Chiang Rai - surreal places in black and white

The White Temple, Chiang Rai

From Chiang Mai, we got a mini bus to Chiang Rai. One of our reasons for coming up here was to see the White Temple, and as it turned out, the bus stopped there for a while on the way.

We hadn't expected this, and it wasn't perfect, as we didn't have quite as long as we'd have liked, but it saved us a trip back out of town, to we took advantage of the opportunity.

The White Temple, Chiang Rai

The White Temple, or Wat Rong Kung, is not actually a religious temple. It is a huge piece of art that was designed and built by Chalermchai Kositpripat in 1997, although his eventual plans for the site do include a meditation centre, amongst other things.

To get to the main temple, you have to pass over the Bridge of the Cycle of Rebirth, where many outstretched arms rising up out of the ground represent unrestrained desire, and the need for people to renounce greed and temptation.

The White Temple, Chiang Rai

Once over the bridge, you pass through the Gate of Heaven, which is guarded by Death and Rahu, who decides the fate of the dead.

The temple, which is all white and mirrored glass on the outside, has a surprise on the inside, where the decoration is a fiery red. We have clearly entered some form of hell, and the images on the walls include people and characters like The Terminator, Osama Bin Laden, Neo from The Matrix, Michael Jackson, Harry Potter and Superman, which seems to represent some kind of battle between good and evil.

The White Temple, Chiang Rai

The temple is interesting and obscure, but it is also beautiful in a slightly weird and surreal way. And if you're after the toilets, they're in the very fancy, gold coloured building.

So that was the white, now for the black. While in Chiang Rai, we also went out to Baan Dam, or the Black House. We found a bus that went out to it, and the driver helpfully yells out when we're there, knowing that it's where all of we foreigners are going.

The Black House is the work of another artist, Thawan Duchanee, who used to live here until his death in 2014 at the age of 74.

The White Temple, Chiang Rai

There are a number of buildings here, but they all have broadly the same theme to them - dead animals. they are all decorated with animal skins, bones, skulls and the like. It looks quite impressive, in a sort of hunting lodge meets satanic rituals kind of way. Though visitors are assured that all of the animals concerned met with a purely natural death.

I have to admit, in a strange way, I rather liked the round room, which had lots of chairs made from buffalo horns. I wouldn't choose it for my own home, but it was rather striking.

The White Temple, Chiang Rai

There was another round room, which was also interesting, although I wasn't quite so sure about the stick figure. I guess it gave you somewhere to hang your bag?

Alongside the many black wooden structures, one building stood out as very different. The bedroom building was a whale. Given all the dead animals, I should clarify this wasn't a real whale, but it was shaped like one. I don't know why.

The White Temple, Chiang Rai

There were two live creatures too, with two enclosures with a snake and an owl in them. Personally, I felt a bit sorry for these two, as they felt a bit enclosed to me.

I really don't know what else to say about this place, so I'll just leave you with some photos.

The White Temple, Chiang Rai

The White Temple, Chiang Rai

The White Temple, Chiang Rai

The White Temple, Chiang Rai

on the bus, Chiang Rai

 

The Black House, Chiang Rai

The Black House, Chiang Rai

The Black House, Chiang Rai

The Black House, Chiang Rai

The Black House, Chiang Rai

  

The Black House, Chiang Rai

The Black House, Chiang Rai

The Black House, Chiang Rai

The Black House, Chiang Rai

The Black House, Chiang Rai

The Black House, Chiang Rai

The Black House, Chiang Rai

The Black House, Chiang Rai

The Black House, Chiang Rai

The Black House, Chiang Rai

The Black House, Chiang Rai

The Black House, Chiang Rai

The Black House, Chiang Rai