Wat Tham Sua, Kanchanaburi
A hilltop temple above the Mae Klong paddy fields, with a huge seated Buddha and a Chinese-style pagoda alongside.
Wat Tham Sua, Kanchanaburi
Wat Tham Sua - the Tiger Cave Temple, not to be confused with the Krabi temple of the same name - stands on a hill above the Mae Klong river plain south-east of Kanchanaburi town. A very large seated Buddha in the earth-touching posture dominates the site, its hands cupped to receive offerings sent up on a conveyor by visitors below.
Beside it, on the same ridge, stands a tall Chinese-style pagoda belonging to the neighbouring Wat Tham Khao Noi - two quite different architectural traditions on one hilltop, which is the temple's oddity and its appeal. A staircase and a cable car climb from the car park.
The terrace looks out over an unbroken expanse of paddy and the Mae Klong dam. It is well away from the war sites and the river guesthouses, and gets a fraction of their traffic.
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