Sukhothai, Si Satchanalai and Kamphaeng Phet were parts of the Sukhothai kingdom, the first true Thai state in present day Thailand. Many Thais considered Sukhothai as their Athens, the golden age of Thai culture and art. Although this kingdom had a short life for just around 150 years, Sukhothai was able to produce art which is considered as one of the most unique and beautiful Buddhist art in Asian history. A unique characteristic of Sukhothai art, which is one of the main reasons that put Sukhothai in the list of World Heritage, is the unique feminine looked or unisex in the Buddha statues which represented both genders are equally able to achieve the nirvana, the goal of Buddhism.

Now Sukhothai is a historical park with many temple ruins and pretty lily ponds that once served as reservoirs for this town. Wat Mahathat, which was a royal chapel in Sukhothai period, is the biggest and most beautiful temple and the ruin is in a very good shape enough to make everyone can imagine its former glory. Wat Sichum with a really big Buddha is my favorite site in all Sukhothai town temples, but my favorite place in Sukhothai era is not in Sukhothai, but in Si Satchanalai, another part of this world heritage site.

Si Satchanalai was a very important town in Sukhothai time as most of its rulers were the heir of Sukhothai throne. This town was considered as the second capital and also a great rival of Sukhothai in terms of art and culture developments, even today Si Satchanalai pottery and goldsmith are still active in production. While Sukhothai historical park is a stylish park, Si Satchanalai historical park is a forest garden with many hidden ruins. Although Si Satchanalai ruins are smaller and not impressive as in Sukhothai, I really enjoyed Si Satchanalai with its undiscovered charm, cycling in this historical park made me feel liked an explorer in Asian forest. Wat Nang Phaya, a true jewel of Si Satchanalai, a small and hardly notice temple ruins is my favorite as this temple is the only place that can preserved its ancient decorative motifs in a very good condition, a really beautiful art inspired by flowers and trees.

Kamphaeng Phet is quite different from Sukhothai or Si Satchanalai in terms of art and surrounding. Kamphaeng Phet means Diamond wall or unbreakable wall, a very good name for the town which was located on a military strategy point and had a great record of war history. The historical park is in a very dry forest, a very contrast to the greenness of Si Satchanalai. The art of Kamphaeng Phet also looked very masculine and was mainly built from red rough laterite making a striking contrast to the famous Sukhothai. The ruins are also smaller and in bad conditions (maybe the result of the war destruction) I have to admit that Kamphaeng Phet is quite disappointing, but when my friend and I discovered that we were the only group of tourist in this historical park, we finally found some place in Thailand where no tourist at all and this was quite impressive for us.

Sukhothai - Si Satchanalai - Kamphaeng Phet is the must for everyone who wants to understand Southeast Asian history and the birth of Thai nation. There are many things to see in these three historical parks. The only strange is if you want to see the most beautiful Sukhothai style Buddha and the symbol of all Sukhothai art as Thai people claimed, you have to go to the modern town of Pitsanulok to see the wonderful 750 years old Chinarat Buddha in Wat Yai, a really beautiful Buddha statue with golden halo! A real crown jewel of Sukhothai period, but is not in world heritage list!