abandoned pier
Wat Jittapawan is an abandoned temple/pier at a Buddhist College for monks which is
located in Pattaya, Chonburi province just south of Bangkok. It was a very ambitious
project which began almost 50 years ago but ran out of funding before it could be finished. The construction was carried out entirely by monks who reside and work at the college, without any outsourced labor. Construction began in 1972 of a 500 meter-long jetty that should have ended in an enormous temple on the sea. Funding ran dry a long time ago and all that is left are decaying, half-built structures. The jetty itself is mostly complete, but the main temple and smaller pagodas are only a shells of what was was planned to be. It seems that the funding needed to complete the enormously expensive project was grossly underestimated, as they have spent 300 million baht ($8.6 million US) and it is estimated that they would need at least that much more for completion. Jittapwan Pier is an extreme slow-motion construction project that only continues every few years when a University or other institution donates money to continue. Further issues complicate the near half-century build, including local laws prohibiting construction on the water (permission for which they never actually received) and the death of the head abbot who initiated the project.
The college-complex is home to a number of young novice monks from humble homes (many are orphans) in the countryside who are given free education. There are also a lot of stray 'soi dogs' that the monks feed and care for as pets.
Wat Jittapawan, with it's peculiar history and scenic coastal views, is an extraordinary place that is truly unique to Thailand. It is a peaceful, quiet location that is certainly not on any tourist maps, and the sunsets are absolutely luminous.
Read Morelocated in Pattaya, Chonburi province just south of Bangkok. It was a very ambitious
project which began almost 50 years ago but ran out of funding before it could be finished. The construction was carried out entirely by monks who reside and work at the college, without any outsourced labor. Construction began in 1972 of a 500 meter-long jetty that should have ended in an enormous temple on the sea. Funding ran dry a long time ago and all that is left are decaying, half-built structures. The jetty itself is mostly complete, but the main temple and smaller pagodas are only a shells of what was was planned to be. It seems that the funding needed to complete the enormously expensive project was grossly underestimated, as they have spent 300 million baht ($8.6 million US) and it is estimated that they would need at least that much more for completion. Jittapwan Pier is an extreme slow-motion construction project that only continues every few years when a University or other institution donates money to continue. Further issues complicate the near half-century build, including local laws prohibiting construction on the water (permission for which they never actually received) and the death of the head abbot who initiated the project.
The college-complex is home to a number of young novice monks from humble homes (many are orphans) in the countryside who are given free education. There are also a lot of stray 'soi dogs' that the monks feed and care for as pets.
Wat Jittapawan, with it's peculiar history and scenic coastal views, is an extraordinary place that is truly unique to Thailand. It is a peaceful, quiet location that is certainly not on any tourist maps, and the sunsets are absolutely luminous.
