If not for the Bangkok Art Biennale, younger Thais wouldn’t have discovered the beauty of this unobtrusive temple—our bad—located next to the Memorial Bridge or Saphan Phut. Rarely visited by tourists, the temple (also called Wat Prayurawongsawat) was built during the reign of King Rama II and features a centerpiece pagoda that was given the UNESCO Cultural Heritage Conservation Award of Excellence in 2014, and a khao mor, an artificial mountain surrounded by a miniature lake. Both spots are now the locations of two Bangkok Art Biennale exhibitions: the death-related What Will We Leave Behind? by Nino Sarabutra and the glow-in-the-dark installation Turtle Religion by Krit Ngamsom. More edgy art pieces can be found inside the temple’s meeting hall.
Right next to the temple is Kudeejeen, the only Portuguese community in Bangkok that’s been around since 1767. There you will find influences of the European nation in its historic church, building architecture and, of course, food!