Wat Mahan is a royal temple built by Prince Annop, a son of King Rama III. The prince began construction on the temple in 1850. Wat Mahan happens to be the location of Siam’s first public school for commoners which was established by King Rama V in an attempt to set up a system of public schools like those he had seen in Europe.

Wat Mahan houses the famous 500 year old Luang Pho Ruang Buddha image. Prince Annop brought this Buddha to Wat Mahan from the old Siamese capital of Sukhothai. And many Thai people come here to pay their respects to the image and make offerings.

Bangkok may be full of shopping centers today, but 100 years ago this street was all there was. Bamrung Muang Road is the location of Bangkok’s first western-style shopping mall, and it was at one point the most diverse shopping and commercial zone in Bangkok.

Bamrung Muang, which in Thai means “the road embellishing the city,” is one of the oldest roads in the city. Since the very first days it has served as the main footpath from the river to Wat Suthat. The road was modified in 1863 when Bangkok’s first sewer system was installed.

Small wooden shops once lined the entire length of Bamrung Muang. After King Rama V returned from Singapore in 1870, he razed the wooden shops and built rowhouses resembling those he saw in Singapore.