Buddhist temples are extraordinary places. Whereas in the Christian religion the focus of worship is usually only on one building (Cathedral, church etc), depending on their size Buddhist temples (Wats) can incorporate numerous buildings for different activities, be it education, prayer or, as I found out today, massage!
Wat Pho is one of the oldest temples in Thailand and also one of the biggest.
It’s major claim to fame is that it houses more than 1,000 Buddha images, the largest collection in Thailand.
amongst which is, possibly, the most famous image of them all, the 46 metre long, gold leaf statue of the reclining Buddah
which, apparently, represents Buddha’s emergence from a state of nirvana. It’s huge.
And just around the corner there’s a facility that teaches the ancient art of traditional Thai massage. It’s a funny old world.
Across the very busy Chao Phraya river from Wat Pho is Wat Arun, the Temple of Dawn as featured in most of Bangkok’s publicity material. 
Dating back to the 17th century it was once part of the Royal Palace until this was moved to the other side of the river for some reason or another.
The main building (now being renovated) catches the sunrise spectacularly – hence it’s English name – which, after my early starts of late, I was never going to see this morning.
Once again I was struck by the number of seemingly non religious activities that carry on inside the confines of the Wat including tourist shops, a Thai dancing show
and perhaps not surprisingly a memorial to the late king.
On the one hand, Buddhism often seems to be a very relaxed religion, however on the other it would appear to be quite strict certainly when it comes to matters of the Royal family and Buddha himself.
The Chao Prahya is very much a working river. Thousands of Thais use it every day to get to and from work as an alternative to the horrendous Bangkok road traffic. There are many, many ferries and long tailed boats plying up and down these choppy waters and they’re cheap too. So I hopped on one
and two stops plus £0.90 later disembarked not so far from my hotel
in the same time it would probably have taken me to travel 100 metres on the road!
A short tuk tuk drive later, narrowly avoiding a lady carrying a chicken shed full of eggs
and I was back at my hotel.
Not quite the beach laziness I have been used to but a fascinating excursion nevertheless.
Phileas
thelasthurrahsite 