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See the Giant Reclining Buddha at Wat Pho! |
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Written by Somkid
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  Wat Pho (pronounced “Poe”, not “Fho” which is the Vietnamese noodle soup), is one of Bangkok’s oldest and largest temples (over 200 years old!!). Its official name is Wat Phra Chetuphon Vimolmangklararm Rajwaramahaviharn (yeah, I hear ya… I’d stick with “Wat Pho” as well - we Thais are known for our long names).
The temple grounds cover some 20 acres and contain more than 1000 Buddha statues. However, the main attraction is the HUGE reclining Buddha statue, 46 meters in length and 15 meters in height to be exact. The exterior is gold plated with his eyes made of mother of pearl! The soles of his feet are also decorated with mother of pearl, depicting 108 auspicious Buddhist scenes (108 is also an auspicious number in Buddhism).
 In addition to the Reclining Buddha, the temple is also famous for being Thailand’s first university and the birthplace of traditional Thai massage (interesting, huh?). After a long stroll around the temple, you can decompress and get a massage as well. It’ll cost you only 150 Baht for 30 minutes and 250 Baht for one hour. Be forewarned though, this is hardcore stuff! They’ll yank your arms, legs, and stretch you out like gummi bears candy. I wouldn’t recommend it if you’re a newbie, you can end up limping during your entire vacation here. For those of you that are used to these stuffs or are into yoga, then this definitely a cheap way to unwind.
Admissions Fee:
20 Baht per person
Hours:
8:00 AM – 5:00 PM (Closed for lunch between 12:00PM-1:00PM)
How to get there:
Buses: #6, 8 and 12 stops pretty close by.
Taxi: Flag down a cab, but make sure they turn on the meter first. Don’t even bother negotiating prices with them, they’re supposed to turn on the meter...it’s the law!. If they give you a hard time, I would just flag down another one, since this one will probably use the long route to get to your destination anyway.
Tuk-Tuk: Flag down a Tuk-Tuk, don’t let the Tuk-Tuk flag you down, some of these guys are known to be accomplishes of various scams and con jobs. Find out the price first before you get on, you should always negotiate a satisfactory price as they’ll over quote you.
Walking: If you’re coming from The Emerald Buddha Temple, then you can and should just walk to there. They’re right next to each other and it will only take you about 5 minutes.
Somkid is a Thai local and co-founder of http://www.thaixperience.com |
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