Tuesday, April 20, 2010

Easy Thailand travel: Chiang Mai

 Chiang Mai, Thailand, is known for its elephants, tigers, resorts, parasols, temples, hill tribes and mountains.

So what's in it for Levelers? All of the above and more.
Old city gates

Start with Chiang Mai which means "new city" despite its being 700 years old. Once capital of the Lanna ("a million rice fields") Kingdom and center of Buddhism in Northern Thailand it is now the country's second largest. For many years it was accessible only by river or elephant. A railway line wasn't finished until the late 1920's.

Tip: Arriving by plane today is a breeze. Although you will have to walk down the stairway and across the tarmac, the airport is blissfully small and no long hikes are required to get from the plane to your luggage to a car and driver.

A short drive gets you to the heart of Chiang Mai. The city is in a river valley and thus flat, though ground and pavement are often uneven. Stop before you gawk.

English is not as prevalent as in Bangkok but you won't have much trouble getting around. Most visitors come via tours or book them once they arrive and prices are reasonable.

Shangri-La

Hotels in Chiang Mai
                          RarinJinda Wellness Spa & Resort
Four Seasons
They range from small, no stars but clean to elegant, architecturally dramatic resorts. I stayed at the beautiful Shangri-La which is in the heart of the city with an ATM across the street and the popular night market three blocks away. Also downtown is the RarinJinda Wellness Spa Resort with a delightful wellness spa and elevators to facilitate going from one floor to another.

Warning: The Ratilanna Hotel has a lovely spot on the river as well as a spa and a huge pool but I can't recommend it to Levelers because of the many sets of stairs. Also afflicted with stairs is the Four Seasons Resort outside of Chiang Mai but the ambiance and the cooking school are worth the effort (20 steps to the stairs).


Wherever you stay, there are a variety of fascinating and nearby side trips to take.



Temples and monks
Don't  miss the main temples, most within easy and flat walking distance from the market (which you also do not want to miss; very photogenic)).

It's easy to appreciate the devotion to detail in these interesting structures and to photograph it because they are blissfully free of tourist throngs.









After you have toured the most interesting temples - and there are many - find out what a Buddhist monk's life is like and why it's chosen at the Lanna Campus of Mahamakut Buddhist University.

The innovative program Monk Chat allows visitors to meet young monks and learn about their religion and practices while giving the young men an opportunity to practice and improve their English.

I spent about 20 minutes talking to Psra Sam, a young novice, about his background and activities, a very interesting experience.

Warning: Novices and monks are not allowed to be touched by any female so be careful. No hugs or handshakes from normally demonstrative Americans please.




Pachyderm love
I dare you to visit The National Thai Elephant Conservation Center and not fall in love with these remarkable beings. I say beings because their actions and emotions so often mirror our own.

Take a ride, watch them swim and play in the lake, paint pictures that you can purchase, show off their logging skills and see how elephant poo paper is made. No joke. It's neat - and sanitary - stuff!

Tip: There are several opportunities in the Chiang Mai area to get up close and personal with elephants, but I recommend this one. It is less touristy, your money goes to support responsible practices and the experience is far superior to the tourist traps most tours favor.



Parasols and tigers
Photographers will have a field day Bor Sang, known to all as Parasol Village, because that's the major product.  Either as a cottage industry supplying the basic structures or in a "factory," where the finished products are created in an assembly line or sorts, the colorful images are addictive to picture takers.
Who knew how complex these familiar objects could be?

Then we lunched at Tiger Kingdom where visitors can pet tigers and have fish eat their feet.

No joke.  We drive in, walk up some stairs to the main building and its restaurant and there are enclosures separated by electrified wires. Inside are tigers - sleeping, wading in a pool, using a huge tree trunk as a scratching post - and people, tourists posing with the tigers and photographers taking their pictures.

Does the phrase Siegfried and Roy come to your mind? It did to mine. I know big cats, like a lot of smaller ones, sleep about 18 hours a day and when well fed don't bother to hunt, but I had to wonder what kind of lotus blossoms these felines were fed.

There's a sliding scale of cost - about $10 to go inside with the tigers for 15 minutes to about $28 to have a professional photographer take 50-100 shots to record your interactions with the beasts and download them to a CD - if you're interested.

