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CHIANG MAI

Wat Ket Karam

Wat Ket Karam or Wat Sra Ket is a Buddhist temple in Chiang Mai, Thailand, built in 1428. 

It’s main sala is exquisite. We visited for approximately half an hour it’s a small compound and easily walked around. 

In the heart of the temple grounds there is an impressive pagoda – the Ket Kaew Chura Manee pagoda. 

Located along the Ping River, the temple grounds also houses a museum that exhibits antiques and old photos which tell the story Chiang Mai city. 


The temple is located at 96, Ban Wat Ket, Charoen Rat Road, Amphoe Mueang, Chiang Mai. 

Wat Phra Singh


Wat Phra Singh is a stunning and important temple complex, so much so that King Ananda Mahidol (Rama VIII), the older brother of the late King Bhumibol Adulyadej (Rama IX), bestowed on it the status of Royal temple of the first grade in 1935.


It is located in the western part of the old city centre of Chiang Mai, which is contained within the city walls and moat. The main entrance is guarded by Singhs (lions). Wat Pra Singh is situated at the end of the main street (Rachadamnoen road) of Chiang Mai. The road runs east from the temple, via Tapae Gate, to the Ping River.

We visited in bright sunshine and the temple truly glitters. 

Construction on Wat Phra Singh began in 1345 when King Phayu, the fifth king of the Mangrai dynasty, had a chedi built to house the ashes of his father King Kham Fu. 

In 1367, the statue of Phra Buddha Singh was brought to the temple and the temple complex received its present name. 

The whole temple complex underwent extensive renovations under the famous monk Khru Ba Srivichai during the 1920s. Many of the buildings were again restored in 2002.

The Wat Phra That Doi Kham (The Golden Mountain Temple)

The Wat Phra That Doi Kham is an attractive not much visited temple known for its 17 metre high Buddha image. The temple was built towards the end of the 7th century and sits on top of a forested hill just outside of Chiang Mai. The name of the Wat means golden mountain temple.

 

The oldest structure of the Wat Phra That Doi Kham temple is the chedi (pagoda), that was constructed in the year 687. It shares many characteristics with the chedi of the better known Wat Phra That Doi Suthep temple, that is found a little more to the North.
Huge golden colored Naga serpents guard the stairs on both sides of the pagoda that is enclosed by a gate. The chedi enshrines a sacred relic of the Buddha. A local legend tells about two giants who lived in the Doi Kham area thousands of years ago and who were said to be cannibals. When the Buddha visited the area he convinced the giants to give up cannibalism and convert to Buddhism. The Buddha gave them a relic of his hair, that is now enshrined in the temple’s chedi.

When the chedi collapsed in 1966 after heavy rain, local people discovered a number of Buddha images inside the damaged structure. Funds were then raised and the chedi restored

Address: Mu Ban Chiang Mai Lake Land Rd, Tambon Su Thep, Amphoe Mueang Chiang Mai, Chang Wat Chiang Mai 50200