at a snake her demand also triggered in my brain and I cranked on the brakes. She never knew anything about a snake and she almost never tells me to stop. Just weird!

I have noticed this phenomenon about snakes on the road before. They, especially cobras, can move across a road incredibly fast and they somehow go in a straight line. How a snake moves is perplexing to me and freaks me out. So, there was a shimmering in the sunlight, a black line shimmering but moving across the road. It’s almost like looking at a mirage.

Buddha left a lot of really enormous footprints throughout Asia. They are Paul Bunyan size. This was very near to where I saw the snake.

Interestingly fairly major roads go right through the vast Sukhothai Historical Park. You can see the monuments in the distance but if you want to get closer you have to purchase a ticket. There are at least four different sections with separate 100 Baht ($3.33) entrance fees (per person). Initially we just rode through the site to our guest house, Ban Rim Klong Resort (500 Baht or $16.66), which was at the end of a completely deserted street tucked away in the forest on a stream a stone’s throw from ancient ruins.

Again, there were individual bungalows and the one we chose was modern, clean and beautiful with our own porch overlooking an expanse of green overhung with birdsong. The owner spoke quite a bit of English and was the most mellow person ever. I guess living where he does maybe grows into one’s fiber. It was a super relaxing place. He offered us free coffee in the morning on his porch. We melted into the quiet peacefulness.

From our rear veranda of our $15 bungalow. Birds were everywhere.

Papaya has an enzyme that helps digestion. We find that we have no stomach problems when we eat a papaya a day. We also mix in muesli and bananas or mangos and a little soy milk. It's a big breakfast but actually is mostly water.

I must mention that there seems to be no tourists in Thailand this winter. The three guest houses we’ve stayed at so far have been completely empty.

Our guest house owner told us there was a rural market on the edge of town the next day. Rural markets travel continuously from place to place and anyone in the area can bring whatever they have made, grown or cooked to these markets. I like them because they offer a glimpse into real life in rural Thailand.

In the morning we rode the few miles to the market and walked around the whole thing twice. There was not one other foreigner there and every time we bought something the people seemed as though they had never sold anything to a foreigner ever. I spoke Thai to them and they didn’t even recognize it probably because they were not expecting Thai at all. I’m sure my tones were all wanky which added to their confusion but, still, normally Thais understand me. somewhat I’m sure that if they had had more contact with foreigners they would have tried to understand me. We were just too odd a sight for them to process. I’ve had this happen to me many times when dealing with people who really never come into even small towns much. They are true country Thais.

We bought a papaya (30 cents) and some packets of seeds (30 cents each) to experiment with back home next summer. I pondered and fondled many large knives that a man had forged, hammered out and sharpened himself. We got two old style Thai coffees (50 cents each) and I gave a disabled singer some money after I filmed him. At every rural market there seems to be at least one blind singer who has a box playing rhythms and he or she sings into a microphone also connected to the box. I love these people and always try to record them a little. They are always right in the middle of the action at the markets but no one cares one bit if they are in the way. Thais have an abundance of tolerance and respect for others. Thais also have a truly amazing sense of personal space. You can be in the most crowded place, like standing on a packed bus, and no one is ever touching another person.

Garlic sellers at the rural market. Thai garlic is the best (in my opinion).

I have so many knives already but I was tempted.

After the market we went to visit one section of the Historical Park. In particular I wanted to see a large Buddha image I had photographed 45 years ago at Wat Si Chum. Once inside the enormous building I positioned myself in a corner crouching down with my camera pointed skyward waiting for pigeons to fly across the Buddha’s face. Then I became trapped there by a group of young Thais with bags of stuff and completely focused on setting a lot of things up.

They were about to honor the former king since it was his birthday - December 5th. They had brought flowers, vases, intricate woven banana leaf offerings with marigolds, bottles of various kinds of soft drinks which they opened and lined up by the huge Buddha feet, candles and of course incense which they lit by the fistful. I was trapped but in a good way because I got to watch how serious and devoted they were in their intentions to honor the previous king. Then one of them chanted some Buddhist scriptures and it was beautiful. My legs both went to sleep as I continued crouching but a pigeon did finally fly and that was beautiful too.

Forty five years ago when I was at Wat Si Chum there was a very tight stairway inside the wall that wound up and up and near the top was a slot window from which a person could view the Buddha from above. Candles were passed out before entering because it was pitch black inside. Unfortunately that passageway is blocked by an iron gate and no one can enter.

Wat Si Chum in the distance, 250 year-old mango tree to the right of it and a group of older Thai women tourists lining up in the foreground for yet another group photo.

Wat Si Chum isn't much to look at from the sides but look at that mango tree!

Wat Si Chum. The slot window in the wall where a person used to be able to view the Buddha from.

Three young people setting up offerings for both the Buddha and the former king on his birthday.

"Smart Heritage". You can get an app for a guided tour here. So, here you have an overview of the temple. The front part, where there are just columns was the main part of the temple called the Viharn. Imagine those columns much taller, which they were, and then put on a steep roof. The Buddha image is always at the rear. This must have been a spectacular temple with the enormous Buddha image peeking in with sunlight hitting it since the building it was in probably didn't have a roof. It's a unique temple for sure.

We biked around to other structures and remarked on how dry and parched it was so early in the, granted, dry season. The stream which our bungalow would normally overlook was also dry. Our guest house owner told us the stream used to be full but hadn’t been in a few years. It’s very disappointing for him. He pointed out the photo on his business card which shows his outdoor eating area with a large full stream right at the base of the tables. It was gorgeous but now it’s a dry ditch with lots of bushes growing up. Our guest house owner thought that diversion of the water upstream maybe had something to do with the problem. Possibly the dryness of the entire area and the dry stream bed are early indications of climate change too.

This tower is definitely of Indian origin. I would guess it was Hindu to begin with and then adopted into the nearby Buddhist temple.

Every time I look at this image I think Buddha is in a hot tub. Sorry if I'm sacrilegious for thinking this.

The remnants of a Sukhothai walking Buddha image. It was a very flowing, beautiful, and modernistic image which is quite famous and readily identifiable as the Sukhothai Walking Buddha.

I believe this is how the sacred Bodhi Tree starts out. It grows onto an existing tree and eventually strangles it to death. By the time it has strangled its host tree it can stand on its own.

The Sukhothai Historic Park is a lovely and peaceful place covering a vast area. Bicycles are a necessity when visiting. The parched brown look kind of made me less interested in photographing. It’s amazing to see how green it was when Frankie visited the park just three weeks prior.

In the very touristy town is a nice little market where we found a papaya for our second day in Old Sukhothai - our standard breakfast which we fix in our room and in this case eat on our beautiful veranda. We love our breakfasts in Thailand as much as we love the smooth roads. We are looking forward to many more of each.

lovebruce

A lintel reminiscent of both Indian and Khmer influences.

Today's ride: 13 miles (21 km)
Total: 363 miles (584 km)

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Scott AndersonNow this is more like it! Very enticing. And, to exceed your live snake count from Myanmar so quickly is exciting too. One, and counting!
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4 years ago

Jen RahnThis post was like a targeted advertisement for a future Grumby tour*. Peaceful setting, birdsong, greenery, smooth roads, giant mango tree, kind people, fascinating culture & history, nice accommodations, delicious food, and all very affordable!

*Except the live snake.
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4 years ago