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On our way back from Chonburi following the buffalo races, we decided to make a small detour off the main highway to have a look at the growing seaside resort of Bang Saen.
However,  whilst on our way there, turning a bend in the road, we suddenly came upon t his magnificent Chinese temple and so stopped to examine it in more detail.
It seemed brand new, or at the very least, recently fully refurbished and indeed an extension was being built next to it.
What first grabbed our attention was the huge ‘totem’ pole at the entrance with it’s ornate carvings of serpents and lions.
Next to it was a small pagoda decked out in similar style to the  main temple itself, and in this we found another set of amazing carvings, and also a ceiling decoration showing all the various animals that go to make up the Chinese years. ..
We were allowed to enter the temple itself but were not allowed to take any pictures of the interior, which was a pity as inside was if anything even more amazing than the exterior.
 There were in fact three temples on three different floors, each one a mass of statues, inscriptions and carvings both on the walls and of a myriad of assorted objects ranging from boats to miniature temples, the artwork of which was incredibly intricate.
It also seemed to be a mixture of various cultures with statues of the Bhudda intermixed with Confucian images and also various Brahmin or Hindu style objects.
We can find no mention of this temple on any tourist guide but it is definitely well worth a visit and certainly somewhere we shall add to our itinerary for any visiting guests.
To view any of the smaller images in full size, just click on the appropriate one
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