Monkeys, Ruins, And One Big Festival

Going on a journey with no fixed itinerary has its pros and cons. On one hand it can be a lot of work just to figure out where to go next, how to get there, and where to sleep. On the other hand there is a certain degree of freedom and excitement in making those decisions day-to-day with local and fellow-traveler knowledge close at hand. Our recent stay in Lopburi was an example of one of those positive on-the-fly destinations that we would not likely have chosen from afar.

Macaque Attack!

Keen to move on from Bangkok we knew only that we weren't going south. That left east to explore a region of Thailand bordering Myanmar, west to start a journey toward Cambodia, or north towards the Chiang Mai region. With some quick research on all the options we discovered that Lopburi (a small town about two hours north by train) was gearing up for its annual 8-day festival to celebrate King Narai.

Lopburi's main attractions are a few ruins but more notably a legion of monkeys that some say outnumber the human population. The macaques can be found all over town hanging from telephone wires, blocking the sidewalk, pestering residents and even in some cases jumping on unsuspecting travelers! They're seen as a pest for the most part and I understand now why as they're very aggressive and constantly scavenging. Although we explored some of the ruins and took in a wee bit of monkey sightseeing we spent the vast majority of our time at the festival.

RuPaul Would Be Proud

 

Narai the Great was a ruler of Ayuthaya an important early kingdom (14th to 18th century) in the establishment of the Thai state. During his festival residents adorn themselves in traditional Thai dress. Some do this with a fairly simple top and bottom and others go full out with headdresses, makeup, jewelry, and beautiful clothes. The festival events ran from around noon to midnight each day but it was most lively after sunset. The evening activities kicked off with a parade of characters representing King Narai's court. No kidding there were hundreds of cast members ranging from simple soldiers to royalty and foreign dignitaries.

Makruk Bishop Dancing Into Place

 

Within the walls of the ancient palace grounds - where the official festivities took place - there were four large, open-air stages two of which had visually impressive ruins for backdrops. The stages were used for reenactments presumably related to King Narai's reign as well as various forms of entertainment like a variety show to traditional Thai music and dance. The number of people involved and the related hair, makeup, and costumes was amazing. I think my favourite event was a live chess-like game (Makruk) played on a field with human pieces. What made it particularly entertaining was that for each move the king would essentially dance out his commands which would then be played out by each of the pieces. For instance, if two pawns were put to battle a sword fight would ensue until one was eventually victorious.

One of Many Vendors That Fed Us

 

 

 

I would be negligent if I did not mention the vast array of food stalls outside and even inside the palace walls. Everything you might want and lots that you wouldn't could be found at what had to be at least 100 vendors. There was even a 'village' of stalls inside the palace walls where they only accepted traditional currency (e.g., shells, wooden coins, etc.) which to a non-Thai speaker really added to the complexity of the transaction but the sôm đam (green papaya salad) made it all worthwhile.

 

 

Lopburi was very memorable mostly for the festival but also for another little surprise it had in store for us.... But we'll save that for the next post.

One of A Few King Narai Dramas

What Welcomes You At The Train Station

Some of The Ruins