The
early Kingdom of Sukhothai
(which is now a National Park)
On
our way to Sukhothai we stopped at a local school for a visit. Gate 1, the travel organization we use for
all of our overseas travel, supports schools in various countries that are not
as blessed as we are. If you follow my
Blog you may have seen the photos of the school we visited in Peru. If we would like to, we can take donations
of needed items with us when we visit the school. In Peru the need was for spiral notebooks and
pencils. Here in Thailand the need was
for socks! Generally socks are one of
the most needed clothing items in any country.
With our guides help, several of us were able to pick up the correct
type of socks needed for these children as they all wear school uniforms. During our visit we observed the kiddos
during various school activities. We
also get to meet and visit one on one with a few of the children. Russ and I really enjoy these visits. Here are a few photos.
Back
on the bus and on our way again we make a small pit stop … and please forgive
me as I really try to share our experiences with all of you and there are times
people in other countries eat things we would never eat!!! This was a stop to see how rats are grilled
and sold for snacks or lunch to whomever wants them! A truck driver actually stopped and purchased
2 rats on a stick to eat for lunch while we were there! Be brave, take a quick look, they kind of
look like chicken … but not!!!
Next
another pit stop … no nothing like the rat stop! This one is of a gigantic monk sitting on a
mountain with huge yellow ducks in the lake he looks down on. It is also a small market and a rather lovely
spot to recover from the rat stop!
Moving
along we now head to the hotel where we will stay for the night. Although we
always stay in 4 or 5 star hotels when we travel with Gate 1, I rarely ever
talk about them in my Blog chapters but this hotel is very unique. Legendha
Sukhothai Resort is spectacularly designed and landscaped in
a Thai village concept so you get a sense of Thailand’s authentic ambience. Our room had teakwood furniture and looked
out on one of the many ruins in Thailand. The outdoor Namkhang Sukhothai Restaurant was
also a pleasant surprise and each morning you can observe and participate in alms giving for the local Buddhist monks.
After
we have all settled into our hotel we travel on to the birth place of Thailand
nation. Sukhothai was founded in the 13th
century by King Ramkhamhaeng. The Kingdom existed from 1238 until 1438. The old capital is now in
ruins and has been designated a UNESCO World Heritage Historical Park; The name ‘Sukhothai’ means 'dawn of happiness'.
Sukhothai is famous for over 100
historical sites including some of the most beautiful architecture in the
country. We visited Old Town Historical Park with its peaceful lotus blossom
ponds, ancient Buddha figures, palaces of old and other historical
monuments.
More to come soon 😊
1 comment:
cool trees and temples
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