Then there are the flesh-eating fish. Fish "spas" are the big thing in Chiang Mai these days. You sit on a bench and put your feet into tanks of the garra species of what look like minnows that procede to nibble away the dead skin and, according to the hype, rejuvenate the skin and make healthier, happier feet. This costs  about $5.

My pals and I resisted temptation but one colleague tried it later at the night market and said it was great.

Good for him. I couldn't keep Siegfried and Roy from flashing through my consciousness.

16 comments:

Unknown said...

This blog is truly useful to convey overhauled instructive undertakings over web which is truly examination. I discovered one fruitful case of this truth through this blog. I will utilize such data now.ส่วนลด strawberrynet

May 16, 2018 at 6:27 AM
Unknown said...
This comment has been removed by a blog administrator. December 5, 2018 at 4:03 AM
shery said...

I am impressed. I don't think Ive met anyone who knows as much about this subject as you do. You are truly well informed and very intelligent. You wrote something that people could understand and made the subject intriguing for everyone. Really, great blog you have got here. transportation

December 30, 2018 at 1:52 PM
shery said...

This particular is usually apparently essential and moreover outstanding truth along with for sure fair-minded and moreover admittedly useful My business is looking to find in advance designed for this specific useful stuffs… transportation

December 30, 2018 at 1:53 PM
jeniferlope said...

Just saying thanks wouldn’t just be enough, for the fantastic fluency in your writing.
Take a Break Travel Las Vegas Phone Number

January 2, 2019 at 5:11 AM
Anonymous said...

Your article is extremely helpful exceptionally fascinating subject i am looking that sort of post thank for imparting to us keep it up. Travel Agency Pakistan

January 9, 2019 at 8:18 AM
jeniferlope said...

The writer understand better the mind of people what they want to learn through their writing therefore this article is outstanding. Thanks!!!
Google Flights Tips

February 5, 2019 at 1:25 AM
jeniferlope said...

This is surely a very good blog, thanks a lot for sharing such nice information here.
Google Flights

February 5, 2019 at 1:27 AM
Aslay Sin said...

That is it's wise that you ideal research before generating. You possibly can build significantly better post therefore. Explore Latest Hotel Deals

February 19, 2019 at 12:53 PM
uzi said...

For this reason it's prudent that you can acceptable homework leading up to publishing. You may establish better print in this manner. all inclusive vacations

March 9, 2019 at 6:20 AM
farnandazax said...

รถยกมอเตอร์ไซค์ big bike
มันเป็นคำพูดจินตนาการที่ไร้ขีด จำกัด ฉันประทับใจอย่างยิ่งกับความจริงข้อนี้ ประทับใจกับความหมายที่ลึกซึ้งของบทความนี้
รถยกมอเตอร์ไซค์ big bike

May 21, 2019 at 6:21 AM
jackharrywilson1 said...

Hey, It really is incredibly fantastic and informative website. Good to discover your site Very well article! I’m simply in love with it.
travel agencies in new jersey

January 9, 2020 at 5:44 AM
shery said...

If you intend to start or purchase a business in the United States, an EB-5 Investor Visa could be perfect for you. The EB-5 investor visa program enables foreigners who want to make an investment in a U.S. business to obtain a green card and become lawful permanent residents, and potentially citizens, of the United States.  embassylist.net/news/indian-candidates-to-be-presently-on-waitlist-for-eb-5-visa/, eb-5 visa

February 5, 2020 at 1:01 PM
Nemaram Punavat said...

excursions Bangkok français

Notre voyagiste est spécialisé dans les visites à Bangkok en français. Visites de la ville, le marché flottant, Ayutthaya, Kanchanaburi et bien plus encore.

to get more - http://excursionsbangkokfrancais.com/

February 9, 2020 at 7:58 AM
sk said...

Acknowledges for penmanship such a worthy column, I stumbled beside your blog besides predict a handful advise. I want your tone of manuscript... weekendesk

February 9, 2020 at 12:40 PM
James said...

dry or iced. It will really be upon you to pick from available locations and weather conditions. Whatever you fancy, as they say. reliable moto hire firms on Santorini

February 16, 2020 at 4:26 PM

Post a Comment