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Standing tall on the west bank of Chao Phraya river, Wat Arun is one of Bangkok's best known landmarks. It is located in Thonburi, just across the river from Bangkok's iconic Wat Phra Kaew and The Grand Palace. Wat Arun can be easily accessible by boat or cheap cross-river ferries from Tha Tien (Tien Pier), about 10 minutes walk from The Grand Palace.

Wat Arun or The Temple of Dawn was built in the era of Ayutthaya, originally known as Wat Makok (The Olive Temple). It was said when King Taksin arrived in dawn from the sacked capital of Ayutthaya, he felt compelled to build a fitting place for the sacred Emerald Buddha.

After King Taksin's demise, the new King Chakri (Rama 1) moved the capital and Emerald Buddha to Bangkok, but the temple kept interest of the first five kings. In the early 19th century, King Rama II enlarged the structure and raised the central prang (Khmer-style tower) to 345 feet, making it the country's tallest religious structure. Then, King Rama III introduced the colourful fragments of porcelain using leftover ballast from Chinese merchant ships.

Wat Arun features five prang. There is one bigger, main prang in the centre and four other smaller prang surrounding the main prang. Between the minor prang, there are four beautiful mondop, smaller towers placed at key points. The niches at the foot of each stairway contain images of Buddha in the four key events of his life: birth, meditation, preaching to his first five disciples and at death. The entire complex is guarded by mythical giants called yaksa, similar to those that protect the Wat Pra Kaew.

The main prang stood 81 metres tall. One can climb the main prang up to its second terrace. Climbing further up is forbidden since a tourist fell to death in 1998. Trust me, the stairs are really steep (almost 90 degree), hence one must be really mindful when climbing. The tips is not to look down or too high up and to maintain one-way traffic . You might still be giddy once you are up there, but the panoramic view of Chao Phra river, Wat Pho and the Grand Palace is very rewarding.

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