Comfortable.....It's been a surprisingly comfortable night and any apprehensions I might have had have disappeared. There is a table I can use for my laptop, an adequate internet signal, modern power sockets and effective air conditioning. We stocked up well yesterday and are self-sufficient although too late, we realised there was coffee in reception and probably snacks too.
Yesterday I achieved what I came to Uthai Thani for which was the football. Today we have all day to return the 3 hours to Bangkok, so there's the luxury of a late start. In the meantime I spend 30 minutes researching options for visits on the way back but so well have we covered the upper central region in the past, that between us, we draw a blank. Therefore, with nothing else to do I start checking railway timetables. That gives us a reason to get moving.
Ban Takhli Railway Station.....Ban Takhli Railway Station is on the Northern Line connecting to Chaing Mai and Bangkok. It's a strange place to come though almost lost in time. Upgrades have already started on this line, but little progress has been made at Ban Takhli. The old station will become but a memory. As we look around for lunch I see how run-down this town is or is it just the fact that life elsewhere has overtaken it? Let's talk about toilets. All the upgraded stations have clean new toilets for free but the ones that haven't are normally attended with a small fee keeping some functionality. Well, not here which results in facilities that are disgusting.
It's just midday and looking around there seems nowhere suitable for lunch, just one gloomy restaurant beside the railway. We don't have much choice so place an order here but when the plates arrive, the food looks great to me and when we ask for the bill it's another surprise. Just 85 baht for the two of us including a drink they're kidding right? It's time to head back to the station where I plan to board a train heading for Bangkok. This will break the day up nicely. What isn't so nice is waiting around in the heat till 1.30 pm. Then on the train too there is no air conditioning. Katoon will have the comfort of driving on to Ayutthaya, just an hour and a half for her but over an hour longer for me. The train arrives, and I board looking for the seat number printed on my ticket, and it's occupied. The train is full, but I don't see much point in allocating seats: This is not an express train. When things settle down I have an isle seat of the wrong side of the train. The shutters are down as we are heading south with the sun in the west. This means a long journey with no views to releave the boredom. On this occasion, no more is achieved than if I had taken the car to Ayutthaya. Also I have paid more than I expected for this class of train. Well, with the post-mortem over, I try to sleep, but it's impossible. It's now a case of enjoying the motion of the train and hear the 'give a little whistle' from the engine. At various points between Nakhon Sawan and Lopburi I do see evidence of track and station upgrades. It's early days on the Northern Line, but some replacement stations have been built as well as raised platforms and road overpasses. It will take a lot more time to complete the upgrades as this line to Chaing Mai is very long.
Ayutthaya Railway Station.....At the station, Katoon is waiting having spent a hour at a temple in the city. Here I decide to wait for another Rapid service to arrive which goes into my video bank. Now let's head for the city and enjoy modern life caught up in traffic.
We reach the village at 6.30 pm and take dinner in the village as well as do some shopping for a couple of days at least. I need a break to catch up recording he last 4 days of adventure. This day had TRAINS written all over it with nothing else to mention for a change.

Source: Visit