Ayutthaya,Bangkok & Pattaya!

Tallest Buddha Statue in Thailand

Tired of too much of work at office, I felt that I was slowly being trapped and suffocated by e-mails and meetings.Lending ear to everyone, everything and every where was taking me away from me....phew!!!

I needed some space and this trip proved to be a timely Total Rewind for me. Thanks to my cousin sister and my brother- in- law that I could spend the best 10/15 days in Ayutthaya, Thailand. Although I took this journey a few years back but the memory is still fresh in my mind.Therefore,the write up!! and the pictures were from my album:)

During my stay at Thailand, I visited Bangkok, saw temples and ruins at Ayutthaya and did parasailing in Pattaya. I was fascinated by a few very simple things that were peculiar to this region. Like the bus wraps, bus stands and the Wats (temples). Not to forget the beautiful lamp posts on both the sides of the road in Ayutthaya :) 

Beautiful ancient reclining Buddha statue in Ayutthaya

I loved the reflection in the water. I captured this while taking a boat ride on the 'Chao Pharaya' River in Ayutthaya

Watching an elephant trainer bathing his elephant was a treat on this river boat ride :)

This Stupa is visible while you take a boat ride on the 'Chao Phraya river'

Lamp posts on both sides of the road in Ayutthaya. I liked the idea of putting such beautiful lamp posts on road sides.  

Bangkok Zoo- I think this pic is 'the master click' from this trip ;)

Funny thing about this picture is all of them are looking in the same direction except for one:)

Enjoying sun tan in the open:)

ohh! do not disturb its our nap time;)

Bangkok,at that time impressed me with its busy life, high-rise, malls and all the shopping items that were there for display. Right from a candy to jewellery to clothing and to cars. Except for cars & the jewellery, I ended up buying a l’ll bit of the rest of the stuff. 

Buddha statue at Wat Yai Chai Mongkhon

Ruins at a Wat Yia Chai Mongkhon, Ayutthaya

Bus Wraps- I spotted a lot of beautiful ones in the industrial area in Aytthaya. Many of these depicted mythological stories from Ramayana

Spotted these statues on my way back from Wat- Muang 

Ayutthaya (which is 76 km of north of Bangkok) on the other hand mesmerized me with its Buddha statues, Wats (temples) ruins, river and elephants. The name itself suggests Hindu influence on this land. The kingdom of Ayutthaya or 'Ayodhya'( In India, Ayodhya is the birth place of Lord Rama), located on an island on the 'Chao Phraya river' was the older capital of Thailand. It was one of the biggest cities in the world and a major power in South East Asia, untill it was destroyed by Burmese invaders. A walk in the ruins & temples there reflects on you the ‘Grandeur’ and the ‘Glory’ of those times. You cannot just stop and admire the structures concentrated in and around the city. The ‘Stupas’ and temples are charismatic in Ayutthaya.

During weekends, we made a day’s drive to places like 'Wat Muang' in the province of 'Ang Thong', Monument of King ‘Naresuan’, Mini Siam, 'Chatuchak' market etc.

The 'War Memorial monument of King Naresuan'-. It is a larger than life monument, beautifully built with amazingly looking colourful & shiny rooster statues in all sizes. Some of these roosters are too huge and larger than a normal human being. Initially I couldn’t understand as to why were they built in so many numbers and in so many sizes there. Later on I found out that these roosters are suggestive of a popular legend in which the young Prince Naresuan wagered a bet with a young Burmese prince that Ayutthaya would be freed if Naresuan's rooster emerged victorious in the cock fight. Prince Naresuan's rooster naturally won the bet, and the Burmese prince was humiliated in the process. Following this legend these rooster statues appeared at temples associated with this royal prince. Thai citizens bring them from all over the country as offerings. I felt that it was something which is unique to this place only.

