A wat worth witnessing

Wat Chaiwatthanaram wasn't always a place of peaceful reflection. Previously neglected (except by sneaky treasure hunters) for centuries, the wat still bears scars from cannonballs that struck it in 1767, when it doubled as a fortress. That battle put it more or less off the map until the Thai government began restoring it in 1987—just one part of a massive renovation that started in the '60s and resulted in Ayutthaya Historical Park. Covering a little more than a square mile, the park preserves the old capital city of the Ayutthaya kingdom, considered the precursor of modern Thailand.