From Ko Tao, we had a bit of a hike back to Bangkok. The journey began with a 2-hour boat ride back to Chumphon. Here, we were dropped at a wait station with absolutely nothing around it, and we were told to wait. So we drank some beers in an attempt to make us tired before the overnight train back to Bangkok. We then took a bus to the train station, where we had another 2 hour wait. We found a street vendor, had some dinner, and drank some more beers. We practiced our Thai with the restaurant owners’ children. They laughed at our attempts… at least we could provide some humor.
We boarded our train around 9:30. Unfortunately, there were no sleepers left when we booked our tickets, so we were in seats. I assumed with a couple of beers, an ambien and a reclined seat, I would be able to get a couple of hours of sleep before we arrived in Bangkok at 5am. But considering the fact that the lights were kept on all night and every window on the train was rolled down, it made for a loud and restless journey.
We arrived in Bangkok before sunrise, zombie-like and longing for a bed. Fortunately we got a taxi, got to a hotel immediately, and crawled into bed. Needless to say that day was rather unproductive, and I swore I would never travel on a Thai train again, unless I could book a sleeper.
Bangkok was really just serving as a stopping over point this time around, and it was nice to chill out and not feel like I had to see sites. The guesthouse we were booked in had a pool, so we made good use of that. And despite my attempts to not do anything, I ended up making a day trip to Ayutthaya on my second day there.
My timing was poor. It was hotter than hot, and I found myself melting on a hard train seat, but luckily, this was only a 45-minute journey.
The journey was made a little more interesting by the 60-year-old Englishman who boarded the train just before we left the station in Bangkok. Keeping him company were his two young Thai girlfriends, who, he proceeded to tell me, were “so much fun.” Maybe I shouldn’t have asked him where he met them, duh, it was in a bar of course. He was taking them on a day trip to Ayutthaya, and invited me to join them. I declined politely and walked the other way as we left the train station. This is where I coined the phrase DOM- “Dirty Old Man.” There are plenty of them in Thailand, unfortunately.
Ayutthaya is Thailand’s former capital, and it is filled with impressive ruins. I had heard the best way to see the city was either by tuk tuk or by bike. I decided to go it alone and hired a bike. After getting my bearings, and getting used to being back on a bike (ow!), I began my 4 hour tour of ruined temples.
I was happy to arrive back at the hotel, and proceeded to sit under a cold shower for the next 30 minutes just to try and feel human again (yes, you do learn to appreicate cold showers.) The day was topped off with an Indian meal and an early night so we could make our 6 am flight the following morning to Hanoi.
