Wat Arun
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34 Arun Amarin Rd.
pier: Wat Arun Cross River Pier
02/891-1149
www.watarun.org
HOURS: Daily 6 a.m.-10 p.m.
COST: 20B
Wat Arun, the temple of dawn, is perhaps the most breathtaking Buddhist wat in the country. Located on the edge of the Chao Phraya directly across from the Grand Palace, the awe-inspiring Khmer-style temple, with its intricately decorated pagodas covered in a mosaic of Chinese porcelain, rises high into the sky.
A monastery existed at the site during the Ayutthaya period, before Bangkok was the capital city, but Rama II and Rama III built the large central pagoda and surrounding pagodas.
Wat Arun is best viewed from across the river or, better yet, just as the sun is going down from aboard a river boat. The temple compound, almost a tiny city on its own, is full of small alleyways, turtle pools, and Buddha figures.
To get there, you can take a cross-river ferry for 3 baht from the Tha Tien pier right next to Wat Pho.
© Suzanne Nam from Moon Bangkok, 5th Edition
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