With beautiful
nature blended with Lanna Culture and colors of contemporary perfectly Chiang
Mai is, therefore, a province that has many tourists, both Thai and foreigners,
come in many millions each year. Popular tourist activities in Chiang Mai
include worshipping the Phra That Doi Suthep, which is an important Landmark of
the Chiang Mai people. Experience the Local way of life and shop for stylish
handmade products at Thapae Walking Street. Visit various species of plants at
the Queen Sirikit Botanical Garden and Rajapruek Royal Park. Do not miss to
shop art products, taste local CUISINE, and see Cultures on Nimmanhaemin Road.
In addition, nature and mountain tours are another activity that should not be
missed when visiting Chiang Mai, whether stepping on the highest point of
Thailand at the top of Doi Inthanon. Absorb the beauty of the rice fields, and
feel the Cool breeze while watching the giant tiger flower at Doi Ang Khang.
Experience Ecotourism HomeStay in Mae Kampong and visit Hmong villages in Doi
Pui and many more.
Chiang Mai is a city
in mountainous northern Thailand. Founded in 1296, it was the capital of the
independent Lanna Kingdom until 1558. Its Old City area still retains vestiges
of walls and moats from its history as a cultural and religious center. It’s
also home to hundreds of elaborate Buddhist temples, including 14th-century Wat
Phra Singh and 15th-century Wat Chedi Luang, adorned with carved
Chiang Mai city has
117 Buddhist temples ("wat" in Thai) in the Muang (city)
district.[27] These include:
Wat Phra That Doi
Suthep, the city's most famous temple, stands on Doi Suthep, a mountain to the
northwest of the city, at an elevation of 1,073 meters.[28] The temple dates
from 1383.
Wat Chiang Man, the
oldest temple in Chiang Mai, dating from the 13th century.: 209 King Mengrai
lived here during the construction of the city. This temple houses two
important and venerated Buddha figures, the marble Phra Sila and the crystal
Phra Satang Man.
Wat Phra Singh is
within the city walls, dates from 1345, and offers an example of classic
Northern Thai-style architecture. It houses the Phra Singh Buddha, a highly
venerated figure brought here many years ago from Chiang Rai.
Wat Chedi Luang was
founded in 1401 and is dominated by a large Lanna-style chedi, which took many
years to finish. An earthquake damaged the chedi in the 16th century and only
two-thirds of it remains.
Wat Ku Tao in the
city's Chang Phuak District dates from (at least) the 13th century and is
distinguished by an unusual alms-bowl-shaped stupa thought to contain the ashes
of King Nawrahta Minsaw, Chiang Mai's first Bamar ruler
Wat Chet Yot is on the
outskirts of the city. Built in 1455, the temple hosted the Eighth World
Buddhist Council in 1477.
Wiang Kum Kam is at
the site of an old city in the Tha Wang Tan sub-district of the Saraphi
district south of Chiang Mai. King Mangrai lived there for ten years before the
founding of Chiang Mai. The site includes many ruined temples.
Wat Umong is a forest
and cave wat in the foothills west of the city, near Chiang Mai University. Wat
U-Mong is known for its "fasting Buddha," representing the Buddha at
the end of his long and fruitless fast before gaining enlightenment.
Wat RamPoeng
(Tapotaram), near Wat U-Mong, is known for its meditation center (Northern
Insight Meditation Center). The temple teaches the traditional vipassanā
technique and students stay from 10 days to more than a month as they try to
meditate at least 10 hours a day. Wat RamPoeng houses the largest collection of
Tipitaka, the complete Theravada canon, in several Northern dialects.
Wat Suan Dok is a
14th-century temple just west of the old city wall. It was built by the king
for a revered monk visiting from Sukhothai for a rainy season retreat. The
temple is also the site of Mahachulalongkorn Rajavidyalaya Buddhist University,
where monks pursue their studies.
ChiangmaiTemperature
Maximum temperature: 34 °C Minimum temperature:
27 °C Average temperature 30 °C from April to November and 5-20 °C from November to April
When is the best time to visit?
Winter: Late November through to mid-February are the cooler
months to be in Chiang Mai. You will find you may need a jacket and jeans at
this time of year. Some of the pools in Chiang Mai can be quite cold if they
don’t get the sun. The days are still warm and pleasant. From mid-February
onward, it starts to warm up and it’s unlikely you’ll need warmer clothes
unless you are going into the mountains.
Chiang Mai also, unfortunately, suffers from air pollution in
certain months due to crop burning. Please check out our forums to keep up to
date on the situation.
