Photos of the week: Wat Arun Temple in Bangkok
By travelingted on Jul 26, 2011 with Comments 11
The ornate intricate design at Wat Aran
Along the Chao Phraya River in Bangkok lies one of the coolest temples in Thailand. The Wat Arun Temple is called the Temple of Dawn for the way the early morning light reflects off the marble and granite.
Lately, the temple has been the source of many a travel blog entry. Which is not unusual, since the temple is one of the most popular stops in one of the most popular adventure travel countries. Below are links to other bloggers who have taken a liking to Wat Arun. Click on the blogger name to see their photos.
Nomadic Samuel – Read his photography tips and then scroll down to see a view of the temple from a unique vantage point.
The Longest Way Home – I love the clouds in the background of the first picture.
Wat Aran on the shore of the Chao Phraya River
Landlopers – Wat Arun is Matt’s favorite spot in Bangkok too.
Runaway Juno – Juno gets some cool photos at night from the river when it was dark and did not have to worry about warding off people with giant snakes.
Bohemian Traveler – The Bohemian Traveler gets into the act and check out the cool time lapse photography video, which also features pictures of the temple.
The cool thing about all the entries is it seems that each blogger has a unique photo of the temple. Just like a beautiful girl never takes the same photo twice, the same can be said of Wat Arun.
Wat Arun can be visited from the roads or via the river. Just about every boat tour along the Chao Phraya will stop at Wat Arun. Entry cost is about 50 baht or a close to $2.00 usd.
Dumb tourists like me get suckered into a $5.00 photo
When I visited the temple I was suckered into paying $5.00 more to take a picture with a python. The man holding the snake gave it to me and as I was trying to deal with a 6 foot snake thrust into my arms, he whispered 200 baht in my ear. It was too late to object, as I had a six foot snake around my neck, so I succumbed to the fee. If you don’t want to pay this just ignore the dude with the snake.
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Stay tuned,
TT
Filed Under: Adventure travel • Featured • Photograph of the week • Southeast Asia
Wicked! Thanks for including Runaway Juno on your post! Wat Arun was beautiful one. Pity that I didn’t have a change to visit other ones but next time!
Juno recently posted..America, you are funny! — Remarkable signs around the country
LOL.. the snake looks scary.. but you wear it well!! hehe
Ciki recently posted..Halal Hokkien Mee?
Ted, I’ve been a $5 fool more than I’d like to admit
These photos are often the ones your friends/family back home enjoy the most even if there is a less than impressive story behind it. Thanks, for including my post & some of the others which I checked out. As you mentioned, it’s a temple where you can capture a lot of unique photos.
Nomadic Samuel recently posted..Smiling Local | Lijiang, China | Travel Photo
Neat architecture / design..interesting..
Cheers..
Charles Higgins recently posted..Tropicana offers free show tickets with two night minimum stays
I was at Wat Arun during my recent Bangkok trip too! But I did not notice the snake, or maybe they only target Westerners.
Still, you looked so cool with the python!! 
iamthewitch recently posted..50% Off Kampung Style Ramadhan Buffet
Love this stupa as well. But isn’t it Wat Arun? But I could wrong. Anyway, if someone thrusts a snake into my arms, I’d have a heart attack right then and there. Good thing no one did that to me in Wat Arun. Haha!
AJ recently posted..Crazy Stupid Love and Bridge: The Lowdown on Loboc
Yes, it is Wat Arun. It would probably benefit my google listings if I spelled it right. Thanks for the correction.
I’ll make sure to stop by this place during my Bangkok – Chiang Mai trip next month. Hope to get some interesting photographs as well.
Marky recently posted..November South East Asian Backpacking Trip
On the bright side, at least you got to use the photo for the blog. Think of it as a business expense?
SHABL Rob recently posted..Exploring Johannesburg and Soweto, South Africa
Exactly Rob, every photo is useful when you are blogging.
Finally visited Wat Arun and yes, it is an impressive one!
Micamyx|Senyorita recently posted..Romantic Moments From My Travels