Today’s story comes to you courtesy of the main reason to visit Lopburi / Lop Buri: monkeys!
The temple itself might not be the most impressive, though it dates to the 13th century. The man responsible: the Khmer King Jayavarman VII, the same guy who built Angkor Wat’s more famous areas. The door columns tell the story — and the Bayon style of Khmer art is pretty detailed. Originally Hindu, the three towers (prang) represented the trinity of Brahma, Vishnu and Shiva.
That’s (probably) not why you came here, though. The monkeys (crab-eating macaques, to be exact) overwhelm whatever part of the temple is in the shade. While the doors might be open, the windows are barred, making the indoors a potential place for them to get trapped. I didn’t see a single monkey inside the temple in over an hour.
What I did see, however, were plenty of monkeys ready to jump on you, around you, and / or onto your backpacks. It didn’t matter if you were carrying food or not — these Lopburi monkeys live up to their reputation as being aggressive!
It didn’t take long for the first victim to be taken — one of my wife’s dangly lions (from London) on the back of her backpack got pulled off, followed shortly by this little guy. The dragon from Poland was eventually recovered, albeit with a fair portion of his stuffing missing.
Lest this be anthropomorphized as the two monkeys trying to save the one hanging on for his life, let me assure you that the ground is less than a meter from his feet, and that the two monkeys were trying to chase him.
It’s not the dark side of the moon, but the sunny side of the temple means the monkeys are in the shade.
Time to head in where the monkeys don’t dare to tread:
Some of the older / bigger ones seemed more mellow — or just more comfortable and not about to be bothered by some guy with a camera.
A chew toy, or the plastic bottom to protect an ice cream cone?
Ahh, so maybe it’s the bats that keep the monkeys away…? They didn’t bother the dozens of humans walking through at any given time.
One of the reminders that the three towers were actually a temple once upon a time. The statue suffered the same fate as the most other statues in the Ayutthaya area, though a smaller image of Ganesh was newer.
Yep, a silhouette. Couldn’t resist.
Without fail, the monkeys will jump, flail, and do their damnedest to find anything that is or looks like it could be edible. There’s no safe place for your backpack (there really should be a shelf or cordoned-off area protected from the monkeys), but there is a guy able and willing to sell you any number of treats to offer them. This is the site of the November festival where human cooks whip up an elegant party to garner the good luck they bring. Enjoy the chaos outside, then head inside and pretend they’re the ones in a zoo.
Name: Phra Prang Sam Yod / Pra Prang Sam Yot (พระปรางค์สามยอด)
Address: Thanon Vichayen, Tambon Tha Hin, Chang Wat Lopburi 15000 (GPS: 14.805059,100.61308)
Directions: It’s right along the main road in Lopburi (Prang Sam Yot or Phrang Sam Yod, depending on which way you transliterate it). From where you got off the mini bus, walk towards the roundabout. You should see it on your left, a few hundred meters from Ban Vichayen and the former Ambassadors houses.
Hours: 6am-6pm
Admission: 50 baht
Phone: 1672 (Tourism Thailand’s hotline)
Website: http://www.tourismthailand.org
