The great start to our Sukhothai trip continued when we arrived at our delightful and quirky accommodation, the Orchid Hibiscus guest house. We were met by our Italian host Paolo, who very effectively organised our following day of sightseeing around the old ruied city of Sukhothai for us. However, following a very good lunch around the corner, we spent the first day lounging on day beds around the pretty pool. The gardens at the gueshouse are beautiful, with lovely displays of flowers, including orchids, and cages of singing birds. The beds may have been hard, but the ambience was great.

The following day, as directed by Paolo, we got a tuk-tuk at 6am which took us first to a large buddha on the top of a wooded hill outside the city walls. An energetic climb to the top meant that we could observe the statue as the early morning light coloured it and could watch the sun rise over the historic site. (all Buddhas face East)
We then visited a couple of other Wats inside the city walls - it was so good to visit these sites before the tour buses and before it became too hot. Finally, we picked up rented bicyles to cycle home for Paolo's "amazing breakfast". The breakfast consisted of a coconut concoction inside a banana leaf to which we added bananas and wild honeycomb. This was followed by eggs and endless toast topped by the wonderful honey or his "strange pineapple jam".
A siesta round the pool was followed by a Thai massage - a very stretching and pummelling experience - before we headed off late afternoon to cycle around the ruined city and explore more Wats.
All in all a great experience and at a low, low price.