The Sanctuary of Truth is a gigantic wooden construction which covers the area of more than two rais. The top point of the building is about 105 meters high. It was constructed to withstand the wind and sunshine on the seashore at Rachvate Cape, Tumbon Naklea, Amphur Banglamung, Chon Buri Province.
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The building was constructed according to ancient Thai ingenuity and every square inch of the building is covered with wooden carve sculpture. The purposes of decoration with wooden carve sculptures are to use art and culture as the reflection of Ancient Vision of Earth, Ancient Knowledge, and Eastern Philosophy. With in this complex, visitors will understand Ancient Life, Human Responsibility, Basic Thought, Cycle of living, Life Relationship with Universe and Common Goal of Life toward Utopia.

THE SANCTUARY OF TRUTH January 7, 2017

-The Sanctuary of Truth -- Thailand's largest teak structure
-A view of Pattaya from the hills above
-Chaturamuk architechtural style featuring the Thai gods

Depart from Laem Chabang port, where our ship is docked and traveled by bus to the Sanctuary of Truth. It took us about 45min. Very little traffic since it is a Saturday and the people in Pattaya do not get going until 10am. Very cool. Pattaya is a resort town with many hotels and places to eat but it does not have that cosmopolitan feel to it as you would expect. The town was filled with tourist sitting on the beach. The beaches are not as big as the ones we have in California but everyone seemed to be having a good time.

Located at Cape Ratchawat, the Sancturary of Truth is majectic when you first see it, The sanctuary was conceived by Mr Lek, who is the owner of the Ancient City in Samut Prakarn. The Sanctuary of Truth is made solely of wood and is considered to be an example of distinguished architecture in Thailand. This wooden structure is built in Chaturamuk style and is decorated with Chofa, Bai Raka and Thepphachao (gods). The Sanctuary of Truth is a tribute to Thailand’s religious beliefs, especially Buddhism. A team of 250 wood carvers works on the sanctuary at any given time, but construction is expected to take another 20 years to complete. Although incomplete, we did get to visit the area where the artisans are making all the statues and structural pieces by hand. We got a close up look at the work in progress. The inside of the sanctuary is just as impressive inside. It is divided into 4 sections and each section tells a different story. In the middle is a memorial to the Thai king that recently passed away.

We then drove to the Pattaya Viewpoint for a view of Pattaya Bay. The big bus could not make it up the steep hill so they put us on vans to go up to the viewpoint. It reminded me of our trip to Hearst Castle, where you are loaded into an open bus, but in this case, no grinding of gears on this trip. LOL. It was a lovely view. Craig also visited a small temple that is situated on top of the viewpoint. There were some small vendors also. Craig and I got ice cream bars, passion fruit for my honey and mango for me. I also bought a top which I will take with me to Ankor Wat and Craig purchased a shirt. The prices for clothing is extremely reasonable. I purchased a top yesterday at the dock where the ship is docked for $10 USA and todays top and shirt where about $15 for both. There is a thing in Thailand, where if you buy one clothes item it's one price, buy 2 and the price per goes down. I really wanted to buy some pants that I saw but they were not going to fit due to the big tush. But as Queen says Fat Bottom Girls make the Rock and Roll world go round!!!

We then got back on the bus and we visited another Gem store. The sales folks must be on commission because they were very pushy. BUY, BUY, BUY. Besides gems they did have some fabric and sundries. I was looking at soap because I love making felted soap bars but the woman kept asking me questions. I was nice but just didn't feel like looking at all the different soap with her looking over my shoulder. Craig and I did see some nice jade and we were going buy a jade bracelet for Stacey but again questions. What are you looking for? I said I didn't know yet. Did I want a bracelet or animal carvings? I said I don't know. And the list of questions went on, all of which I answered I don't know. And I really didn't know what I wanted because I wasn't given enough time to look and figure it out. So since I was feeling frustrated, Craig and I went to the cafeteria and had an iced green tea then went outside and waited for the bus.

The ship just left dock and we are on our way to Cambodia and our Ankor Wat/Overland trip to Ho Chi Minh City. 3 days off the ship and only 5 people are on this excursion. Pretty damn cool and can't wait. Who knows, we might even have FREE WIFI at the hotels we are staying at so I can upload some pictures.