Cover up campaign at temple

The Fine Arts Department is advising tourists who visit temples to wear appropriate attire to respect places of worship. The advice follows an Erawan National Park notice, last week, banning bikinis at waterfalls and swimming spots as culturally insensitive. Fine Arts Department chief, Sahawat Naenna, said the Temple of Dawn would be the first test model to encourage appropriate dress at sacred, heritage venues across the country. However, a similar dress code is enforced strictly at Wat Phra Kaew (Temple of the Emerald Buddha). Strict dress codes are also applied when visiting royal palaces such as those inside  Bang Pa-in’s  royal gardens. “I have talked to temple officials about the possibility of making the Temple of Dawn a model in terms of applying stricter regulations that would require visitors to leave their shoes behind and cover their legs and arms in the zone housing the temple’s Ubosot, Chedis, Stupas and Viharn.” It will strictly forbid visitors from wearing short skirts or shorts. The chief added: “The department will probably build changing cubicles and rent sarongs and scarfs, as more and more visitors seemed to dress inappropriately when visiting Buddhist temples.” If successful the rule will be applied at Bangkok’s other major temples, and eventually temples nationwide. The rule will be applied to both Thais and foreigners, he added. The Temple of Dawn, or Wat Arun Ratchawararam Ratchawaramahawihan, is among the best known of Thailand’s landmark. It was named because the first light of the morning reflects off the surface of the temple. It is  located in Bangkok Yai district in Bangkok on the Thonburi west bank of the Chao Phraya River.