Chiangmai - sights & shopping

Upon my arrival in Chiangmai, armed with some direction given by guesthouse owner, Mr Pathom, I headed out with an attempt to catch a songthaew to the city centre. Apparently, there is no specific stop for songthaew. It would stop at wherever you flag it down.

The best spot to start exploring the city is most probably Tha Pae Gate.



Tha Pae Gate was reconstructed in the 1980s to approximate what it used to look like. Within its boundaries lies the old city which you can take a walking tour around it. As you walk within the old city, you can still see some of the remains of the original walls and moats surrounding it.

Within the old city, it houses some of the oldest and most significant wats or temples of Chiangmai. It amazes me that there are SO MANY wats - all within few steps of walk! I soon realized that Chiangmai map can be quite deceiving - what looks quite far apart is actually within steps away!

As temples have no personal significance to me, I basically just got there, snapped a picture and moved on. I think I have stopped by Wat Chiang Man, Wat Pan Tao, Wat Chedi Luang and Wat Phra Singh. I truly can't remember which is which when I looked back at my pictures.




Within the old city, there are also museums, cultural centre, guesthouses, monuments and little shops worth discovering.

The Three Kings Monument

It was really hot and sunny to be walking around. I was tempted to just hire a tuk-tuk to take me around all the sights, but knowing how close each sight is, I decided not to waste my energy negotiating. Speaking Thai can be quite tiring sometimes.

The best part about travelling by foot on your own is that you can take your own sweet time to look around and rest whenever you want to. I did discover some interesting sights besides what was obvious.

Clockwise from top left: Donation box at the wat in the form of a safe box - I guess you can't trust people when there is cash; Statue outside the police station - that's what Thai police is known for; No cash for donation? Credit cards are acceptable!

Outside the old city lies the famous Mae Ping River where you can have a cruise down the river or dinner by the river. As with most rivers in Thailand, expect it to be in milky chocolate colour.

Another not-to-be-missed sight in Chiangmai is the Doi Suthep Temple situated on a mountain 1676 metres high. On a clear day, you could see the temple when you get off the plane or anywhere in the city.

I was greeted by the beautiful mountain view when I arrived at the airport. Unfortunately, the following two days in Chiangmai were rainy and cloudy. The view was hidden in the clouds. According to some travel info, going up to the temple offers spectacular view of Chiangmai city. I had to delay my visit up there until the clouds subsided.

Half the mountain was covered by clouds.

The Doi Suthep Temple is a little far off from the city according to Chiangmai standard - about 16km away. It is quite easy to get a red songthaew that would drive you all the way up the mountain. It would cost you about THB40-50 for this ride each way.

On the way to the mountain, you will pass by Chiangmai zoo at the foothill. I'm not a big fan of zoo but really wanted to see the pandas since I've never seen it before. Chiangmai zoo has a pair of them, given as gifts by China.

I got on a songthaew near Mae Ping River. The driver somehow wanted me to sit in the front next to him instead of the back. I think he just wanted company and someone to talk to. He didn't speak any English but we communicated well with our sign language and my limited Thai. It was so hilarious when we tried to guess what each other was trying to say. He would slow down and repeated himself in Thai when I didn't get what he was saying. I still didn't get it. He kept on babbling away even when I didn't understand a word of what he was saying.

The drive to the zoo was really serene with lots of green along the way. You will pass by an arboretum with tall green trees.

The entrance to the zoo is THB100. Ticket to see the panda is an additional THB100 and the tram ride, which is highly recommended, is another THB50. To my surprise, the zoo was a rather pleasant place to be. It is nestled in the midst of a forested mountain. So you can expect slopes and lots of trees surrounding it. The tram service is useful if you don't want to walk up and down the slopes. It's a hop-on hop-off service with one ticket.

The animals are not disappointing either. The panda pair has had a cub called Lin Ping. There are also the koalas from Australia, penguins from South America, tapir from Malaysia, white tigers from India and of course the lions from somewhere. Didn't see any elephants which is supposed to be native in Thailand, except the sculptures at the main entrance. Maybe I missed it.

I told some Australians that they have to go to the Chiangmai zoo. They asked me what is there to see, I said koalas! It was supposed to be a joke.

From the zoo, I got on another songthaew to get to the Doi Suthep. The drive on the winding mountain road was longer than I expected. The air was cool as we get to the mountaintop.

To get to the temple, you can either climb more than 300 steps to get up there or pay THB20 for the return tram ride. If you know me, you would know that I took the tram uphill. But I walked down the steps and my legs hurt after that. Foreigners are required to pay THB30 for the entrance to the temple.

I didn't stay too long in the temple because there was construction work going on and I couldn't bear the noise.

Away from the Buddha statues, walking to the backyard of the temple is a completely different view altogether. I went in the late afternoon when the clouds had subsided slightly. The view of city was OK but I was more amazed at the view of the clouds.



Chiangmai is well-known for its handicrafts - silverware, silk weaving, lacquerware, papermaking and such. Bo Sang in San Kamphaeng district houses an umbrella making centre that's worth a visit. The umbrella is actually a parasol.

It was quite a bit of a challenge trying to find my way there. My travel guide tells me to get a white songthaew at Wororot Market, or the flower market. The problem was the flower market is not on a particular street but scattered within the area. So I walked around until I saw a white songthaew. The driver dropped me off the street that is full of shops selling parasols. I had to ask around to find the place I wanted to go.

Behind the souvenir centre where you could get the handicraft items, there is a factory where they make the parasols, saa paper from mulberry bark, Chinese fan and artists who can paint on any object you want them to. I was convinced by a lady to let her paint on my mobile phone (as seen in the pictures above.) It's permanent and I'm starting to regret it. It's beautiful but permanent which means I can't change my mind. It's just like tattoo.

At the centre, you can get ready-made parasol in cotton, silk or paper. I couldn't find a design I like so I bought a plain one and had one of the artists specially painted it in the design I like. It didn't take him very long - about 15 to 20 minutes. The stool I sat on while waiting was beautifully painted too.

When it comes to shopping in Chiangmai, you can't miss the night bazaar. It's a really long stretch of street stalls selling snacks, accessories, home items, T-shirts, knick-knacks and such. After a while, you would realize that they are pretty much selling the same stuff but different pricing. So haggle, haggle, haggle!! Personally, I didn't find anything interesting because most of the things are available in Malaysia but more expensive.

Bring your own shopping bag when you go to the night bazaar. It's convenient when you can have everything in one bag while doing your part to save the earth!