My next stop in Lop Buri was a super short drive away, only about an hour and a half, so I spent the day driving around to some of the outer sites before making my way to my hotel. A little over half way between Khao Yai and Lop Buri is one of Thailands holiest places, Wat Phra Phutthabat. In 1624 they found a depression in the rock that resembled a foot which fit right in with the legend that the Buddha once visited this area. (*hint* any depression in a rock that even remotely resembles a foot is a Buddha footprint, period) So they built this beautiful square temple around it so devotees could come and put gold leaf on it and pray.

Now in the city of Lop Buri it’s time to start exploring. Lop Buri was established during the Dvaravati period, but it’s heyday started with the Khmer around the 10th century and extended into the Ayutthaya kingdom. This place is a little different than some of my most recent stops because all of the sites are right here in town. That means less driving. Yay!

Wat Nakorn Kosa (above) and Wat Bandai Hin (below) are both right next to the train station. In fact, I parked in the train stations parking lot to see them.

Down the street and walking distance from my hotel is the only surviving part of the old city wall, Pratu Chai.

The majority of the ruins in Lop Buri were built during the Ayutthaya period in the 17th century by King Narai. He established really good relations with the French and most of these buildings were constructed with the help of French Jesuits sent by King Louis XIV. Kraison Siharat Palace sits on the outskirts of the modern town. I’m not really sure the actual purpose of the place, but it’s said that King Narai studied the lunar eclipse from here in 1685.

Next, at the center of town in a gigantic roundabout is a King Narai monument. He’s kind of a big deal around here. It wasn’t easy to get to. I parked on a side street and then had to walk over, no cross walks, no lights. Have you ever tried to walk across a busy three lane roundabout midday? Scary!

After surviving the roundabout, it was time to head to the hotel and start thinking about dinner. The next day I headed out on foot to explore all the big important sites which are pretty well contained in the old city. First, King Narai’s Palace.

King Narai was the 17th century king of Ayutthaya, based in, you guessed it, Ayutthaya. Don’t worry, I’ll be exploring Ayutthaya very soon. He grew up here in Lop Buri, though. So when he became king he decided to build all of this and make Lop Buri a second capital. The palace grounds are huge. Huge and beautiful! The buildings in the pics above were apparently just storehouses. Below are part of the elephant stables.

Ironically, all that’s left of the kings actual residence is seen below. This is also where he died.

And like many of the other buildings in town, these were all designed in European style with the help of French Jesuits. Interestingly, King Narai was responsible for establishing close ties with not only France, but also Italy, Great Britain, China, Persia, and several others.

After walking around all the beautiful ruins and admiring the grounds, it was time to check out the museum. First, a look back at some of the awesomeness.

The museum had artifacts found in the area spanning prehistory, through the Dvaravati Hindu years, and the later Buddhist years. Between the ruins and the museum I was here for several hours.

Luckily, right outside the entrance to the palace grounds was a really good Pad Thai place. I had some along with some iced milk Thai tea before moving on. Yummm! After lunch I passed by Prang Khaek, a Khmer temple, which is in a little triangle of grass in the middle of an intersection.

Ban Chaophraya Wichayen is another European style set of buildings that were used as residences for foreign ambassadors. There was also a catholic church in the middle.

Lop Buri’s most famous site is Phra Prang Sam Yot. It’s a 13th century Khmer Shiva temple, but was later used by the Ayutthaya people as a Buddhist temple. All the ruins here sit right smack in the middle of all the modern action.

It is a pretty iconic looking temple.

Lop Buri is colloquially known as the monkey city, but I really didn’t see any monkeys until I got to Phra Prang Sam Yot. This is apparently where most of them hang out. I had so much fun watching them.

There appeared to be far more young ones than there were adults. Some were playing and running around while others napped and tried to keep cool, but all were super cute!

To see the inside of the temple you have to walk through the big heavy metal door installed to keep the monkeys out. There were a couple of headless Buddha’s inside, but otherwise it wasn’t super interesting in there.

I did get to have another type of close encounter inside the temple though. I looked up and realized the ceiling was covered with bats. Awesome!

Finally, right across the street from the train station is the biggest temple complex in town, not counting the palace of course. The main tower at Wat Phrasi Rattana Mahathat was built in the 13th century by the Khmer. The rest was all built up around it by the Ayutthaya.

I lost count, but there was around fourteen or fifteen chedi around the grounds as well as a couple of big European style structures. It was a pretty impressive place.

There were also several sections of the original artwork intact. I had to hunt a little bit for it, but it’s there.

The central Khmer tower is the tallest in Lop Buri. It’s believed that this was the center of the city during the Khmer period.

I had a really good day walking around Lop Buri, but holy crap is it hot! That sun is just heavy! I went back to the hotel to cool off in the shower and then hit the night market that lines the street in front of the train station for dinner. Thai street food is so good and washing it down with a smoothie is even better.

Lop Buri was a really quick stop, really quick. The next stop will be a bit longer so I should be able to relax a bit. I’ll also have to make a run to the immigration office at the next stop, but more on that in the next post. You’ll just have to wait… like this guy.