Southeast Asia Sabbatical: An Introduction to Chiang Mai

Chiang Mai, 7/1/11

Chiang Mai is my first stop in Northern Thailand. It's the country's second largest city, known for being a culture vulture's heaven. There are endless classes for the taking -- cooking, Muay Thai, massage, yoga. The area is the trekking capital of Thailand, offering travelers boundless opportunities for adventure trips anywhere from two days to a week. Such excursions typically include some combination of hiking, camping, bamboo rafting, elephant riding, kayaking, caving, mountain biking, zipling, and/or white water rafting. Most of Thailand's small ethnic tribes live in the mountains north of Chiang Mai, and backpackers can visit the tribes for overnight trips, local homestays, or peruse their wares at the craftsmarkets. The city is almost the polar opposite of Bangkok -- quiet, slower-paced, and missing much of the capital's modernity and traffic. The old city where I stay is small cube of only a couple square miles surrounded by a moat and filled with an array of ancient temples. Each day, within the moat, there are elaborate markets with a wide array of food, local tribe crafts, clothing, and souvenirs.

Bun saleswoman

Pork and hardboiled egg bun cross-section

Street vendor pork & noodle soup

After I arrive, and navigate the bus driver's unfortunate detour to a hotel he happens to own, I make my way to my planned accommodation. The hostel is centrally located in the Old City, set on a lovely garden with hammocks and picnic tables, and staffed by a family of solicitous Thais. My room private room with shared bath is quite cheap at 100Baht ($3), so I guess I shouldn't complain about the fact that the hallways have absolutely no lighting and trying to find my room after sundown makes me feel like a blind person.

I spend the afternoon exploring the city by bike. At the Chiang Mai's Buddhist University within Wat Suan Dok, I enjoy the rare honor of sitting down with two monks for "Monk Chat." Although monks are typically reclusive, the university has set up a unique mutually beneficial program -- The monks practice their English and visitors can gain insight into their way of life. One monk reads a Danielle Steele novel to help practice conversational English, although I suppose that's not the best reading material for someone who has chosen such a chaste lifestyle. I speak with two young monks for around half an hour, discussing their daily lives, Buddhist rituals, and the sacrifices they both have had to make to attain their position. One of the monks especially mourns the loss of soccer from his life. As one would expect, the monk life is incredibly strict: No modern technology, dancing, music, jokes, motor-based transportation, materialistic pleasures, use of currency. They are up every morning collection alms (food donations, typically rice) from local people in Chiang Mai as they cannot exchange currency. Their collections are eaten at sunrise and then again at 11am as monks cannot consume any food past noon. For these young monks, a typical day involves taking alms, several rounds of prayer, chanting, and learning English at university. I greatly enjoy the conversation and it opens my eyes to a completely different lifestyle.

Monk Chat

Wat Chedi Luang was built between 1385 and 1402 by King Saen Muang Ma. It features a large 80 meter tall chedi (half of which has been destroyed) guarded by elephant and serpent statues. Up a long flight of stairs, past the ferocious sea creatures, lie several large golden Buddha statues, many of which have been covered in gold flake by local devotees.

Wat Chedi Luang

Serpent watching guard

Within Wat Chedi Luang

Buddha sculpture within the temple altar, covered in gold flake

I pass by Wat Phra Singh, a large colorful temple complex guarded by two ivory lion statues. The temple is designed with elaborate gold carvings with accents of deep red and blue. Like Wat Chedi Luang, colorful Nagas decorate the temple ground. The Naga is a mythical Thai deity that takes the shape of a huge serpent or snake. Although Naga creatures guard many Thai temples, they are believed to permanently reside in the Mekong River where they protect the waters and fishermen. For two days every October, thousands gather along the river to watch the natural phenomenon known as the "Mekong Fire Balls," in which thousands of pink glowing spheres (around the size of eggs) mysteriously rise up out of the river. Thais believe these to be fireballs from the Naga creatures who live in the depths below.

Naga Fireballs in October (from Google)

Naga serpent statue at Wat Phra Singh

Multi-headed dragon/Naga statue

Well hello there

Naga hiding in the garden

Monks praying at Wat Phra Signh

Three Kings Memorial

I spend the evening perusing the giant Chiang Mai night market where the prices for crafts and souvenirs are among the most inflated I've found in Thailand. However, they do have mutant ten pound Asian lobsters, so I guess it's not all a loss.