We decided to take a tour trip to visit the white temple in Chiang Rai when we were in Chiang Mai for a few days( the tour was excellent, and actually on every temple, we could do whatever we wanted, and the guide was awesome!!!). Our first stop was on hot springs, indeed no interest at all, but the water was very hot, and I could put my feet inside.
Our second stop was on the White Temple: Wat Rong Khun’s. The construction began in 1997 by noted Thai painter turned architect Chalermchai Kositpipat. To enter, we had to walk over a bridge and a pool of reaching arms (symbolizing desire), were inside instead of the traditional Buddha life scenarios, the artist has painted contemporary scènes representing samsara (the realm of rebirth and delusion). Images such as a plane smashing into the Twin Towers and oddly enough Keanu Reeves as Neo from the Matrix, dominante the one finished wall of this work in progress. The temple suffered minor damage in an earthquake in 2014.
The white color is impressive, and this is one of the places I wanted to go when I came to Thailand, so I did it. But let’s be honest, there is a lot of tourists, and actually, you even need to be fast to take pictures. But it’s worth the detour!