This place was full of rooster statues in all sizes. It is near Wat Yai Chai Mongkhon

Another reclining Buddha statue in a temple at Ayutthaya

Ruins from Ayutthaya historical park

King's Palace in Bangkok-took this one from a moving vehicle

Love this one! a beautiful small Ganesha statue that I bought from 'Chatuchak Market' 

Dragon structures on the entrance of a temple in 'Wat Muang'

A beautiful Buddha statue inside the temple

'Wat Muang' in 'Ang Thong' Province inhabited a monastery and a huge,beautifully built Budha statue. This statue stands 92 m (300 ft) high, and is 63 m (210 ft) wide. It's construction commenced in 1990 and was completed in 2008. It is painted gold and made of cement. This place again is worth visiting. The Statue probably is the largest/tallest statue of Buddha in Thailand.

Patayya- We preferred driving to the beach and the other places that we had decided to visit during my trip here, so as to capture the locals, landscapes and the people.

After taking a walk at the beach and buying some souvenirs, I decide to have some adventure!! Patayya Style ;)!

Pattaya Beach

Para- sailing at Pattaya Beach!this is me... uuuuuhoooo! 

Yes, it was para-sailing time! we walked into the beach to be picked up by a boat so as to be dropped on a huge wooden pedestal for some Para-Sailing. This wooden pedestal was the place for the ‘lift- up’ and the ‘drop-down’ of the fun experience that people call Para-Sailing. For me ! it was my ‘first ever ‘.

It was so awesome that thinking about it even today gives me the fresh 'THRILL CHILL' that it gave that day and I feel like shouting “ Uuuuuu Hoooooo” like I did that time :).

I was up in the air with everybody and everything looking sooooo small beneath me .! Ohh forgot to tell you about the safety measures. You bet they are safe! Two men tie you to the parachute ensuring that harness and everything is fit and tight. They try and explain in Thai as to how you are supposed to run and then jump. But don’t worry even if your Thai is as good as mine (‘Swadikhaan’ is the only thing that I understood;)) You can learn faster by watching the people that went before you!

You trot, take a few steps running and then you leave the pedestal (sounds so simple to do it). Then rest your weight, including your worries on the rope that’s pulling you and off course your parachute. And Up... Up... you go!.... World looks beautifully different down, below you (by different I mean ‘small’) and you feel like the “king of the World” in my case I was the “queen of the world” and you feel like shouting ‘Uuuuuhoooooo’ which I did several times. By the time you are finished admiring buildings, people, boats, water, beneath you! The parachute brings you down on the pedestal slowly and those two people who helped you to get ready to feel this adventure, now help you to come down to your actual world.

Harness and ropes off ! and you are standing back on the wooden pedestal still enjoying / and not yet out of that THRILL !!! there are other water sports as well like water scooter and banana boat etc. But parasailing for me was one 'out of routine thrill' :)

I also enjoyed taking a walk on the beach, clicking pictures of local vendors and anything and everything and that I found to be interesting.

Everybody remembers one good/fun experience from their leisure trip. Mine was this- initially chilling but later on Thrilling parasailing (flying) on Pattaya beach!!

A local vendor. I saw this lady selling beads  at the beach

Mini Siam

A huge statue of Lord Vishnu with Goddess Lakshmi & lord Brahma

White Orchids at my cousins place

Mini Siam- I thought, as the name suggests it would definitely have some thing which is miniature. And I was amazed to see what all ‘miniature’ was inside the compound. This place had the miniature replicas of all the famous places worldwide. Located in pattaya city this place also has a souvenir shop to take home some. But  I bought my souvenirs from a congested market ( very much like Chandni Chowk in old Delhi)at a much lesser price. Chatuchak was my market to buy souveniers and exquisitely carved images of Ganesha (Hindu gods with an elephant head). This market had almost everything, I also bought some rare pieces of carved wood and some lamps.

Coming back to mini Siam, it took us half of the day to simply roam around and admire all the replicas. It had famous Thai temples, Eifel tower,leaning tower of Piza .Almost every thing popular, even the famous statue of Liberty and Mount Rushmore National Memorial from US.I Was amazed at the precision with which they were made. It seemed as if some one has picked the famous buildings world -wide and has compressed them by hands to make it different (shorter/ smaller I meanJ)An amazing project that started in 1985/86. My favourite here was the huge statue of lord Vishnu on his serpant ‘Sheshnaag’ and the huge Angkor Wat from Cambodia. Also amazing were the statue of the huge ‘Dwarpals’ gatekeepers.

