I don't think it's real gold. But it still was lavish. No disrespect in any way, shape or form intended to Buddhism or Buddhists (I know whenever you preface a sentence like that your reader is expecting the worst...........) but I couldn't help wondering how many decent houses for the countless people living in huts and shacks here could have been built from the money used to build this ornate temple. Ostentatious displays of wealth don't sit well with me in first world countries, let alone third world ones................