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Chiang
Mai, Transportation
A number of bus
stations link the city to central, southeast, and northern Thailand. The
central Chang Puak Terminal (north of Chiang Puak Gate) provides local services
within Chiang Mai Province. The Chiang Mai Arcade bus terminal northeast of the
city centre (which can be reached with a songthaew or tuk-tuk ride) provides
services to over 20 other destinations in Thailand including Bangkok, Pattaya,
Hua Hin, and Phuket. There are several services a day from Chiang Mai Arcade
terminal to Mo Chit Station in Bangkok (a 10- to 12-hour journey).
The state railway
operates 10 trains a day to Chiang Mai railway station from Bangkok. Most
journeys run overnight and take approximately 12–15 hours. Most trains offer
first-class (private cabins) and second-class (seats fold out to make sleeping
berths) service. Chiang Mai is the northern terminus of the Thai railway
system.
Chiang Mai
International Airport receives an average of 50 flights a day from Bangkok (25
from Suvarnabhumi and also 25 from Don Mueang,[69] flight time about 1 hour 10
minutes) and also serves as a local hub for services to other northern cities
such as Chiang Rai, Phrae, and Mae Hong Son. International services also
connect Chiang Mai with other regional centers, including cities in other Asian
countries.
The locally preferred
form of transport is personal motorbike and, increasingly, private car. Local
public transport is via tuk-tuk, songthaew, bus or rickshaw. New electric
tuks-tuks were introduced into the city in June 2017
As population density
continues to grow, greater pressure is placed upon the city's transportation
system. During peak hours, the road traffic is often badly congested. The city
officials as well as researchers and experts have been trying to find feasible
solutions to tackle the city's traffic problems. Most of them agree that
factors such as lack of public transport, increasing number of motor vehicles,
inefficient land use plan and urban sprawl, have led to these problems
The latest development
is that Mass Rapid Transit Authority of Thailand (MRTA) has approved a draft
decree on the light railway transit system project in Chiang Mai. If the draft
is approved by the Thai cabinet, the construction could begin in 2020 and be completed
by 2027. It is believed that such a system would mitigate Chiang Mai's traffic
problems to a large degree.
Thailand’s
Transport and Traffic Policy Plan Office recently finalized the official
details of the Chiang Mai Mass Transit System project by using the light rail
transit system. There are 2 possible options for the Chiang Mai mass transit
system project currently considered including, Plan A - the underground line
for main lines with partly street level lines, and Plan B – street level for whole
main lines. The project is currently in final preparation processes, scheduled
to be approved by Ministry of Transportation by this September.
People
and Culture of Chiang Mai
Seventy
percent of the land in the north is mountainous and in the past was densely
forested, making overland communication difficult. As a result, each valley
developed slight variations in customs and language.
People
practiced wet-rice subsistence agriculture and were self-sustaining, making
what they needed. Customs and beliefs associated with the agricultural cycle
were passed down from their ancestors.
The
People
The
people of the valleys refer to themselves as the khon muang and are of mixed
origin. The first inhabitants were known as the Lawa. These people were joined
by other groups moving along the trading routes of the river valleys.
Notable
amongst these were the Mon, who originated from the region around Thaton in
Myanmar. The Mon founded Haripunchai, a northern offshoot of the Dvaravati
civilization that predominated in the Chao Phraya basin from the 6th - 10th
centuries. By the 13th century, however, the dominant group was ethnic Tai, who
had been migrating south into the valleys from at least the 10th century (some
theories plausibly suggest the Tai may have been in the area long before this
date). This group came to be known as the Tai Yuan.
Hilltribes
taking water at spring, Chiang Mai, Thailand until the European colonialism of
the 19th century, the politics of the north was dominated by the struggles with
the Burmese, and between the kingdoms of Ayutthaya, Lanna and Lan Xang. Each
military incursion involved the forced relocation of populations to increase
manpower. Thus the wars of the region served mainly to mix ethnic Tai groups.
Such resettlements tended to be geographically based, resulting in subtle
differences within the population of the valley to this day.
The
second half of the 19th century saw a large influx of overseas Chinese coming
up from the South, as well as Haw Chinese coming overland from Yunnan. Many of
the latter were Muslims who had fled to the hills after the brutal Chinese
suppression of the Panthay rebellion in Yunnan in 1873. At the same time, the
hill tribes were also moving south through the uplands.
In
the mid 19th century Westerners started arriving with Christian missionaries
and increased in numbers with the growth of the teak industry. The teak
industry also attracted large numbers of Shan who worked all over the north for
the logging companies.
The
20th century saw large migrations of hill tribes as well as Kuomintang
Chinese, who fled China after the communist victory of 1949. Finally, the
recent economic growth has attracted people from all over Thailand. The
incorporation of Lanna into the global marketplace brought to an end the relative
cultural isolation of the once-remote northern valleys.