After spending time @ mini Siam we headed for Underwater World. Underwater world- was also an amazing visit. With nothing like this in India, I was amazed to walk below the giant fishes, coloured corals and other sea creatures through a long tunnel which was approx. 100 mt long. This has the rich variety of marine life which is found around Pattaya.

Well! It was an awesome trip; I still enjoy looking @ the pictures from this trip... Since I went alone there, so I had a lot to yap with my best friend:) Whenever we talk about an adventure sport my 'Pattaya trip' by default becomes a part of our conversation ;)

'Haridwar'-God's Abode

Our favourite point- this is where we sat every morning and evening ! simply  gazing  into the calmly flowing river 

Haridwar, An important pilgrimage city in Uttarakhand.

In Sanskrit ‘hari’ means-lord Vishnu and ‘dwar’means –gate/gateway,therefore, gateway to Lord Vishnu. It is also an entry point to the Char Dham (the four main centers of pilgrimage of hindus viz, Badrinath, Kedarnath, Gangotri, and Yamunotri)

The river Ganges emerges from the mountains to touch the plains here and it enters north India through haridwar only.

 Fast flowing, cold, yet calm River Ganges

We stayed @ Haridwar for two days and our favourite activity was to sit quietly at the Ghats in the mornings and the evenings. Sitting there for long and dipping your feet in the cold river water compels you to sort of meditate and turn over in your mind. Early mornings have a serene calmness about this city with prayer chants being sung almost every where you look.

Being one of the oldest living cities in India, Haridwar finds its mention in the ancient Hindu scriptures. It has also been a centre of attraction for learning various arts, science, and culture. Home to many small temples scattered in the town, haridwar is very famous for the evening 'Aarti'(prayer) which happens daily around 6 pm. So after the evening walk, we headed towards ‘Har Ki Pauri’( "Har" means "Lord Shiva", "ki" means "of" and "pauri" means "steps") with our cameras.

Impressions- my footsteps! after we decided to go back to our rooms

Lot of people around. There were tourists, who were distinctly identified because of their cameras and there were locals, who come daily to attend the aarti. I had heard a lot about this place from my father earlier though! especially the evening 'Aarti' but my interest was more in finding some subjects for my camera:) so we decided to first find a comfortable place for my parents to sit so that they can listen and meditate/ pray what they had come here for.

My Camera's subject for that evening in the crowd :)

I was hoping to get a picture of some holy men dressed as Sadhu and a perfect picture of Pundits holding the holy 'jyoti' in their hands during Aarti. And I was very lucky to capture both in my camera. While waiting for the pooja to start, I saw a funny looking man dressed in bright red and orange clothes, holding peacock feathers in his hands. He was walking aimlessly yet smiling at every body. This man with a bright red and orange pagri (head gear) on his head also wore some sort of makeup on his face. Surprisingly! With kajal in his eyes and a long tika on his forehead he caught my fancy. I tried to take his picture from far of but I wasn’t satisfied. Then I went to him and requested him pointing towards my camera that I wish to take his picture. Seeing the camera he gave me a broad smile and gave a stately pose for my award winning photo collection :). I took a few pictures of him and gave him some money as my gesture of thanks.

'Aarti' in progress @ 'Har ki Pauri'-my parents were very happy to attend. They say, this is the place and the time when one connects with God 

A 'Sadhu' sitting @ one of the ghats

 By the time I was done admiring his dress, people had settled in for the Aarti to start. In Haridwar, if you look around you will find lots of sadhus and holy men, dressed in dhoti kurtas giving the impression that they have abandoned their family to achieve their spiritual pursuits.

Captured this @ the ghat during 'Aarti'

Offerings to river Ganges

Watching aarti at ‘har ki pauri’ (meaning-footsteps of god) is one such indescribable experience that one can understand only if one experiences it. It is a beautiful spectacle of sound, light and prayer recitals that compels you to ponder things like-god and you! God’s impressions in things around you! etc.

Meditation- I was amazed to see this man meditating near Ganges even with the hustle-bustle of life around!

