Wat Mongkolnimit Phra Aram Luang (Wat Klang)

This guide to Wat Mongkolnimit Phra Aram Luang, known locally as Wat Klang, in Phuket Old Town opens at the monks' dormitory built around 1880 with arched colonnades and painted shutters that mirror the Sino-Portuguese shophouses just outside the gate. You'll hear about the temple's placement at the literal heart of a tin-money town, the eleven chedis in its courtyard said to hold relics carried from Sri Lanka, and the main Buddha image, Luang Pho Khao, filling the ordination hall in white and gold. The guide also follows its 1953 elevation to royal status under a new name that locals never quite adopted.