Joanna James
If you are bored of the mundane tourist-infested sites of Bangkok, but still want to discover more, here are some hidden and unusual places to include on your next trip.
Those who come to the Erawan Museum in Bangkok will be welcomed by a gigantic 3-headed elephant cast in real copper that weighs 250 tonnes and is 29 metres in height. The museum illustrates Buddhist cosmology on all three floors of its building, with the earth in the middle, the hell worlds below and the heavens above. The museum will be fascinating for those who love to know about eastern belief systems and the esoteric. The museum is situated in Samut Prakan just outside of Bangkok and is easily accessible via the BTS Skytrain.
The Temple Wat Pariwat is also called the David Beckham Temple for the simple reason that a decorative shrine in the temple displays a carving of the famous football player. He is sketched in the guise of a garuda, a legendary being who lives beneath the earth and is shown bearing the shrine in his arms. It was etched by a football fan in 1998, with the permission of the chief monk of the temple.
Wat Samphran has a large sculpture of a dragon that's twisted throughout its cylindrical tower. The temple is a 17-storeyed structure with a massive dragon's head visible even from afar. The structure is 40 km away from Bangkok towards the west and if you have some free time, it is well worth visiting this unique shrine. Some of the best Bangkok restaurants will be around this location if you want to make a day of your visit here.
The tower is an incomplete building of over 50 storeys and abandoned since the economic crisis of 1997. The construction bears a resemblance to the State Tower skyscraper nearby. All kinds of unsettling incidents have unfolded here and have attracted quite a few adventurers to the dilapidated building. Be mindful and use your judgement if you do plan on visiting the interior of the premises.
The museum holds an extensive collection of contemporary paintings and sculptures from all over Thailand. Art lovers can meander through all 5 storeys of the museum, which possesses around 800 works of art. The displays were collated by communications tycoon Boonchai Bencharongkul, who is passionate about showcasing the fine art scene in Thailand. The likes of Avani+ Riverside Bangkok Hotel can be a good choice when looking out for accommodation!
If you can brave the macabre and the eerie, take a trip to Siriraj Hospital's in-house forensic museum! Its displays are morbid and not for the faint-hearted. There are glass jars of malformed foetuses, and grim post-mortem cadavers are its star attractions. These are bound to be intriguing for some and horrifying for others, thus personal discretion is advised.
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