Asian Geographic – Special Edition 2017-2018

A Step Back

in Time

SUKHOTHAI OFFERS A TASTE

OF ANCIENT THAI CIVILISATION,

AGRARIAN LIVING, AND LOCAL

HOSPITALITY

Text and Photos Alex Campbell

IMAGE © SHUTTERSTOCK

Sukhothai translates to “dawn

of happiness” our guide, Tong, tells us

with an appropriately wide grin as we

pull out of the airport on a steaming,

cloudless day in February. It’s the

end of the dry season, and a milky

Thai iced tea (Cha Yen ชาเย็น) – a shock

of saccharine, foamy orange – goes

down a treat. The lazy yawns I've

been stifling since the early morning

wake-up are swiftly substituted

with a caffeine and condensed

milk-induced buzz.

It’s my second time to the north

of Thailand, and a lot has changed

since. Back in 2011, I was making my

way to Chiang Mai through swamped

floodlands, and the late King Bhumibol

was ruler; evidence of the former

devastation has vanished, but the

legacy of the latter lines the streets

in silky swaths of black mourning

banners. The beloved sovereign’s

portrait flanks that of his son, newly

crowned King Maha Vajiralongkorn

Bodindradebayavarangkun, or Rama X.

Sleepy Sukhothai offers a reprieve

from the throngs of tourists that

descend on the gritty city of Bangkok.

The quiet old town, while still host to

all the conveniences that the modern

traveller has come to expect, has not

succumbed to touts and excess in the

wake of tourist interest. The agrarian

lifestyle of this community is still active

and widely visible: Sluggish water

buffalo amble by the roadside; rice

farmers wade through lush paddies

under the shade of their iconic, conical

hats; and fruit sellers brandish banana

bunches and bags of rambutans with

an auctioneer’s enthusiasm.

It comes as little surprise, then,

that Sukhothai is surrounded by

water – 175 ponds, to be exact.

The system of reservoirs provides

the surrounding agricultural heartlands

with a steady supply of irrigation –

and keen photographers with the

perfect mirror for capturing dramatic

temple reflections.

However, the original construction

of this labyrinth of waterways was for

protection against invading enemies:

Sukhothai stood as the capital of

the first Kingdom of Siam in the

13th and 14th centuries (1248–1439

AD), followed by Ayutthaya (around

1350–1767), Thonburi (1767–1782)

and Bangkok, which claimed the

title in 1782, and holds it today. Beyond

the moats’ more militant purpose, they

also provide meuang gòw – the “old

city” – with a picturesque home for

{ thailand }

A monk prays at Wat Si Chum

in the Sukhothai Historical Park