Buddhist Beer Temple

Monks in northeast Thailand have built a temple out of over one million empty beer bottles. No word yet on who actually drank all that beer, though it supposedly wasn't the monks themselves.

The bottles were collected over a long period of time, starting in 1984, when the monks started recycling bottles for income and public service. They collected so many that they got the idea of using them as building materials. Local authorities began delivering bottles that would otherwise be put in a landfill to the monks.

The monks have now built an entire complex of temple buildings (20 in all) using the bottles. Everything from the temple itself to a water tower, prayer rooms, tourist bathrooms, and more.

Since the bottles don't lose their color, are durable, and are very easily cleaned, they are almost perfect. Color combinations make for spectacular building looks and mosaics created from bottle caps "top off" the awesome structures.

And I have an idea who really drank all that beer. I've seen "Drunken Master," after all...