10 Penang : The Golden Pagoda Bell Tower

The Golden Pagoda Bell Tower

The Golden Pagoda Bell Tower - there's a feeling of grandeur in its name and this is further reflected in the intricate gold-painted carvings that surround the building.

The tower is located within the vicinity of Dhammikarama, a Burmese Temple founded in 1803, along Jalan Burma.

I had a lot of fun exploring this place. The temple site is well maintained, housing several beautiful religious structures and sculptures, some really small, some huge! The bell tower is a fairly new addition and an interesting one. 

I must warn you that this place draws large tourist crowds, by the way. The best time to visit? When you don't see buses around. It's the best advice I can give, if you know what it's like to have large groups of people circling around, going ooh and aah around you.

And don't get me started on my photo-taking experience. I have occasionally bumped into natural photobombers, the ones who don't even realise their uncanny talent of appearing out of nowhere. Here I am ready to take my shot of this amazing sculpture. My finger is halfway down and poof! I see a family in my snap.

The smiling wife is halfway towards me, "Hello there, would you mind helping us?" whilst handing out her camera.

"Uhh, sure...." I smiled in return. What! No! Yes, I do mind! Grrr, be nice now.

The 4-storey Golden Pagoda Bell Tower was built in 2011 to house marble replicas of ancient Buddhist shrines from 22 countries.

This is what it looks like inside (photo below). At the top of the gold pillar, the word 'ANONYMOUS' is inscribed, for a donor who doesn't want to be named. I've always found that a little weird and if given the opportunity, I would rename 'ANONYMOUS' to 'A Friend '. 

There's a lift at the end. This makes it very convenient for visitors. Penang's humid weather makes taking the stairs a challenge. On a cool day, I wouldn't complain.

Ground Floor - The Golden Pagoda Bell Tower

The marble replicas, an ambitious idea by the chief monk, are displayed in the first two floors. I have a close-up of one.

Marble

The work of Burmese artisans. An amazing piece.

Marble-carved

The view at the top is great. This corner overlooks the temple grounds.

The temple grounds of Dhammikarama

I bet this crow feels on top of the world. It stood confident against the wind and threat of rain.

Aah, a crow

The higher floors of the bell tower hold various religious sculptures.

Kassapa Buddha

Akasind Deva

Statue in front of the tower (left), Kakusanda (on the right)

A little note on the Golden Pagoda Bell Tower.

About Penang's Golden Pagoda Bell Tower

I enjoyed walking around this wonderful place, so this is one stop I would recommend to anyone visiting Penang, especially if they're into religious history.