Travel Reference
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Wat Phra Kaew & Grand Palace
Also known as the Temple of the Emerald Buddha,
Wat Phra Kaew
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is the colloquial name of the vast, fairy-tale compound that also includes
the former residence of the Thai monarch, the Grand Palace. Housed in a fantastically
decorated
bòht
(temple) and guarded by pairs of
yaksha
(mythical giants), the
Emerald
Buddha
is the temple's primary attraction. It sits atop an elevated altar, barely visible
amid the gilded decorations. The diminutive figure is always cloaked in royal robes, one
for each season (hot, cool and rainy). In a solemn ceremony, the king (or in recent years,
the crown prince) changes the garments at the beginning of each season. Recently re-
stored
Buddhist murals
line the interior walls of the
bòht,
and the
murals of the Ra-
makian
(the Thai version of the Indian epic the
Ramayana
) line the inside walls of the
temple compound.