December 16th: about Buddhist temples, from an Introduction to Thailand

(This is an excerpt from my newest book, an Introduction to Thailand. More on that in a minute.)

Buddhist temples

No introduction to Thailand would be complete without a quick word on Buddhist temples, or wat. Typically walled off from the outside world, all temples will feature a bot, the central sacred hall that is typically closed to the public, and a Bo tree, under which the Buddha received his enlightenment (so don’t climb it!). All but the smallest temples will have a viharn / wiha...