US President Barack Obama’s visit to Bangkok will not only be about high-level diplomacy with Thailand.
President Obama will also tour the famous Wat Pho temple of the reclining Buddha and meet local American expats at Chulalongkorn University Sports Complex.
Obama will tour the four key locations of Wat Pho – the main hall, the Reclining Buddha, the Phra Maha Chedi stupa, and the Thai traditional massage sculptures – the temple’s deputy abbot, Phra Udornkanarak, told the Nation
“Abbot Phra Suthee Thammanuwat will act as a guide for the US president, who is scheduled to arrive at the temple at 4pm. He is expected to tour the temple for 45 minutes,” the monk said.
The temple tour was apparently the idea of the US Embassy, which contacted Wat Pho before the US elections to inquire.
After the temple visit, Obama will go to Siriraj Hospital at 5pm for an audience with His Majesty the King, before heading to Government House.
A speech by Thailand Prime Minister Yingluck Shinawatra has been canceled, reportedly because officials were worried that she might be mocked for her poor English, a source told the Nation.
