Among architectural destinations of Thailand, Ayutthaya Historic Park is my favorite. You can visit it again and again, and you always feel a tourist adventure there and you always have a ton of decent shots.
Here, I'd like to share images from the exact location in that park, called Wat Chaiwatthanaram.
A view of Wat Chaiwatthanaram from the opposite river bank
Wat Chaiwatthanaram is a rectangular territory of around 200m x 200m, abundant with Medieval ruins. Once, Wat Chaiwatthanaram, together with other remnants of temples and palaces, formed the prosperous capital of Siam, Ayutthaya. But at the end of the 18th century, the city was captured and sacked by the Burmese after a grueling siege. That's how the ruins appeared. The Thais recovered from the blow and chose another place for the capital, where modern Bangkok is located.
Today, Ayutthaya Historic Park is one of the top attractions for international visitors and a popular weekend destination for Bangkokians.
As for Wat Chaiwatthanaram, I consider it one of the top 3 places to visit in Ayutthaya (along with Wat Mahathat and Wat Yai Chai Mongkhon).
I took these images in February 2024 when visited the place last time.
That's the "team" I was part of:
We had fun time!
We arrived by car so, that time, there was no need to hurry back to the train station in order to take a train. Thus, we could see Wat Chaiwatthanaram after dark.
But before that, we enjoyed the golden hour to the full scale, a short lifestyle photo shoot before the last sunlight disappeared:
At last, the time of night magic came.
The lighting of the ruins and lamps decorating the trees turned on.
Not authentic but, if not this Instagram-orientated activity of the museum administration, the museum would be just closed to visitors after 5 pm or 6 pm so... thanks to social media.
The feeling is specific, a little bit trippy.
Walking there, I couldn't help recollecting my experiences with magic mushrooms.
Shrooms can make you see such fantastic ruins anywhere, even in the middle of a taiga. What they could make you see in Wat Chaiwatthanaram, that's a question...
Mayan pyramids or spaceships?
Gods or aliens?
A lost civilization or a spaceport in the distant future?..
Thanks for stopping by! Hope you enjoyed the post. Let me know your thoughts in the comments below. Cheers! 😎
More images and stories from Southeast Asia are ahead! Check out the previous ones on my personal Pinmapple map.
I took these images with a Nikkor 50mm on a full-frame DSLR Nikon D750 on February 3, 2024, in Bangkok, Thailand.