Penang - Kek Lok Si

Covering about 30 acres, and home to millions of representations of Buddha, Kek Lok Si is the largest Buddhist temple in Malaysia.

Built in the main between 1890 and 1905, the temple is still very much under construction. One of the chief patrons was Cheong Fatt Tze, he of Penang's Blue Mansion.

It is a pilgrimage destination for Buddhists from across South East Asia. Two monumental structures provide the key attractions.

The first is the Pagoda of Ten Thousand Buddhas - known also as the Pagoda of Rama VI, the king of Thailand who laid the foundation stone - completed in 1930. 98 feet tall, this houses 10,000 bronze and alabaster statues of Buddha.

The second is the 99 feet tall bronze statue of Kuan Yin, the Taoist goddess of mercy, the tallest in the world, still undergoing the decorative process.

Nearby is a 200 foot long pavilion of three tiers, completed in 2009. Both the latter can be reached by way of a funicular railway from lower tiers of the temple complex.

The temple's eclectic mix of Mahayana (complete enlightenment) Buddhism, Theravada (conservative) Buddhism, and traditional Chinese Taoism - Kek Lok Si Temple translates as Heavenly Temple, which covers all the ground - explains its widespread appeal.

The next planned development is a temple for the reception of Buddha relics. The fund-raising stalls of tat rather belie the Buddhist principle of not holding.