Thailand Guide
The north
Wat Bupparam
Address: Thanon Tha Pae
Wat Bupparam makes for a mildly interesting stroll. Housed in the gleaming wedding-cake structure at the centre of the temple is a magnificent black Buddha, which was apparently made for King Naresuan of Ayutthaya over four hundred years ago from a single piece of teak. The temple well (off-limits for women) was used for watering the Buddha relics enshrined in the stupa and is also Chiang Mai's representative in the murathaphisek ceremony, when holy waters are gathered from Thailand's most auspicious localities for the ritual bathing of a new king.