Bikepacking Thailand: Ayutthaya to Sing Buri
Day 1 began with an early wake-up at 6am to the buzzing of cicadas and the chirping of birds from my guesthouse in the outskirts of Ayutthaya.
The owner of the homestay cooked me eggs, fried rice and made me a coffee to start the day. He was sipping on whiskey and we took a shot together for ‘good luck’ before I headed off. The sun was shining, it was a beautiful day. The heat was intense, despite it being only 8 am.
I weaved through the backroads in Ayutthaya towards the Old Kingdom of Siam. Immediately I was met by dogs chasing me, foreshadowing the multitude of dogs I’d encounter on the way to Chiang Mai.
I spent the day trying not to fall off my bike and adjusting to having 20kg attached to the back of the bike. I meandered alongside rivers and backroads, seeing many beautiful temples and encouraging many friendly locals exchanging ‘Sawatdee’ together.
I tried riding into a few large temples but I was immediately chased by packs of dogs. Clearly, they need to study the peaceful ways of Buddhism some more.
The temperature worked its way up to 36 degrees so I pulled into a small restaurant outside a temple. The people here met me with an attitude of intrigue, amusement and friendliness.
Seven hours after leaving Ayutthaya, I arrived in Sing Buri. This was my first taste of the satisfaction and relief of reaching my destination powered by my own legs.
I enjoyed strolling around as the final light of day cast an orange glow against the numerous temples and fruit vendors.
During the evening I explored the town’s night market, eating chicken and basil with rice—a classic.
Sitting there, watching everyone come and go, I realised for the first time in Thailand, I hadn’t seen another foreigner all day.
I was truly seeing the lesser-seen parts of Thailand and having the opportunity to truly see the real local Thai life.
At this point it started to sink in that this trip was going to be a crazy adventure where I’d have numerous stories to share with my friends and family, and hopefully inspire people with my trip.
Check out my previous blog post How I began my cycling journey in Thailand and eventually Southeast Asia, or check out my next blog post to read about my journey cycling from Sing Buri to Nakhon Sawan
