The Sacred and the (not so) Profane

At the beginning of this year I visited Chiang Mai and was brought to an unusual temple by my friend Philip.

The first thing that popped up in my mind was a memory of an old Dutch TV program which started in 1984: 'Tussen Kunst & Kitsch' (Between Art & Kitsch)...

The entrance of Wat Tha Mai I was kind of different...

Lots of colourful lanterns are visually attractive.

The rickety bamboo walkway across a mini rice field looks a bit flaky but actually holds up quite well.

No lack of colourful umbrellas either.

Lanna style temple.

A huge gong.

Classic stencil art but very effective.

Wind chimes.

Various Buddha images.

Temple front.

The statue of Chiang Mai's revered KIng Naresuan the Great has some additional toy soldiers paying respect!

Interesting elephant decoration.

And then 4 embarrassingly nude kids....

Once statues like these are overgrown with moss they look a bit better...

Disintegrating door mural.

A more classical statue.

On top of the wall.

Paying respect.

Candle wax leftovers...

Like the sheep, those white and pink flowers are made of plastic too....

More traditional style decorations.

Massive tree with some modern style Buddha heads and assorted statues.

Traditional offering.

Mouse and elephant...

Flowerpot heads...

And this was the most appropriate photo to end this post!

P.s. By now I've become quite used to this mix of the classical and utterly ridiculous, somehow it seems very fitting here!