Although this actually takes place directly after the post below, it is so spectacular it needed it's own! Wat Sala Kaew Ku stunned me right of the bat as driving down the road in the distance were towering statues that dwarfed even the tallest tree's in the area. Stepping out of the tuk tuk and making sure the driver was going to stick around, I was off to the entrance. After a small 20 baht entrance fee, I was inside the grandest place I've seen in this part of Thailand. Lush green gardens covering all the land that isn't covered by the incredible statues that are tall enough to make the people next to them look like ants. Equally amazing, was my being approached by some local monks who were testing there english skills on me during there visit here. They were very friendly and it was quite a nice. Seeing them next to the first statue to see inside is breathtaking....

      Continuing through the maze of statue's, I couldn't help but feel in some serious awe. Having just hours ago started to feel like I couldn't be impressed anymore, the reality hit hard here I was brought right back down to reality. This place was miraculous. The mixture of Buddhist and Hindu statue's mixed in the garden created a most mesmerizing atmosphere. I found myself feeling smaller and smaller as I made my way through, easily started to forget which ones I'd already seen. Surrounded in every direction by mass amounts of concrete, every direction equally as grand, getting lost in the moment here is inevitable. I was taking photo's left and right trying not to miss anything. Even the smaller eye level piece's could have your jaw dropping.....

      While walking the grounds I ran into the people I had met on the boat the night before and spent the rest of the time there with them chatting about the glory of the place. After about an hour and a half here and still not sure if I saw everything, we decided to head out as the sun got the better of us. Probably a good idea because the guy waiting to drive me back was probably getting a little restless and paid or not, driving off wasn't far from his mind most likely. Driving away I tried to get the last picture of the largest piece that I saw when coming in. Having to be far enough away and going over bumps in the back of a vehicle, I somehow managed to get the picture. Be it with a portion of a bus showing, but that will be cut out later :-P A fitting one to end the place indeed....

      Having changed my mind again, I'm skipping the river kwai festival and heading for Laos in the morning.... I just have no desire to go through 2 twelve hour overnight trains, one there and one back to see a festival. Too much backtracking. So a new country begins tomorrow. Laos!


( Please check the Wat Sala Kaew Ku photo gallery to really appreciate this wonderful place! )