River Ganges @ the ghat

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Going homewards in the evening- I captured these birds on my camera while sitting @ the steps of river Ganges  

Once the aarti was over it was already dark but the hustle bustle of the vendors, saadhus and devotees continued as it was earlier.We also decided to slowly walk back to our rooms at the hotel.

Those two days spent here were truely amazing. I actually thanked my father for bringing us here:) 'coz it was his idea to spend the weekend in Haridwar. He had been prodding the three of us for days to make a trip to this place.

and they were everywhere:)

Sun set @ Haridwar

Ranthambore

Ranthambore-The Garh of Tigers!

Ranthambore National Park – the Garh of tigers! They say there are more than thirty of them here. What a majestic creature! that hunts with Precision, Planning and Speed. We were very fortunate to see this majestic creature hunting in Zone- 3. Being there and observing the hunt from a distance, we could sense the fear that the prey (deers & sambars) felt while running for life in the lake. This bolt happened after one member from the herd made the call and informed others of the danger.

Deers- running for life after they saw the tiger nearby 

I am talking about ‘Ranthambore National Park’ that sits in Sawai Madhopur District of southeastern Rajasthan. It’s almost an eight hour drive from New Delhi to Ranthambore and we reached our destination about half past midnight. Driving through the Jungle area at night gives you a different feel altogether, a once in a lifetime experience!! Our drive was one such unforgettable one! As on our way we saw a pack of deers crossing the road before us and disappearing in the thick forest in the moonlight.

Difficult to click! while this beautiful peacock was hiding itself from my camera

Langoors were in large numbers here

We stayed at Ranthambore for three days. One day to visit the national park, second day to see the Ranthambore fort and the famous Trinetra Ganesh Temple and the third day to relax and be lazy for a change :). In order to have a true Jungle experience we stayed in tents, in the village itself (very near to the national park and the fort). Spending those three days at 'Tiger Machan', definitely made this trip a memorable one.

Although the approach to the fort and the jungle is a bumpy man made, hilly road but one can already feel being inside a densely forested area surrounded by hills. Before saying hello to the king of the Jungle, you happen to spot various species of birds and animals, like; Cheetal, Black bucks, Neelgai, Langoors, beautiful peacocks, Wood peckers, common kingfishers, Bayas, Bulbul, Mynas, and Quails etc. We were amazed to see a family of quails crossing the road in front of us. That was a beautiful sight indeed. Mum Quail leading the three chicks behind her :). Some of the animals and birds showed curiosity towards the tourists entering their territory and some behaved as if they have been eagerly waiting for you to click their pictures, especially the Langoors. An interesting thing to note about them was that all of them were so used to humans visiting their habitat that they were least bothered and continued doing what they were busy with.

Mama Quail leading her three chicks :)

'Peak-a-boo' :) interesting timing

Climbing the stairs at the Ranthambore Fort gives you the feel that you have travelled back to the olden times. The view of the national park from the fort, the lakes, peacocks dancing with their feathers open in all their grace, baby Langoors playing , birds chirping, all this kind of captivates you and takes you back to the times of King Hammir for a moment. While walking through the fort you cannot stop imagining how the life would have been during those times. We were fortunate enough to capture an image of a kitchen utensil that must have been used at large family functions/ occasions etc. It was lying there at one of the remains of what could be a house inside the fort.

View of the National Park from the fort

The view of the national park from the fort is breathtaking. 

If you wait patiently and spend some time at the stairs going upwards inside the fort you can actually spot peacocks dancing in the jungle below near the lakes. You know one can spot a dancing Peacock in the jungle only when the breeze flows cool telling that it is about to rain soon. Catching a glimpse of two peacocks dancing like that confirmed on our prediction of rains that day :).

Another important beautiful thing about this fort was the Shiva Temple that we visited. Not many people know of it though. The small room with the huge shiva lingam is pitch dark but is definitely breathtaking. Once inside, you can feel the pure positive vibes that make you literally talk to god. Yes! I had my own conversation with god there :). Ranthambore fort is also famous for housing “Trinetra Ganesh” Temple. 

Shiva Temple inside the fort

This stone statue was at the entrance  of the fort 

Spending those three days at Ranthambore was worth it!!