According to this infographic, there are more soapy massage parlors than temples in Bangkok. Well, if you're not a Buddhist, you have to have something to do, don't you?
Bangkok, a city of extremes
Bangkok is a city of many faces and a city of extremes: beautiful temples, slums, lush tropical vegetation and exhaust-infested streets. The following 5 places fall outside the tourist attractions and can certainly be called "different" but that is precisely why they are definitely worth a visit.
Two statues for Buddha
My friends' parents want to inaugurate their new home. I'll be there at seven o'clock. The house and yard are packed with close and distant relatives. Plus twelve monks. There are two large Buddha statues in the house. A gleaming copper statue of a seated Buddha, about three feet high. And a dark statue of a standing Buddha, about five feet high.
Several temples in disrepute
The Wat Wang Tawan Tok in Nakhon Si Thammarat could have stepped straight out of a horror movie. This Wat would have had large financial income daily, 15.000 Baht per day, not all of which could be found in the accounts. When a 17-year-old novice from this Wat noticed this, he was murdered and cast in concrete.
Story from Thailand: To Phrae
Dick Koger says goodbye to his friends in BanLai and he leaves for PaJao by bus. From there a bus to Phrae.
Temples in disrepute after fraud and corruption
Recently, a scandal came to light in which officials and monks embezzled a total of 60 million baht from the temple maintenance fund. The corruption has damaged the image of many well-known temples.
Every year the Ampheu (in my case Pathiu) organizes a tour along 9 temples in the Ampheu. This tour always takes place on the first Saturday after Wan Tjam pan sa. This is the day on which the Buddhist monks must stay in the temple for three months. There may have been an article for the blog in it, so research to possibly participate and to make the reader of the blog a bit wiser in Thai culture.
Supreme Patriarch (†) leaves behind controversial Sangha
A 'luminous journey comes to an end' writes Bangkok Post about the death of the Supreme Patriarch last night. His successor will have a hard time. The Sangha community is embroiled in controversy.
News from Thailand – September 28, 2013
Today in News from Thailand:
• Residents of the historic district must pack their bags by Sunday at the latest
• Prime Minister Yingluck has a problem: see the Political News section
• Comment: Temple financial management is 'recipe for disaster'
Is the Sangha doomed?
When I listen to the gossip of villagers, read the stories of monks' misconduct and see for myself how monks behave, I can only draw one conclusion: it is 5 to 12 for Thai monasticism, the Sangha.
Wat Phra That Rueang Rong at Sisaket
The Wat Phra That Rueang Rong is located about eight kilometers from Si Sa Ket on the Yang Chum Noi road. It is an important Buddhist temple for the people of the area and is mainly visited on weekends.
Rehab temple in Thailand (video)
In the Netherlands we treat addicts well, maybe too well. VPRO's Metropolis shows that things are very different in some countries.
Floods: Temples in Auytthaya severely damaged (video)
The famous temples of Auytthaya, located north of Bangkok, symbolize the rise and fall of Thai kingdoms. Floodwaters have flooded the province and these icons of Thai history have been severely damaged.
Thailand's Unborn (Video)
The gruesome discovery in November 2010 of more than 2.000 fetuses in a temple in Bangkok sent shock waves through Thailand.
Fighting was reported again yesterday at the border area between Thailand and Cambodia. At least one Thai soldier has been killed. Thousands of people have fled. These are the fiercest confrontations in years. At least five people, both civilians and soldiers, have been killed in the past five days. Both countries blame each other for starting the fighting. In the fighting, a temple from the eleventh ...