Language
The
main ethnic language of the north is Kham Muang. With differences in both
vocabulary and tones, Northern Thai may be considered a different language from
Central Thai. Though the differences are diminishing as kham muang borrows from
the state language, a person from central Thailand cannot immediately
understand the northern language.
Words
of Indian origin trace their roots to Pali through the Mon civilization, as
opposed to those of central Thai which came from Sanskrit via the Khmer
civilization of Angkor. Kham Muang has its script used in religious texts, but
most local people are unable to read it.
Religion
Buddha
Image in protected Position, Chiang Mai, ThailandAlthough Mahayana Buddhism may
have come to the region first via the Khmer Empire and the Silk Road from
China, Theravada Buddhism had become the dominant form of Buddhism by the end
of the 14th century.
Theravada
Buddhism in its essence is about the dhamma, the truth according to the
Buddhist view. As the state religion of Lanna, however, it became connected
with Brahmanic court traditions. These came from the Indianised empires of the
Khmer at Angkor and the Myanmarns at Pagan, which were at the height of their
power in the 12th and 13th centuries.
Before
the dominance of these beliefs, the Tai were animists with a fertility cult
centered on the wet-rice cultivation cycle. The blend of the Tai spirit world
with Buddhism has resulted in a variety of customs and religious practices
today. See Spirits and Mediums
Central
to the traditional Thai view of the cosmos is the cycle of rebirth. To sin is
to be reborn into a hell world, and to make merit is to progress into a better
afterlife. A forest monk may explain this to a Westerner as an allegory for the
laws of cause and effect known as karma. To a Thai villager, near Mae Chaem the
holy images in the temples are the home of powerful spirits, and the vivid
depictions of heaven and hell are maps that help him find his way in the cycle
of seasons and years.
Naga,
Chiang Mai, ThailandThe temple has long been the social center of rural Thai
communities, and Buddhism is woven into the fabric of rural life. The monkhood
originally provided the only education available and served to occupy males
without work, especially during the rainy season. To this day folk festivals
involve making merit by supporting the monk-hood with food and labor.
Until
quite recently the temple was the main outlet for artistic creativity, the
greatest works coming as a result of sponsorship by the ruling nobility. By so
doing the rulers not only gained merit but also gained political legitimacy, as
pious works were seen as a crucial part of a leader's majesty.
Buddhist
values pervade the character of the Thai, who value maintaining harmony in
relationships very highly. To avoid offending, Thais pay much attention to
outward appearance. However, they also prize having a "cool heart" -
being jai yen. This means that you should not allow yourself to become
"hot" with desire and be at the mercy of worldly passions which can
lead to harmful actions.
Buddhism
also teaches tolerance, and so people have been free to practice other
religions. Islam first arrived with Muslim Yunnanese who have been trading in
the northern valleys since the time of the Mongols (11th - 13th centuries). The
first permanent Christian mission was established in 1867. McCormick Hospital
is one of several major institutions that came about with the growth of
Christianity in the valley.
Chiang Mai hosts many
Thai festivals, including:
Loi Krathong (along
with Yi Peng), held on the full moon of the 12th month of the traditional Thai
lunar calendar, being the full moon of the second month of the old Lanna
calendar. In the Western calendar, this usually falls in November. Every year
thousands of people assemble floating banana-leaf containers (krathong)
decorated with flowers and candles and deposit them on the waterways of the
city in worship of the Goddess of Water. Lanna-style sky lanterns (khom fai or
kom loi), which are hot-air balloons made of paper, are launched into the air.
These sky lanterns are believed to help rid the locals of troubles and are also
used to decorate houses and streets.
Songkran is held in
mid-April to celebrate the traditional Thai New Year. Chiang Mai has become one
of the most popular locations to visit during this festival. A variety of
religious and fun-related activities (notably the indiscriminate citywide water
fight) take place each year, along with parades and Miss Songkran beauty
competition.
Chiang Mai Flower
Festival is a three-day festival held during the first weekend in February each
year; this event occurs when Chiang Mai's temperate and tropical flowers are in
full bloom.
Tam Bun Khan Dok, the
Inthakhin (City Pillar) Festival, starts on the day of the waning moon of the
sixth lunar month and lasts 6–8 days.
Notable local Buddhist
celebrations are Visakha Bucha Day at Doi Suthep (mountain) where thousands of
Buddhists make the journey on foot after sunset, from the bottom of the
mountain to the temple at the top Wat Doi Suthep.[40] Makha Bucha Day is
celebrated at large temples (Wat Phra Singh, Wat Chedi Luang, Wat Phra That Doi
Suthep, and Wat Sri Soda) with thousands of attendees.