After three years, the Loy Krathong Festival in Chiang Mai is back! This is a poetic festival held on the first full moon day of December in the Thai calendar. People decorate the krathong like paper boats with flowers and candles, then put them in the water and let them drift with the waves.
Although this is a national festival, the biggest and most eye-catching one is the Chiang Mai Loi Krathong Festival-three years ago, it was the absolute C in the hearts of tourists. The Chiang Mai Municipal Government has officially announced that this year’s Loy Krathong Festival will be held from November 7th to November 9th, including the spectacular “Ten Thousand Sky Lantern Festival”, float parades, beauty contests, temple blessings, etc. Both announced their return.
CHIANG MAI
From the hustle and bustle of Bangkok, take an overnight train to Chiang Mai, the capital of northern Thailand. Freed from Burmese control, the old Lanna capital is a charming place of looming monasteries, bustling bazaars, trendy shopping malls and quiet residential neighborhoods. Chiang Mai is more of a country retreat than a metropolis.
Old Town Temple Tour
Start: Wat Phra Singh
End: TALAT PRATU CHANG PHEUAK
Distance and time required: 2.5 kilometers; 5 hours
No visit to Chiang Mai is truly complete without taking a temple tour. First, visit Wat Phra Singh, the most famous temple in the city, which is home to Phra Singh, the most revered Buddha statue in Chiang Mai. After the visit, walk along Th Ratchadamnoen and turn right at ThPhra Pokklao. After a short walk, you will pass by the gorgeous teakwood hall of ②Pandao Temple, which is worth wandering around.
You can also come to the looming ③Great Stupa Temple-the largest and most solemn Lanna-style pagoda in the city, for a ceremonial parade. Now turn around and go north along Th Phra Pokklao to its intersection with Th Inthawarorot, where you can see ⑤Wat Inthakhin Saduemuang, whose main hall is as perfect as a postcard. Standing magically in the middle of the road, this temple enshrined the city pillars during medieval times. For lunch, try Hainanese chicken rice (kôwman gài) at the popular ⑥Kiat Ocha.
After lunch, walk north along Th PhraPokklao in another block to the ⑦Three Kings Monument to pay homage to the three Lanna kings who founded Chiang Mai. Now you are in a good position to enter Chiang Mai’s three outstanding city museums standing side by side: the bright Lanna style ⑧Chiang Mai Historic Center, the magnificent ⑨Chiang Mai City Art and Cultural Center in a 1927 colonial building and possibly the The best museum in Chiang Mai City ⑩ Lanna Folklore Museum.
Continue to walk north along Th Ratchaphakhinai to reach the ancient ⑪Chiangman Temple, which is the oldest in the old city of Chiang Mai with many ancient temples. Then follow the moat to ⑫Talat Pratu Chang Pheuak, where you can end your journey with a delicious kôw kăh mŏo (slow-cooked pork leg rice) from Cowboy Hat Lady legend.
Talat Warorot
Chiang Mai’s oldest public market, Thara Warorot Market is a great place to get a taste of Thailand in the city. Next to the souvenir stalls, you’ll find countless stalls selling everyday Thai household items: pots, toys, fishing nets, tea, hair sets, sticky rice steamers, Thai sausages, pig skin (kâab mŏo), live catfish and small shrines sculpture.
Half a day is fleeting as you wander the covered walkways and watch locals haggle for practical goods to take home. The market’s waterfront location is no coincidence; in the past, most produce sold in Chiang Mai would have been transported here by boat along the Bin River.
“Holy Mountain”
Often shrouded in mist, sweltering Doi Suthep and Doi Pui are two of northern Thailand’s sacred peaks. Surrounded by dense jungle, these two similar peaks rise dramatically on the edge of Chiang Mai. The two peaks are surrounded by 265 square kilometers of mountainous land, protected by Doi Suthep National Park.
These two peaks attract hordes of nature lovers, and there are also large numbers of devotees who go to the Doi Suthep Temple on the mountain to pay homage to the Buddha.
As you climb up the hills, you’ll see the lowland rainforest give way to cloud forest, where mosses and ferns abound, a haven for more than 300 species of birds and 2,000 different species of ferns A paradise for plants and flowers to grow.
The park is also a famous mountain biking destination, with several tour operators based in Chiang Mai running dedicated mountain biking tours along trails that were once used as hunting and trading routes by hill tribe villagers.
Above the Pattana Palace are several Hmong villages. Just off the main road, Ban Doi Pui is basically a visitor center. It is more interesting to continue to Ban Kun Chang Kian, a coffee producing village, 500 meters down a cinder road past Doi Pui campsite.
CHIANG RAI
Chiang Rai province has so much to offer that its capital city, Chiang Rai, is often overlooked. Chiang Rai is a lovely little town worth exploring, with its relaxed environment, good-value hotels and delicious local food. It is also an ideal starting point for trekking trips further afield within the prefecture or abroad.
Wat Phra Kaew
Wat Phra Kaew was originally called Wat Pa Yia in the local dialect, and it is the most revered Buddhist temple in Chiang Rai. The main hall is a well-preserved medium-scale wooden building. The octagonal pagoda behind the main hall was built in the late 14th century and is also a typical Lanna style. The adjacent two-storey wooden building is a museum housing various Lanna kingdom artifacts.
Mae Fah Luang Art&Culture Park
Located in an exquisite and beautiful park, this large-scale museum houses a large collection of handicrafts from the Lanna Kingdom, the largest number in Thailand. In addition to the museum, the park houses ancient and modern art, Buddhist temples and other buildings.
