I took a few days off to visit Chiang Mai last week and suffered from culture shock. Yes, it amazed me when I realised it too. But then I thought about it. I have not left Isaan for about five months. In fact I have only left Mahasarakham once or twice. And I guess I have become quite accustomed to the Isaan way of life.
Mind you, the 12 hour overnight bus trip from Khon Kaen to Chiang Mai would not have helped my disposition. I was suffering from bus lag.
Chiang Mai is probably the most pleasant of the Thai cities I have visited so far. I would say that if there is such a thing as a garden city here, CM is it. Also, I can see that there is a much wider range of cultures here than I am used to in Mahasarakham.
What I found most disconcerting was that when you go anywhere that is a bit touristy there are many people trying to sell you something.
Just outside of CM is Doi Suthep a mountain on which can be found the Phu Ping winter palace for the royal family and Wat Phra That Doi Suthep, first established in 1383.
Went up the mountain. Went to the palace. Fortunately when you are in the palace grounds you are free from hawkers. But outside, buy a bottle of water and the price is doubled. Come back down the mountain a little to the wat. As soon as I get off the songtheaw, I am approached by a woman selling pictures. They are 150 baht each, ‘but special price for you, 100 baht or five for 400 baht’. Mai pen lai, I say. I take the walk up the steps to the wat. Very steep. Little shops for half the way up. Kids in tribal costumes charging to have you take their photos. Get to the top and there is a 30 baht charge for foreigners. I am not a foreigner any more and have ID to prove it. Don’t mind the 30 baht but am a bit annoyed that they hit you with this after you walk up the steps. Took a look around. Walked back down the steps and here is the woman with the pictures. Now the price has dropped. Four pictures for 100 baht. Mai khrap, khob kun.
I wonder if my brain is no longer recognising white people as normal. Actually I started to wonder about this a week or so back. There was an American movie on TV. A blonde woman, just did not look quite real to me. And here – all these blonde women with breasts and hips. Many of them are giants. Have I become so out of tune with what western women look like or is it that a greater proportion of tall, solidly built women travel? Maybe someone could research this.
After the above, I decided to spend the next two days just walking and avoiding the tourist traps. As I said CM is quite a pleasant city. The original city was established in 1296. It was a walled city with a moat. The walls still exist in places, though they have been rebuilt once or twice. The city has now sprawled far beyond the moat but within the moat there are building restrictions that retain its character. The moat forms a square with sides of about 1.5 k. I found that within and close to the moat there was enough to keep me occupied for a few days. This included a wat established in 1296.
Chiang Mai would not be a good place for me to live. It has too many things that appeal to me. It has several book shops that are just my type of shop. If I were to put together a shop that has many of the books I have read (except the kid stuff) and many of the books I would like to read, then it would be like some of these shops in CM. These shops do not stock these books just because the owner likes them. People must buy them. Which makes me think there must be a quite few people like me in CM. Scary hey! I have not seen most of these books in Bangkok. The books were not bargains. But there were quite a few I could not resist. My back pack was bursting on the way home. I think I have blown my budget for this month.
There is a night bazaar in CM that is quite huge. Once again people there are out to sell stuff to tourists at inflated (for Thailand) prices. Still, I took a walk through this market each night. I enjoyed it. I found that if I spoke to the vendors in Thai they responded with more respect. And I did buy one or two things too. There are Akha hill tribe people who wander around in their tribal dress selling their handcrafts. At one point I sat down and chatted with an American guy on the side of the road. A few Akha approached and tried to sell us their jewellery. One was a girl of ten who spoke excellent English. (I made a ridiculously low offer for some jewellery and she replied: No way Hose´!) They were really quite friendly. And that night I did not bring my camera! Would have made a great shot. Yes, I did buy just a couple of items of jewellery from them.
I decided against taking the bus back to Khon Kaen. But there is no longer a direct flight. Had to fly via Bangkok which cost me quite a bit. Now I have really blown my budget.
1 Carved tree stumps in the Phu Ping palace grounds
2 Three kings with strong associations with the Lanna region: Phaya Ngam Meuang, Phaya Mangrai, who founded Chiang Mai in 1296 and Phaya Khun Ramkhamhaeng
3 Remains of the wall and moat in the north-eastern corner of the original city
4 This chedi is almost opposite the northern gate to the city.
5 Inside Wat Chiang Man, established in 1296.
6 Students of the Buddhist University outside the entrance to Wat Phan Tao
7 Teak walls of Wat Phan Tao
1 View of Chiang Mai from the grounds of the Phu Ping palace
2 If you are granted an audience with the Thai king and queen in the winter months, this is where you will have to come - the Phu Ping palace.
3 A pair of these nagas guard the steps to Wat Phra That Doi Suthep.
Reference: Cummings, Joe: Thailand, Lonely Planet Publications, Melbourne, 1999
© copyright John Shield 2003