Our trip to Bangkok had been planned before we left for Remote Year. Our friends, Eleanor and Kyle, had plans to visit Thailand during our last week in the country, so we decided to meet up in Bangkok.

A short flight from Chiang Mai, Alex and I arrived at our hostel, Time Sabai, and patiently awaited our friend’s arrival. Once reunited, we decided to make our way to an authentic Thai spot for some classics: Pad Thai, Pad See Ew, Thai omelette, and, of course, a giant Chang. We headed to the infamous Khao San Road to begin searching for both souvenirs, and the perfect spot to people watch. We ordered a beer tower… the big one (sort of on accident), and several beers later, were on the hunt for snacks.

The following morning, we booked headed to Ayuthaya. It was capital of the Kingdom of Siam, and a prosperous international trading port, from 1350 until taken over by the Burmese in 1767. The ruins of the old city now form the Ayutthaya Historical Park, an archaeological site that contains palaces, Buddhist temples, monasteries and statues. We booked a bike tour that took us through country roads, quiet ruins, across the river via ferry, and inside ancient pagodas. It was so, so, SO hot that day, made worst by the humidity of southern Thailand, which was made even worse by recent rain. Despite being a mostly cloudy day, we were all struggling with the heat and being on a bike almost made it better because at least we had some sort of wind.  Our guide was really knowledgeable, and we just so happened to be the only people on the tour, so it was great to hang out together and have the chance to customize our day as needed.

My favorite part of the day was seeing the big reclining Buddha. I think that this is my favorite Buddha in general, but the reclining Buddha at Ayuthaya is really special. Although the exact date of construction of Wat Lokaya Sutha isn’t clear, many historians believe it dates back to the early Ayutthaya period in the 14th century. Unlike other reclining Buddhas, this one is fully exposed (as opposed to inside of a temple), so you can truly see how big the statue is.

We opted for an air conditioned train ride back to Bangkok, which was the right call, I given the traffic we passed. Once back in town, we wanted to refresh ourselves before heading out to dinner down the street. We proceeded to get massages that evening and enjoyed a fancy drink that Eleanor and Kyle had brought to share from South Korea in our courtyard.

The next morning, we all wanted to sleep in and take it slow. We headed out for a true tourist day: visiting the Grand Palace and Wat Pho.

Once at the Grand Palace, we walked around the entire grounds, admiring the architecture and details for each temple. The palace has been the official residence of the Kings of Siam since 1782. The king, his court, and his royal government were based on the grounds of the palace until 1925. Our understanding is that the royal family moved out of the palace after the reigning kings brother was assassinated there. Part of the grounds is the Queen Sirikit Museum of Textiles. We had no idea what to expect, and I was honestly ready to skip it. I’m glad we didn’t because it ended up being my favorite part of the Grand Palace. There was a great display of textiles of Thailand, which felt easy to identify after traveling so many places in the country. They even had the Queen’s outfits throughout the ages, which was interesting to see the blend of modern fashion with the traditional Thai wear.

After the Grand Palace, we found the Amulet Market, a placed tucked away underground where Thai people can purchase amulets, offerings and more for the temples. We proceeded to find a great, cheap and authentic spot for lunch before walking to Wat Pho. The temple is first on the list of six temples in Thailand classed as the highest grade of the first-class royal temples. It is associated with King Ram I who rebuilt the temple complex on an earlier temple site. It became his main temple and is where some of his ashes are enshrined.

We walked back to our hostel by way of a local park, then got ready to have dinner in Chinatown. I’m not sure what we were expecting, but Chinatown was NUTS. Sitting along a four-lane main thoroughfare, the road was lined with food carts and crammed with people. It felt overwhelming to stay together, see what was happening, while also try to find food we all wanted. So, we walked around and ended up getting bao and dumplings in a restaurant with a quiet atmosphere before heading to TAX for drinks.

The following day, we headed to our spa appointment (made the evening before), and each spent two hours either getting a massage or a facial. Our leisurely morning continued as we headed to the Jim Thompson House, housing the art collection of the American businessman who revived Thailand’s silk trade. The museum was planned to consist of a complex combination of six traditional Thai-styled houses, primarily constructed of wood, and various old Thai structures collected from everywhere in Thailand, including Ayuthaya. Aside from the architecture and art, which was interesting enough, Jim Thompson lived a pretty interesting life that actually ended with a sudden disappearance, which was also said to be astrologically predicted by a monk.

We took the BTS (elevated light rail) to our final activity together: a city tour via tuk tuk. A little touristy, yes, but we covered so much ground! We visited a local market to try some unique food, Wat Arun at night and the flower market. For Alex and I, it was a great way to spend our last night in Thailand before heading to our next country, Bali.