The purpose of our first trip to Chiang Rai was the magnificent White Temple of Thailand (Wat Rong Khun). It is located just a few kilometers from the city of Chiang Rai, we noticed it on the way, when we were heading to the golden triangle in Chiang Saen. The white tops of the White temple, shimmering in the sun (as foreigners call Wat Rong Khun), are visible directly from the track. Then we still came here, traveling by car in the north.
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White Temple in Thailand
When the whole snow-white mirror-carved temple opens up to your eyes at once, you understand that you did not see anything from the road. This view is mesmerizing, and you get the feeling that you are in a fairy tale. Of course, the first thing that comes to mind is the Snow Queen's castle. Wat Rong Khun is beautiful, perhaps even too beautiful to be a temple. This is a real work of art. Oleg very aptly compared him to the Tretyakov Gallery. And although Thais come here to pray, it seemed to us that in terms of energy this place is largely inferior to the same dilapidated old watas in Chiang Saen.
Probably, this impression is due to the fact that, firstly, the place is relatively new (construction began in 1997 and, by the way, is still underway), and secondly, because it is very much touristy. There were quite a lot of visitors, although they were somehow evenly distributed throughout the surroundings and did not often catch the eye and in the frame..
At the entrance to the territory of the White Temple, a guard sits and a sign hangs that due to indecent behavior (whose, we did not understand), foreign tourists are allowed only accompanied by their guide. We hesitantly stomped in front of the gate, and then we decided to try our luck, stop, stop. But they quietly passed without being stopped by the law enforcement officer.
View of the White Temple from the road
White Temple in Thailand (Wat Rong Khung)
Wish tree
Naturally I left mine
Wishing well where coins are thrown
The territory is very beautiful and it gets better every year
A beautiful bridge leads to the entrance to Wat Rong Khun, symbolizing the road to enlightenment, the place where Buddha lives (in our opinion, simply Paradise). But before getting there, you need to overcome the human world (a small semicircle right in front of the bridge itself), and then go through Hell with the stretching arms of sinners (a large semicircle ending in fangs is the mouth of Rahu). It is a pity that before the trip I did not read about all this on the Internet in advance, it would be more interesting to wander there, realizing what's what.
And so, we are at the doors of Paradise of the Wat Rong Khun temple. We take off our shoes and go inside. And there ... almost nothing. Only originally painted walls and a seated figure of some saint, apparently a monk. On the Internet I found that he was embalmed, like our Lenin, others claim that it is just a doll. I don’t know what is true and what is not, but he looks quite as if he were alive, which makes him creepy. The same there are monks on Koh Samui.
I was impressed by the original painting of the walls. We, however, did not understand by whom it was performed. Either by the creator of the Chalermchai Kositpipat temple, or by several authors. Bothering someone else's guide with questions, we learned that the drawn heroes of the Matrix, Avatar, Terminator, etc. are a symbol of the fact that people now mainly live in an illusory world, invented by them, and not in reality, which is not good. Well, about weapons, missiles, twin towers and the events of September 11th, I generally keep quiet.
And also, as we were told, the painting is constantly replenished with various phenomena from our modern life (Avatar is proof of this), so to speak, keeps up with the times. This is done so that later it would be clear when exactly these paintings were created, such time milestones. One wall, by the way, is still completely empty. It is interesting that it will appear on it in 50 years like this ...
The bridge of enlightenment
Sinners reach out to visitors
You can try to appease them
The figure of the monk inside the temple is most likely not a real mummy.
All walls are painted with modern themes
And a year ago the Avatar was not here ...
The part is not over yet
By the way, taking pictures inside the temple is prohibited. We found out the reason only later, from one of the drivers who gave us a lift. The drawings on the wall are copyrighted works and for some reason their creator (creators?) Do not want them to be distributed via the Internet.
Construction is still ongoing. This is evidenced not only by the white standing behind the Wat Rong Khun temple, but also bald, without ruffles, blank buildings, as we called them, but also the blanks of those same white-mirror beauties not far from the canopy. It was interesting to study how it is all born and created. The complex is said to include nine of these amazing buildings. It will be interesting to come back here in 10 years, it's just a fairy tale that will be a real one!
There are a bunch of blanks in the backyard
How do you like the hands sticking out of the buckets?
There are various sculptures throughout the territory, no less amazing and original than the white temple of Wat Rong Khun itself. Each of these sculptures probably carries some kind of sacred meaning, but, unfortunately, we only understood that it’s not good for dummies to smoke and drink..
Rejoicing that these reproaches and warnings did not apply to us, we set off to explore the amazing golden palace building. I wondered for a long time what it could be. And by the fact that almost a man and a woman are depicted at the top, I decided that this was some kind of our registry office. Naive, can you imagine what my disappointment was when I read the horrifying inscription - Toilet ?! Yes Yes! Gold toilet! Boggles the mind! But beautiful, fabulous ...
Golden toilet
Well, having finally bought a magnet from this fascinating place, we also examined the Lost and Found display stands with the exhibits presented there - lost things. Do you know what they lose the most? Camera cases and caps! But what amazed me the most was the money sealed in bags with a signed amount! And there are many of them.
Short video
Information to visit
Entrance 50 baht. Children up to 120 cm free.
It is open from 7 to 17. During the season (November-February) it is open until 18. But since the territory is not very large, at any time of the day you can come pretty close to the temple and take beautiful photographs. It is at night time that the lights are lit and the temple looks especially magical. Well, I mean that even if you pass by in the evening and at night, then take a look, there is only 100 meters from the highway to go.
How to get there
The easiest way, of course, is in a rented car. It allows tremendous freedom to plan and move around the country. Otherwise, you can take a minibus from Chiang Rai from the old bus station (city center) for 20 baht. Or move from Chiang Mai by minibus or bus with bus station and ask to drop you off on the highway opposite the temple.
Overnight stay
It is convenient to spend the night in Chiang Rai so as not to rush anywhere. You can see a little the city itself, its central part and visit several attractions in the area, for example, Black Temple, antagonist to White. An overnight stay is also convenient if you have a whole trip to the north of Thailand..
I once stayed at the cheap Baan Nukanong Guesthouse (my review), but it is very simple, not for everyone. Fell in the first one that came across, there was no strength to look. I think it makes sense to check out something else and book in advance. The easiest way is to search for hotels on RoomGuru, there are all discounts and the most complete database of hotels. Well, and you will book further either in Booking, or in Agoda, which will offer.
Here are a couple of hotels I've spotted for my next trip: Sirin place boutique and Nice Inn Town Hotel and Apartments. Both are in the center, highly rated, and very inexpensive. Nice Inn Town generally has very cool Deluxe and Superiors (with kitchens). Prices in the north are, of course, very encouraging. Everything is 2 times cheaper than in the south at the resorts. Use!
Where is the temple
The White Temple is located about 13 kilometers from Chiang Rai city, south towards Chiang Mai. Near the main road that connects Chiang Mai and Chiang Rai.
The area around Chiang Rai
The area around Chiang Rai:
