Wat Arun, the Temple of Dawn

Wat Arun is seen from across the water before it is visited. Its central spire rises seventy metres on the west bank, where the city stops, and that is what makes it the river's landmark.

Up close you find what it is made of: broken Chinese porcelain. Merchant ships ballasted their holds with crockery; once docked it was worthless, and it became building material. Tens of thousands of fragments cover the prang, set into flowers and patterns, which is why low light catches it so strongly.

The name comes from Aruna, god of the dawn, but the temple is watched at sunset: it is the western sun that lights its face. Since 2017 you can only climb to the first terrace — the steeper upper steps are closed.