Other than the Reclining Buddha, there's another famous Buddha statue in Bangkok. It is the Golden Buddha housed in Wat Traimit.
I didn't plan to visit the wat initially but it is located nearby Chinatown so after touring Chinatown, I just went in to have a look.
I paid only for the Golden Buddha cos I was too tired to see the exhibitions in the museum so it was a very short visit.
The wat looks very grand, kan?
About the golden Buddha; it measures nearly five metres in height and weighing five and a half tons, making it the world's largest golden Buddha. Made from pure gold, the statue is said to be worth millions of dollars at today's gold prices. The gold price keeps on increasing some more..
The Golden Buddha was cast sometime in the 13th century, and it survived until now cos it was covered in plaster to hide it from thieves. It was discovered by accident when it was accidentally dropped as it was being moved, revealing, under a casing of plaster, a beautiful solid gold Sukhothai style Buddha. Pieces of the plaster are still kept on display at the museum.
Wat Traimit is open daily, but museum is closed on Monday.
Visiting hours are from 9 am to 5 pm.
Entrance fee is 40 Baht for the Golden Buddha, additional 100 Baht for museum
Direction: Take the MRT and stop at Hua Lampong
I lost count how many wats did I visit during my trip to Bangkok. They were everywhere. One of the most beautiful that I've seen was Wat Benchamabophit in Dusit area. It is also known as the Marble Temple, cos well... it was built using marble.
The temple is a prime example of modern Thai architecture. It is a four-sided structure with four-tiered roof and a corridor in the back.
I saw these kids while looking around the temple. Soo cute!
Later when I went in I saw them again, listening to the words from the monk.
Bagus budak-budak ni... hehe..
Beyond the main bot is a cloister containing over 50 Buddha images in many different styles, representing various Buddhist countries and regions.
Wat Benchamabophit is open daily.
Visiting hours are from 6 am to 6 pm.
Entrance fee is 20 Baht.
Direction: It is situated on the corner of Th Si Ayutthaya and Th Phra Ram V (I took a tuk tuk to get there)
OK.. enough of wats and Buddha images. I shall blog about shopping in Bangkok later! :D
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