Wat Phratat Lampang Luang in All Its Majesty...

 As we passed a what seemed to be a sleepy town, with the occasional clanking of the horses' feet dragging multi-colored carriages as the only dominating sound, out came the golden tip of the wat against a very blue backdrop of Thailand sky.

Wat Phratat Lampang Luang, in all its majesty, rises on an elevated mound of pure greenness of  perfectly tended grasses which somehow softens the impact of the grandeur of the wat. It is believed that when Buddha visited this place, he left a lock of his hair and it is now kept in the main chedi of the temple.

Horse-drawn carriages still dominate the town.

The intricately detailed entrance gate is a welcoming structure towards the main prayer hall.

The stairs going to the main entrance of the wat are lined by sculptures of ancient Thai mythical creatures.

These are the details of the altar in the main prayer hall which houses the Emerald Buddha.

The Image of the Emerald Buddha

This is the chedi of the temple. An  inverted image of the chedi can be viewed through a hole inside a small structure known as  "ubosot". However, only males are allowed to enter the ubosot and at the time of our visit, it was closed because it was under construction. NOTE: I PAYED A HIGH PRICE IN TAKING THE FOCUSED PICTURE OF THE CHEDI. While I was busy taking photos, I was oblivious that I was already stepping on an elevated tiled surface which is part of the main hall with my shoes on. It is a rule that one should be barefooted when he or she is on these surfaces. When I realized what I was doing, I panicked and immediately stepped off of it. Not far from me was a Thai caretaker who looked at me and spoke in Thai. Not understanding what he said, I performed the "wai" and made an unintelligible muttering of "I'm sorry" and immediately walked away, feeling between embarrassment and amusement.

The way out......