The long way

Here follows the account of Will Spear and the finding of the Old Sukhothai (basically I wrote this a few days ago but couldn't post it until now...enjoy).
In my last post I hinted that my coming to Old Sukhothai was a bit of an adventure, and indeed what an adventure it was... I got up nice and early in the morning in the cityof LopBuri so that I could catch the early train up to the city of Phitsanulok, from which I planned on catching a bus to the Sukhothai. Needless to say, things did not go as well as I should have hoped. To begin with, the early train which is a faster an nicer, was unexpectedly filled with a few million school children touring the area, such that seating which I had been assured the previous day would be plentiful, was, in a word, nonexistent. So I got to sit at the train station for an extra two hours or so until my shitty slow train with nearly iron seating arrived... The train was scheduled to take 5 hours to reach our destination; rather than the three and a half of the faster train which I couldn't get a seat on. I napped for about an hour or so and spent the rest of the time looking out the window at the endless rice fields and scenery. We stopped a few times for passing trains and what not and at the 5 hour mark I startedto get my stuff down and prepared to get off. In order to appreciate the situation there are a few things which I should further explain. You see, for the most part all of the train stations you pass through don't show up on your map, and aside from the major ones, you cannot tell where you are at unless you read Thai: I, unlike Jack, don't talk Thai Pam, don't talk Thai at all (meet the parents reference). So basically you look at your ticket and see what time you ate suppose to arrive and that is when you know when you should be getting off. Well, as my arival time came, my station did not, and we ploded along. Then we passed a big lake, and I though to myspef, huh... That shouldn't be there! I pulled out my big map to see wha lake it was, and HELLO, there was a big old lake at the halfway point! Shit. So yah, it took another three hours... Another three hours of two screaming French children running up and down the eyes and crying, three hours of me starving, and three more hours of little Thai ladys walkng up and down the isles screaming thier wares which included foul smelling meet products, which god help me o came perilously close to consuming... When finally we did arrive, I walked from the train station to the bus station. But when I got there, I found it was the wrong station, so I alked back to the train station to beg help in vetting to the right one. One of the train people got me on a little taxi thing which is bascally a quad with a covered trailer. Just before we were about to depart the woman told me that it would be 1 Here follows the account of Will Spear and the finding of the Old Sukhothai (basically I wrote this a few days ago but couldn't post it until now...enjoy).
In my last post I hinted that my coming to Old Sukhothai was a bit of an adventure, and indeed what an advnture it was... I got up nice and early in the mornng in the cityof LopBuri so that I could catch the eay train up to the city of Phitsanulok, from which I planned on catching a bus to the Sukhothai. Needless to say, things did not go as well as I should have hoped. To begin with, the early train which is a faster an nicer, was unexpectedly filled with a few million school children tourning the area, such that seating which I had been assured the previous day would be plentiful, was, in a word, noexistent. So I got to sit at the train station for an extra two hours or so until my shitty slow train with nearly iron seating arrived... The train was schedualed to take 5 hours to reach our destination; rather than the three and a half of the faster train which I couldn't get a seat on. I naped for about an hour or so and spent the rest ofthe time looking out the window at the endless rice fields and scenery. We stopped a few times for passng trains and what not and at the 5 hour mark I startedto get my stuff down and prepaired to get off. In order to appreciate the situation there are a few things which I should further explain. You see, for the most part all of the train stations you pass through don't show up on your map, and aside from the major ones, you cannot tell where you are at unless you read Thai: I, unlike Jack, don't talk Thai Pam, don't talk Thai at all (meet the parents reference). So basically you look at your ticket and see what time you ate suppose to arrive and that is when you know when you should be getting off. Well, as my arival time came, my station did not, and we ploded along. Then we passed a big lake, and I though to myspef, huh... That shouldn't be there! I pulled out my big map to see wha lake it was, and HELLO, there was a big old lake at the half 500 baht, for what should have been about 100... My spidy senses tingling, I told her the Thai word for bus station, she looked irritated with me and told the kid driving the contraption something an he sped off. After about four minutes of m trying to signal the kid to pull over, he finally did and we had a nice little chat about where I wanted to go and for how much. Indeed I did not want a two hour ride to Sukhothai, buta five
minute one to the bus station. He seemed to understand, but over the roar of the freeway we had somehow gotten on and the whole issue of language, it was hard to be sure. Yet, arrive we did at the bus station safe and sound. I waited arond for a while longer got on a bs and rode inbetween two old monks for a few hours until I got to the New Sukhothai. Tired and disheveled, I got to my guesthouse, at some food and went in search of a massage.
My but and back have never hurt that bad before, so sore were they from sitting in seats designed for people literally half of my size. I had yet to get a massage while in Thailand so I figured that there was no better time to go for it. What followed wase being ripped apart by the strongest little Asian woman I think might exist n the planet. This was no soft massage with scented oils, nor even a deep tissue massage. I got twisted and turnd in direcions I did not know I could bend, such that half way through it I was wishing I had stumbled into a
dirty massage parlor run by ladyboys, but this was not the case... Thankfully the secnd half hour was actually relaxing and I did walk away feeling both limber and relaxed... Yet still, it was a ranger fitting ending to a most interesting and unexpected days events.

As to the ruins of Old Sukhothai, it was one of the most amazing and spectacular places I have ever been, such that I feel my words
will never be able t do it justice. That said, I shan't try do describe it, I will simply have to show pictures to anyone who cares to see it when I return.