Ayuthaya Thailand

Thailand's "Golden Age" is widely considered to have been the 16th through the 18th century. During that time Ayuthaya was the capital of what was then known as Siam. At one point the population had reached one million and most travelers declared it the finest city they had ever seen. Merchants from around the known world passed through the city's gates, giving it a rich cosmopolitan influence. The ruins of the city are a 2-hour bus ride from Bangkok.

Much of the city was destroyed by the Burmese invasion, but there is still a great deal to see. The wealth of the city was fabulous. One of the temples housed an enormous Buddha which was covered in over 550 pounds (250 kg) of gold! Another temple has stood virtually unchanged for centuries and still has 1300 year old stone Buddha from Ceylon. If you get tired of wandering from site to site you can take advantage of elephant powered transportation to move you about.