Hua Lamphong Station ~ Pathum Wan District ~ Bangkok, Thailand
Nikon D7500, Sigma 18-300, ISO 200, f/7.1, 18mm, 1/250s
This page simply reformats the Flickr public Atom feed for purposes of finding inspiration through random exploration. These images are not being copied or stored in any way by this website, nor are any links to them or any metadata about them. All images are © their owners unless otherwise specified.
This site is a busybee project and is supported by the generosity of viewers like you.
Pathum Wan is to me an exciting area of Bangkok. You could easily spend days here and still not see everything. Pathum Wan or Pathumwan is one of the 50 districts of Bangkok. The district is bounded by seven other districts Ratchathewi ( across the canal Khlong Saen Saeb ), Watthana, Khlong Toei, Sathon, Bang Rak, Pom Prap Sattru Phai ( across the canal Khlong Phadung Krung Kasem ), and Dusit. The embassies of Switzerland, at 35, North Wireless Rd, the United Kingdom at 14 Wireless Road and the United States at 120-122, Wireless Rd are located in Pathum Wan. The district is sub divided into four sub districts. Rong Mueang, Wang Mai, Pathum Wan and Lumphini.
The district was established in 1914 and is named after Wat Pathum Wanaram. Wat Pathum Wanaram ( meaning Lotus Temple ) Having been past this temple many times and seen it from the Sky Train that runs past it between Phloen Chit Station and Siam Square stations I kept promising myself to visit it. This took many years, but did finally happen on the 3rd of July 2014. The address for this temple is 969 Rama 1 Rd, Pathumwan, Bangkok 10330. Thailand. Opening times are from 09.00 am 05.00 pm. I took the Sky Train from Nana to Siam Square and went down to the street taking videos and photos on the way to this Wat. It’s about a 10 minute journey from getting off the train. Walking back towards Phloen Chit station along the busy and noisy Rama 1 road.
I was greeted at the gateway to this temple by a Thai man, I never did figure out why or what he wanted. At first I thought he was going to be one of the usual touts that try to take you on trips all over the city visiting clothing shops or gift shops, from which they make their living by way of commission. But this time it wasn’t that, he just wanted to know if I knew how to get in and had I been before.
The temple was founded in 1857 by King Mongkut ( Rama IV ) as a place of worship near to his Sa Pathum Palace. At the time of its founding this part of Bangkok was still only rice fields, only accessible via the Khlong Saen Saeb which forms the boundry between Pathumwan and Ratchatewi districts. The temple is a third class royal temple of the Thammayut Nikaya order. The full name of the temple is Wat Pathum Wanaram Ratcha Wora Viharn. The ashes of Thai Royal Family members in the line of Prince Mahidol Adulyadej are laid to rest within this temple.
Passing through the first gates and walls I entered into the the part where people offered prayers. It was slightly landscaped and a quiet part of this temple. It’s strange to see this temple shoe horned into the busiest part of Bangkok. Surrounded by Siam Paragon on the one side and Central World shopping Mall on the other. Just inside this high outer wall of the temple is a large pond and parking area that acts as a quiet zone between the street and the temple, helping to create the quiet and peaceful serenity of the temple. Passing through the gates in a second wall brings you into the main temple compound.
A small but elegant Ubosot sits at the eastern end of the temple grounds. Behind it is a large white Chedi, followed by the very large Wiharn. There is an ancient Bo tree housed in a courtyard. Behind the main line of buildings is a library. Then another wall separates the main temple compound from the monks' quarters. Enshrined in the narrow ubosot is the principal Buddha image known as Phra Sai, brought from Vientiane, Laos, during the reign of King Rama III. The colourful murals in this hall feature giant lotuses and a royal barge procession. The Lotus connection is from the abundance of Lotus flowers in the canal at the time when this Temple was constructed.
This temple was subjected to a fateful shooting of 6 civilians during the civil unrest of the Red Shirts during the May 2010 riots. It is said that the military, shot dead six people inside Wat Pathum Wanaram as security forces finished clearing red shirt protesters from the Ratchaprasong area on May 19, 2010, ending three months of anti-government protests. These riots around this area caused damage to the Central World Plaza ( as it was called then ) and to the Siam Square cinema complex which was gutted with fire.
Hua Lamphong Railway Station, Pathum Wan District, Bangkok, Thailand
read more: en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bangkok_railway_station
Hua Lamphong Railway Station, Pathum Wan District, Bangkok, Thailand
read more: en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bangkok_railway_station
Hua Lamphong Railway Station, Pathum Wan District, Bangkok, Thailand
read more: en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bangkok_railway_station
Hua Lamphong Railway Station, Pathum Wan District, Bangkok, Thailand
read more: en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bangkok_railway_station
Hua Lamphong Railway Station, Pathum Wan District, Bangkok, Thailand
read more: en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bangkok_railway_station