Giant Buddha, Phuket

by Eustaquio Santimano
(Singapore)

As far as landmarks on Phuket go, the Giant Buddha is far above any other - quite literally. Perched atop the Nakkerd Hills between Chalong and Karon Beach, the 45-meter-high Puttamingmongkol Akanakkiri Buddha (as it's formally known) lords over a huge swath of the island's southern extent, surveying all of Palai and Chalong bays, from Cape Panwa to Rawai Beach.