Twelfth Day, Sukhothai Quanto T'Amai

Which means: Sukhothai how much I loved you. In Italian, not in Thai.

A very good day spent in Sukhothai.

Like all good days, it started with a run. 7k, apparently a man can't run more when he eats spicy Thai food.

First I ran along Yom river, where rice fields were enlightened by a clean rising sun. After the tenth strayed dog who followed me, and the fifth fighting cock, I decided to move back to the city. Rabid is one of the scary diseases the guide suggests to avoid.

On the way back I made a stop at the bus station, where I bought the ticket to Chiang Mai.

Big surprise of the day, between the bus station and the hostel there was a local market. Fresh meat, live catfish, fruit and vegetable shown to anyone who wasn't a farang (a foreigner). There is no mention of this market on the guide, of course.

I bought a dragon fruit and a big pineapple for 40 baht (1 euro). Didn't even bargain, usually I can't have them together for less than 2 euro.

At the hostel I asked for a breakfast set (yoghurt and coffee), a dish and a knife. They brought me a big one. Peeling the fruit was even more enjoyable than eating it.

This amazing breakfast had an undesired effect: when I left the hostel was already 9.30.

The plan for the day was to visit the archaeological site. Sukhothai was the first capital of the unified kingdom of Thailand. It didn't last long, but it was a powerful and wealthy city. Its power declined in the XIV century, when its last king was more interested in Theravada Buddhism than in maintaining law and order. Which means also that during his reign several temples were built. All in Sukhothai.

I arrived at the historical park at 10.30, after a ride in the slowest and strangest bus I've ever seen: a sort of big tuk tuk, with engines slighter more powerful and room for twenty people.

The sun was already strong when I rented the bicycle. But it didn't matter much. Most of the streets around the temples had leafy trees and the many canals and lakes helped refreshing the area.

The site was very well kept and the audio guide extremely useful. Nothing compared to Angkor, Cambodia, for magnificence, but still worth visiting.

I was back to the new town already at 2 p.m.. I tried to eat in two places highly recommended by the guide. Both closed, though they weren't supposed to be.

I stopped at a local cafè; ran by nice young girls. The coconut curry spicy soup was Thai spice, definitely not western spice. Never sweated so much for some food.

The atmosphere was very easy and pleasant. Bossa nova music as back ground, a local guy watching The Big Bang Theory on his iPad, and no one who bothered you. A place where the young middle class of Sukhothai can relax in a mild western atmosphere.

Another great place of Sukhothai was the guesthouse where I was staying. It is worth mentioning it. Ban Thai Guesthouse. All in teak, nice clean and quiet rooms, good breakfast, very friendly hosts. I stayed there for one night and they let me keep the bag in a safe place for the whole day. I spent another hour there, before leaving by bus, charging my mobile and having some rest. They didn't ask for anything and greeted me nicely. I tried to leave a tip at breakfast, for the big knife, and the host declined it. Definitely a friendly place.

The bus to Chiang Mai was an ordinary one. Less fancy than the bus from Bangkok to Sukhothai, but still decent.

I fall asleep right after sitting there. Unfortunately my sleep didn't last long. The same can't be said about the travel. 6 long hours on safe but noisy roads.

I was so looking forward for having a hot shower in Chiang Mai.

And finally I had it. Right after a warm pad thai at a hawker next to the guest house.

Chiang Mai is much colder than Bangkok, or even Sukhothai. At night temperature can go down to 15 degrees. Wait a second, what's the weather like in Italy right now?

Enough for the day. See you tomorrow in Chiang Mai.

Eleventh Day, Road to Sukhothai

You define life by its end. This is one of the things that ancient Greeks taught to humanity.

The end of Bangkok was a taxi driver singing songs from the radio and checking Facebook, while driving.

Taxi drivers in Bangkok are supposed to go by meter. The price is cheap for an European, but it's more than enough for a Thai.

But taxi drivers want to profit more with tourists. They propose you a fixed price, and you need to bargain. Sometimes it's funny, sometimes annoying. It depends on your mood and the attitude of the taxi driver.

Usually I don't like to bargain with taxi drivers. They have to go by meter, by law. It is as if a taxi driver of Milan had different prices for Italians and for people from Germany, or from Bahrein. Usually they are richer, they can afford a higher price. Discrimination of prices, it's more efficient. But isn't this also racist?

I needed to take a taxi to the bus station. It is quite far from the hotel. Every taxi driver next to the hotel asks a high fixed rate. 20m far from that street you can find honest taxi drivers.

The third one accepted to carry me using the meter. I had to pay extra for the highway, fair enough.

He was a great guy. He showed me the pictures of his friends on Facebook. They were on their honey moon in Italy.

And he sang (or pretended to sing) every song from the radio.

We arrived smoothly at the bus station and I gave him a good tip (for Thai standards).

Best way to leave Bangkok.

The bus to Sukhotai took way longer than expected. We left at 12 and arrived at 20, with half an hour break to eat. Padang food: rice with one choice of meat or vegetables. I chose the wrong meat: minced meat and bones super spicy. I don't care about the super spicy, but the bones weren't supposed to be minced, I think.

The countryside of northern Thailand seems wealthier than the south one. Villages had all free wifi, and we could spot some beautiful villas. Outside the villages it was all rice fields and temples. Perfect for sleeping.

Sukhothai is a nice village. A modern one, developed next to the old capital. It's touristic but pleasant and quiet.

My guesthouse is built in teak, and it is next to the Yom river.

I went to the night market to eat. I didn't find the place advised by the guide. Instead, I stopped at an open restaurant ran by two chubby nice Thai ladies.

The noodle soup was delicious. But the best part was the company. A German 70 years old guy speaking only Thai and German. At the beginning only Thai. He knew English, just didn't want to speak it.

He was wearing a jersey of Juventus F.C., which made him look very foolish. Apart from that he was a nice guy.

We had some talks and he praised Sicily's beauty. Ich habe auch ein bisschen Deutch gesprochen, aber es war kein gut.

Enough for the night. Tomorrow running, sightseeing and travelling to Chiang Mai.

Auf wiedersehen.