Getting around Ayutthaya isn't a difficult affair. Like everywhere else in Thailand, you can hire a tuk tuk at a reasonable price. In any case, if you are not hunting for one, the driver of the auto rickshaw himself may hunt you down. He would probably have a laminated piece of paper depicting all the interesting places you could visit. Ours took us first to Wat Thammikarat, a very old temple, supposed to be built even before the founding of Ayutthaya by Phraya Thammikarat, the son of King Sai Nam Phung. The temple isn't very big but it stands out from others with its broken bell-shaped mortar chedi, which is encircled by at least 50 Khmer- styled lion figures. Though the temple has been badly damaged by fire during a Burmese attack in 1767, it continues to be used till this day. Locals bring replicas of roosters as offerings, a practice definitely not Buddhist but it has more to do with local history to remember a pavement when the Ayutthaya prince's rooster won a fight against a Burmese prince's rooster. While here, one can also check out the ordination hall, the replica of a bronze Buddha head from the U-Thong period, the original now in Chao Sam Phraya Museum; and the 12 metre long reclining Buddha built long ago by a queen who was thankful that her daughter had recovered from an illness. The toes of the Buddha are said to be covered with gold leaf and pieces of mirror... 5
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