Temple sights in Kanchanaburi Province
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Wat Pa Luangta Bua Yannasampanno
One of Kanchanaburi’s more bizarre tourist destinations is Wat Pa Luangta Bua Yannasampanno, known colloquially as the Tiger Temple. After gaining a reputation as a refuge for wounded animals, the temple received its first tiger cub in 1999 and has accumulated 17 more since. During visiting hours, the cats are led around a quarry by the monks, and for a fee, will pose for photos with tourists. Although the efforts are undeniably the result of goodwill, there’s something disconcerting (not to mention surreal) about seeing monks leading full-grown tigers around on leashes and tourists posing for pictures (for extra money) with said huge cats lying in their laps. The…
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Wat Bahn Tham
The web of hillside caves for which this temple is famous holds many ancient secrets, according to folklore. Getting to the caves involves ascending a flight of steps that passes through a 'dragon's mouth' entrance. Of the five caves near the top, one has a standing Buddha image which is illuminated by a single shaft of sunlight breaking through the top of the hill. A stone in one cave is said to resemble an innocent woman, Bua Khli, who was killed by her husband 400 years ago. The stone is painted and given different dresses throughout the year as her soul was once thought to inhabit there. Another blocked-off passageway leads to a village inhabited by giants, or so…
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