Thailand part III - Temples en masse

Asia » Thailand » Central Thailand » Pattaya
November 1st 2018

Published: January 12th 2019

Don't get templed out Pattaya is an awful place and we can not recommend anyone to go there! The reason for this is the prostitution business. We were absolutely disgusted by what we saw, and still we saw less than the proverbial tip of the iceberg. Appologize for starting off like that. But now that we got that nasty piece out of the way we can continue with what we really want to write a... Read Full Entry

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Ake Dahllof and Emma Holmbro

Ake Och Emma

We are Emma Holmbro and Ake Dahllof. We live in Stockholm, Sweden. We have travelled more or less regularly since the mid 1990-ies and it seems like the more we travel the more difficult it is to decide where to go next. Not because we are running out of places to visit but because we find more places we want to go to faster than we manage to travel to them. Some of the things from our travel bucket list we have ticked off since we started this blog in 2006 are Angel Falls in Ven... full info

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How do they pay for it?

How they finance the construction is a mystery. It must cost a fortune to make all these wooden carvings

More sculptures than we could count

There were sculptures everywhere. On the inside we found this one

Around a window

These sculptures were around a window

More sculptures than we could count

There were sculptures everywhere. Just outside one of the doors we found these

More sculptures than we could count

There were sculptures everywhere. Outside we found these

Hand carved probably

Most likely these sculptures are carved by hand. We doubt that it is possible to make them in any other way

Along a roof

Sculptures along a roof

A snake?

It looks like they are draped with a snake

Nice details

Not overly many details in this sculpture but nicely carved

Grayish

Some of the sculptures have aged and have turned a bit gray

Covering each other

Sometimes you can't see the fine woodcarvings because there are carved sculptures in front of them.

On the edge of a roof

These are sitting on the edge of a roof

Some styles return

This style of sculpture we also found around a pillar inside the building

Just like Angkor

This reminds us of the temple Bayon in Ankor Wat in Cambodia

Weather takes its toll

The sculptures outdoors have to be replaced after a decade or so because they get damaged by the weather

Gray

These sculptures won't last much longer. They have gone all gray by age and the wood is cracking

Solid pillar

The pillar looks a bit old but probably doesn't have to be replaced yet for many years

This will probably be replaced soon

This is so old that it probably needs to be replaced soon

An old section

A very old statue. Old means 25 years perhaps.

Gray means they have been around for a while

These sculptures have gone gray. That means that they have been there for many years

Newer sculpture

This sculpture is either indoors, well sheltered or new since it is not discoloured at all

12th January 2019

Dancing Dave
David Hooper

Wonderment
I am blown away by the magesty of the pics in this blog, Ake. Having done exhibition woodcarving for a number of years in another life I marvel at the incredible skill and endurance required to carry out these major works. These windows are staggering in their intricate detail. Hard to take it all in.

13th January 2019

Ake Och Emma
Ake Dahllof and Emma Holmbro

The photos don't do the woodcarving justice
There was no way that I could catch the grandness of the wooden temple in my photos. It was breathtaking. /Ake

12th January 2019

Dancing Dave
David Hooper

The Fanta Shrine
The Hindu elephant god Ganesh, the remover of obstacles, is the central figure in this shrine. People pray to nim for success before starting a new business, travel etc. Ganesh usually has a sweet at the end of his trunk which I understand represents the search for enlightenment. You may be right that Fanta bottles are less likely to attract rats as they are made of glass. Yet Ganesh's companion was a rat being his vehicle to help overcome life's obstacles!!! This shine reminds me of a popup store...you have discovered a little gem here!.

13th January 2019

Ake Och Emma
Ake Dahllof and Emma Holmbro

Thank you for the background information
We are lucky to have such well informed readers of our blog. It is far from the first time people in comments have explained what we have seen. I will rewrite the text and incorporate information about Ganesh. /Ake

12th January 2019

Dancing Dave
David Hooper

Cathedrals, grand churches, mosques & places of public worship
I have posted some of your pics in the 'Cathedrals, grand churches, mosques & places of public worship' thread in the Photography Forum. Check 'em out. Please do not apologise for the number of photos in your blog. If photos are good ones then one should be encouraged to put in as many as you wish. Our blogs are to enrich the experience of others and more importantly, a record of your own memories. All your pics in this blog are magnificent. I do object to photo bombing where crap photos are shown on mass with no regard for removing chaff to only show good or interesting ones. But all your pics in this blog are worth showing. My apology to you is that I have only posted a handful in the thread. Maybe you can post your favourites in the thread, as there are many that are worth you doing so.

13th January 2019

Ake Och Emma
Ake Dahllof and Emma Holmbro

We have many photos I could add to various threads
There are several interesting threads in the Photography Forum. I guess I could add quite a few of our photos there. Thanks for helping me put a few of my photos there. /Ake

13th January 2019

Koushiq Ahmed
non-member comment

Awesome. I want to travel there asap. http://www.dailynayadiganta.com/travel/65

15th January 2019

nancic123
Nanci and David Curry

Thailand...
We travelled a lot in Thailand but missed some of these temples. Sounds like you saw the best of them. I have never heard anyone say anything good about Pattaya, so I'm glad we gave it a pass. I have seen a lot of crazy things left at temples and religious sites, but Fanta is a first. If I ever get past this life perhaps a nice cold orange drink would be good, I suppose.

15th January 2019

Ake Och Emma
Ake Dahllof and Emma Holmbro

Glad you enjoyed this blog entry
I am glad to hear that you enjoyed this blog entry. Also a big thanks for commenting. /Ake

22nd January 2019

A Small Swede in the Big World
Per-Olof Persson

Sanctuary of Truth...
...seems absolutely astonishing, I want to go there as soon as possible!

22nd January 2019

Ake Och Emma
Ake Dahllof and Emma Holmbro

Better than you think...
And the photos don't do it justice. Thus it is even better than you think... /Ake

2nd October 2021

Siewch
Siewch

Tup Tim has been castrated…
When I lived in Bangkok in the 1990s, this shrine was located closer to the canal, and it had hundreds (maybe thousands) of penises piled up everywhere. As this was/is a fertility shrine, the phalluses were placed there by people who wanted children. When I revisited in 2017, I learned they relocated the shrine, sanitized it, and kept a token few penises. It’s a shadow of its former self.

5th October 2021

Ake Och Emma
Ake Dahllof and Emma Holmbro

I'd have loved to see it in its former glory
I would really have loved to see it when it was in its old location. That probably would have been more special. /Ake

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Thailand part III - Temples en masse

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