Wat Pho (Thai: วัดโพธิ์), also known as Wat Phra Chetuphon วัดพระเชตุพน) or The Temple of the Reclining Buddha, is a Buddhist temple in Bangkok, Thailand. Its official name is Wat Phra Chetuphon Vimolmangklararm Rajwaramahaviharn (Thai วัดพระเชตุพนวิมลมังคลาราม ราชวรมหาวิหาร). The temple was created as a restoration of an earlier temple on the same site, Wat Phodharam, the work beginning in 1788. The temple was restored and extended in the reign of King Rama III, and was restored again in 1982.

Wat Pho is the largest and oldest wat in Bangkok (with an area of 50 rai, 80,000 square metres), and is home to more than one thousand Buddha images, more than any other temple in the country, as well as the largest single Buddha image: the Reclining Buddha (Phra Buddhasaiyas, Thai พระพุทธไสยาสน์). Made as part of Rama III's restoration, the Reclining Buddha is forty-six metres long and fifteen metres high, decorated with gold plating on its body and mother of pearl on its eyes and the soles of its feet. The latter display 108 auspicious scenes in Chinese and Indian styles.

The temple is also known as the birthplace of traditional Thai massage. Even prior to the temple's founding, the site was a centre of education for traditional Thai medicine, and statues were created showing yoga positions. During the Rama III restoration plaques inscribed with medical texts were placed around the temple, while in 1962 a school for traditional medicine and massage was established.

The Wat Pho complex consists of two walled compounds, bisected by Soi Chetuphon running east-west. The northern walled compound is where the reclining Buddha and massage school are found. The southern walled compound, Tukgawee, is a working Buddhist monastery with monks in residence and a school.

The temple is located right next to the Grand Palace.

Extracted from Wikipedia: Wat Pho

Definitely my favorite wat in Thailand. It has a unique blend of Chinese and Thai styles: it has stuff like 20 ft chinese stone guards and lions with the balls in their mouths. Its worth going to.

I just got back from Wat Pho and it was a blast. I highly recomend taking a tuk tuk and heading over there. Plus you can get a good foot massage there, being that it is training center for thai massage.

My teerak is a graduate of the Wat Po massage school. I'm a dropout. Thought it might be interesting but was too much like work. Guess I like getting more than giving.

The school itself is outside the main area of the wat, a little closer to the river. But if a customer wants a massage it's inside the wat; not at the nearby school.

Whene she was attending class, we were staying in the nearby Khao San Road area. Good area for backpackers but not for mongers. But didn't make sense staying on Lower Suk which is a long trip during rush hour if I wasn't butterflying anyway.