Wat Bang Kung

The ubosot at Wat Bang Kung is a small brick hall from the late Ayutthaya period, and what makes it remarkable is that it is no longer visible as a building: four banyan and bodhi trees have grown over and around it until their roots sheathe the walls entirely, leaving a structure that reads as a tree with a doorway. Inside, a seated Buddha called Luang Pho Bot Noi sits under a soot-darkened ceiling with faded murals. The site was a Siamese military camp after the fall of Ayutthaya in 1767, garrisoned under King Taksin during the campaign to retake the country from Burmese forces, and the surrounding compound has monuments to that period including statues of Taksin and displays of Thai boxing associated with the camp. It is a short drive from Amphawa and is usually visited alongside the floating market. Free, quiet on weekdays, busy when Amphawa is.

What you actually see

• The root-covered ubosot - a brick hall entirely sheathed in banyan roots.
• Luang Pho Bot Noi - the Buddha inside, under darkened murals.
• The Taksin camp - the military site the temple stood in after 1767.
• The compound - monuments and Thai boxing displays around the hall.

When to go

November to February. Weekdays are quiet; weekends bring the Amphawa crowds through. An hour covers it.

Honest expectations

Small - the hall is the visit and takes twenty minutes. The interior is dim. Busy at weekends with Amphawa day-trippers. Temple dress code applies.

Nearby

Amphawa floating market is close; the Maeklong railway market is a short drive.