The “Heaven” and “Hell” of Chiang Rai Temples
The White and Black Temples outside Chiang Rai are two of the most popular and bizarre attractions in Chiang Rai province – well worth a visit. The impressive White Temple (Wat Rong Khun) was built in 1997. Different from traditional Buddhist themes, the artist added many modern elements, symbolizing the cycle of life and death (samsara). Those images of planes crashing into the Twin Towers in New York, USA, are so peculiar that there is even a wall depicting Neo played by Keanu Reeves in “The Matrix.”
The uniquely creative Black Temple corresponds to the White Temple. It consists of several traditional buildings. Most of the houses are painted black, and the decorations inside are mostly animal fur and bones. In the middle of the Black Temple is a black cave building that looks like a temple. There is a long wooden dining table and chairs made of antlers. This is a restaurant that simulates Satan.
Sukhothai
Sukhothai (meaning “happiness rises” in Thai) Kingdom flourished from the middle of the 13th century to the end of the 14th century. This period is often considered by Thais to be the “golden age” of Thai civilization – the religious artwork and architecture of that period is considered the pinnacle of Thai art.
The kingdom’s ruins (today’s Old City) cover an area of 45 square kilometers, scattered with partially reconstructed ruins, and are the most frequented by tourists when visiting ancient sites in Thailand. New Sukhothai is located 12 kilometers east of Sukhothai Historical Park, adjacent to the Yonghe River. There aren’t many attractions in the area, but the relaxed atmosphere, good transport links and affordable accommodation make it an ideal base for exploring the old city’s ruins.
Sukhothai Historical Park
The ruins are a very impressive Thai World Heritage Site. The park includes 21 historical sites including the old city wall and 4 lakes, and another 70 sites are distributed within a radius of 5 kilometers. Sukhothai Historical Park is also a favorite destination for people to celebrate the Loy Krathong Festival. At that time, in addition to the magical floating lights on the water, there will be fireworks, folk dance performances and sound and light displays.
Wat Mahathat is the largest temple in Sukhothai, completed in the 13th century, surrounded by brick walls (206 meters long and 200 meters wide) and a moat, which is believed to represent the vastness of the universe. The spire of the stupa features the famous pattern of lotus buds, and some of the original Buddha statues still sit majestically today among the ruined columns of the old Buddhist temple. There are 198 pagodas within the walls of the temple, enough for you to discover them one by one. It is believed to have been the religious and administrative center of the old capital.
Ramkhamhaeng National Museum is close to the entrance of the central area and is a good starting point for visiting the historical park. The impressive collection of Sukhothai artifacts here includes a replica of the famous Ramkhamhaeng Inscription, which is said to be the earliest example of Thai script.
The Jinchi Temple is near the museum. The temple is surrounded by a large pond in full bloom with lotus flowers. Visitors pass the footbridge over the pond to reach this small but still incense-filled temple. There are exquisite stucco reliefs in the temple. The reservoir in the temple is said to be the birthplace of the Loi Krathong Festival and also provides most of the drinking water for the residents of Sukhothai.
MAE HONG SON
Mae Hong Son is undoubtedly the most remote province in Thailand. The only way to reach the capital city of Mae Hong Son is through extremely winding and bumpy mountain roads that make people sick or by taking a detour. There are many mountains and dense vegetation here.
If you’ve been in northern Thailand long enough, you’ve heard people comparing Pai to Bangkok’s Khao San Road. Although the metaphor is somewhat exaggerated, in the past few decades, the town has indeed become like a resort island without a beach. In the “heart of the county,” there are more inns than private homes, hiking establishments and restaurants abound, and evenings are filled with live music and parties. In this way, the picturesque valley scenery is not affected by the huge flow of people. There are many quiet hotels just off the main road, visitors enjoy the many natural and leisurely activities, and the small town has a lively art and music scene. And the influence of Shan culture can still be seen in the town’s temples, quiet alleys and interesting afternoon markets. Many attractions in Pai are located outside the city, so it is necessary to rent a motorbike or bicycle.
Tha Pai Hot Springs
On the other side of the Pai River (Mae Nam Pai), take a paved road to this hot spring, 7 kilometers southeast of the city. A beautiful stream meanders through the park, and in some parts of the park there are hot springs, which are a wonderful place to bathe. The water is also diverted to several nearby spas.
“Fall”
There are several waterfalls around Pai that are worth visiting, especially after the rainy season (October to early December). The closest and most popular, Nam Tok Mo Paeng, has several swimming pools. The waterfall is located on the roadside 8 kilometers away from Pai County, suitable for cycling or motorcycles. About the same distance in the opposite direction is another waterfall, Nam Tok Pembok, just off the road to Chiang Mai.
How can you not go on foot when you come to northern Thailand?
No time to hike in Mae Hong Son? Get a feel for the area’s natural beauty on Mae Sakut Nature Trail. This is part of the Mae Surin Waterfall National Park, and on the relatively easy 5km loop, you’ll pass bamboo forests, teak forests, waterfalls, wildflower fields (in season) and viewpoints.
Looking for authentic northern Thai food? It has to be a roadside stall
The distinct seasons and relatively cool climate have created a characteristic food culture in the northern provinces of Thailand, where people prefer pork, vegetarian food and other fried foods. Northern Thai food is perhaps the most seasonal and blandest of the Thai cuisines, where cooking relies heavily on bitter or spicy flavours.
Paradoxically (and unfortunately) it is difficult to eat authentic local food in Northern Thailand. Outside of Chiang Mai and other large northern Thai cities, there are only a handful of restaurants serving northern cuisine, and most authentic local delicacies are sold to customers in “takeaway” bags at roadside stalls.
Take Nám prík nùm, for example, which roasts green peppers, shallots and garlic, then mashes them into a spicy paste and serves them with sticky rice, parboiled vegetables and deep-fried crispy pork skin. You can find it in almost every night market in northern Thailand.
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