A visit to Wat Arun

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I swung over to Wat Arun today - which, I found out today, is not pronounced What a run, but rather Wut Arhune. There probably should be some squiggly lines over some of those vowels, but I'm not sure where, so use your imagination. Wat Arun is a temple - apparently the temple of dawn, light, or something day-time related. It's a huge structure, stretching up far higher than most buildings I've seen. As you can see from the pictures, what's more impressive is the way it's built. Every part of Wat Arun has handmade designs - ranging from flowers to colored patterns to guys struggling to hold up the place.

After Wat Arun I headed down to the river, which is right next to the temple. There wasn't much to see - lots of 'tours' (i.e. scams), and goods to buy that reminded me of a museum gift store (not a good thing). I did take a tuk-tuk to get back, however, which was an experience. The tuk-tuk is basically a three-wheeled, open air contraption that is not known for safety or luxury. It is, however, known for being bright green and yellow and smelling like gasoline. My tuk-tuk delivered in full, with colors correct and smell unleaded.

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Photos

Wat Arun
This is a view of the place from a block over, as I approached. Also seen here: clouds.

Wat Arun
Look closely and you can see lots of little stone dudes holding the temple up. Strenuous.

Some sort of animal
Not much to see here, besides this animal. I don't know what kind of animal it is, but I do know that it has a mustache.

Wat Arun
This is a picture of the main spire close up, after I had walked up to the second level. Did I mention this place has levels?

A view from above
This picture, taken shortly after I had conquered my fear of heights and climbed up wat arun, shows off both the river and my amazing ability to keep the camera still, despite only recently having done some fear conquering.

Guards
They had the size advantage, but I knew if it came down to a fight, my mobility would come in handy.