I’m that tourist. The one who shows up to a temple wearing shorts and a tank top wondering with genuine curiosity why I’m getting unsettling looks from just about every local at the entrance gate. It was my first time to Thailand and even though it should have occurred to be from my own religious upbringing of covering my shoulders for Synagogue, it truly did not cross my mind that to tour around a Thai Temple I would be required to wear long clothing to show my respect and appreciation for their culture. Luckily, all Temples in Chiang Mai, Thailand’s historically rich northern tourist hotspot city, all have long shawls and skirts tourists can rent for free at their gates. All you need to do is pay a small fee for a deposit which you get back after your visit.

This is why I was surprised a few days into our weeklong trip while visiting the famous White Temple of Chiang Rai, a city a few hours away by bus, that although most people were covered and many tourists were still renting long clothing at the gates, no locals were there requiring skin to be covered. In fact, there didn’t seem to be too many locals at all; the number of tourists at this particular site far outnumbered any local Thai people. On top of that we were charged TKB50 in order to enter the grounds. All the temples we had been to in Chiang Mai had been free, temples were supposed to be free. This is what got me thinking, was this even a practicing temple we were at?

Chiang Rai’s White Temple, formally known as Wat Rong Khun, is not exactly a true Buddhist temple. The grounds, still being build, renovated and designed, are part of an elaborate art exhibit owned by Chalermachai Kositpipat, a Thai visual painter and artist who began opening this site to visitors in1997. Chalermachai’s project reconstructed the original Wat Rong Khun which was in bad shape at the end of the 20th century, into this gorgeous, spacious haven for foreigners, locals, and practicing monks, who want to learn about and experience Buddism.

Although we were disappointed at first to learn that our lengthy day trip out to see this specific temple had resulted in us simply just visiting an art instillation, I’m very happy reflecting back that I got to experience this unique aspect of Buddhism. This particular temple is crafted carefully considering how people in modern Thailand look to Buddha to guide their life journey. From hands reaching up at the entrance of the bridge into the temple that symbolize forgoing greed to reach happiness, to murals of worldly influences like Michael Jackson, the Terminator and depletion of resources from human activity, this art instillation screams at the world to make a change in our ways and mindset through focusing instead on love & peace.