Wat Traimit: Temple of the Golden Buddha {Bangkok, Thailand}

Happy Tuesday Y'all! 

I've started taking my laptop to work again, so I'm hoping this blog will once again be back on track. 

Anyway, today I thought I would share one of the first things we saw when we arrived in Bangkok way back in February. 

On our first night in Thailand, we stayed in a hotel near Hualampong train station since we needed to be there for the next evening to take our overnight train to Chiang Mai. The train station is also near Chinatown. So on our first night we walked around Chinatown and came across a pretty big temple that we knew we needed to come back and explore in the morning. 

That temple was Wat Traimit or Temple of the Golden Buddha. 

And this temple was so beautiful. All the gold just sparkled- even with the overcast skies that we had. 

This buddha is almost 5 meters tall and weights about 5 and a half tons. It is the world's largest gold seated Buddha. In the past, the gold was hidden in stucco and plaster to protect it from invading armies. The golden buddha was found by accident when it was dropped as it was being moved. When it was dropped, it revealed the gold beneath the plaster. 

It was a pretty good start to our adventure in Bangkok. We didn't even know something like this was in Chinatown since we didn't really research before our trip all that much. 

The temple gets crowded (like anything in Bangkok over a holiday weekend), so go early. There is also a dress code (as is with all the other temples). Cover your shoulders and knees. There is clothing to rent if needed. 

Because this temple is located in Chinatown- there is a pretty neat museum located within the lower levels of the temple. The second level is all about the history of Chinatown and the third level is the history of the buddha itself. I think it's worth the 100 baht to get into the museum.  No shoes are allowed in the museum, so if walking barefoot creeps you out just bring some socks. 

Basic Temple Information: 

Hours: 8:00am-5:00 pm

Price: 40 baht to see the golden buddha; 100 baht for the museum 

Dress Code: Yes - clothing rental available