It is a quiet town of less than half a million people. As the sun begins to set it can be very relaxing to go down to the Mekong River, sit at one of the wooden bars perched over the river bank, order a drink and enjoy the view of Thailand, no more than 100 metres across the river. It was built in 1566 by King Setthathirath, the founder of the city, whose statue stands in front of the That. Restored in 1818 by King Chao Anou, Wat Sisakethad been the only temple to remain intact after the destruction of Vientiane perpetrated by Siamese troops by this fact it is now known as the oldest temple in Vientiane. It has a number of unique features including the cloister, the frescos inside the Sima and a reported 6,840 Buddha images which had been collected for their preservation by the French in different ruined temples around Vientiane province .
Monks continue to live and worship within the compound.
The former temple of the Lao monarchy and has been converted to a museum, with some excellent exhibits relating to the daily life of Lao Buddhists down the years. The Wat was originally built in 1565 to house the Emerald Buddha. This popular place of worship contains the town's foundation pillars. It is considered to be the home of Vientiane's guardian spirit. In the compound of Wat Simuang there are also ruins of ancient Khmer temple .