Really, I could just copy Peter's last write up and replace Ayutthaya with Sukhothai. But I'm not that lazy and the two kingdoms are quite different. If I had to choose which ancient city to visit, I would choose both.
Sukhothai was Siam's first capital from 1238 until it was invaded by the Ayutthaya kingdom. We biked around the enormous city ruins and saw 23 wats in the 3 main sections of the park. We only visited 10 because there are only so many wat ruins to explore before you're watted out.
Sukhothai has some seriously impressive ruins. Of the 3 sections, the central zone is probably the most impressive and best restored. And Wat Mahathat (there's also one in Ayutthaya! It means "temple of the great relic" so you know it's the most important) is definitely the most impressive temple in the area.
The Buddhas all have a contented look on their face, maybe because they know their fingernails and toes have been carefully laquered in gold.
The north and west zones were less touristy which made it fun to explore. Most of the ruins were so ruinous we couldn't make out if it was a chedi or a kiln.
The north zone contains Wat Si Chum which houses the biggest Buddha in Sukhothai. There's also a secret passageway where kings allegedly went through to address the people, making them believe it was the voice of Buddha. Check out those fingernails!
Oh! We also made a short stop in Phitsanulok. There's a surprisingly big folklore museum, a Buddha bronze casting foundry, and the 2nd most revered Buddha in Thailand thanks to its golden halo flowing down into Naga heads.
-Priscilla
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