Chiang Mai

Chiang Mai, with approximately 960,000 inhabitants, is Thailand's second-largest city, the provincial capital, and the most important city in Northern Thailand. It boasts an attractive urban design and is home to some of Thailand's most beautiful and interesting temples, all built in a distinctive and appealing local style. Nestled amidst stunning scenery at the foot of Doi Suthep (1,676 m), the city offers not only a breathtaking backdrop but also a significantly more pleasant climate than Bangkok. The dry season, with its cool nights and sunny days, is particularly healthy. In winter, a sweater or wool clothing is recommended in the mornings, and a blanket in the evenings. Summers are just as hot as in Bangkok, but the humidity is considerably lower year-round than in the Menam Basin. During the monsoon season (May to September, sometimes October), it rains daily, though never all day long.

More than 70% of Chiang Mai's population works in agriculture. The city is surrounded by small farming villages, rice paddies, orchards, and vegetable gardens, and here, perhaps better than anywhere else, visitors can get a glimpse of rural Thai life. The soil of the Ping Valley is extremely fertile, producing bountiful harvests, much of which is exported to Bangkok and other parts of the country. The most productive crops are tobacco, onions, soybeans, garlic, and peppers, but all kinds of fruit are also grown, especially the popular Lam Yai, also known by its Chinese name, Longan or "Dragon's Eye" (Nephelium longana), which resembles a large plum. Fruit sales provide the province with a substantial annual income. Farmers also raise cattle, pigs, and ducks, primarily for their own consumption.

Chiang Mai has a significant Christian influence due to the Presbyterian Mission's more than one hundred years of activity. The mission provided the city with excellent schools (the Dara Academy, founded in 1878, and the Prince Royal's College, founded in 1887, the first girls' and boys' schools north of Bangkok, respectively), outstanding hospitals (the McCormick Hospital, founded in 1889, the first hospital outside Bangkok), and the McKean Leper Colony, founded in 1908. The Marburg Mission also actively participated in this work.

The majority of the population are Laotians, an ethnic group related to the Thais who have preserved their animistic beliefs. They possess a rich trove of wonderful, unique legends, and their folk dances have a distinctive character that sets them apart from classical Thai dances.

There are extensive teak forests that provide valuable timber, which is transported to the valleys by elephants. The elephants are very useful domestic animals and are well treated by their owners; in summer they are taken to the higher forest areas, as they cannot tolerate the heat.

History: The earliest inhabitants of northern Thailand appear to have been the Lawa, who today live only in very small groups in the hills west of Chiang Mai, between the Ping and Salween rivers in Myanmar. They were either displaced or assimilated by a closely related ethnic group, the Mon, who ruled present-day Thailand from the 6th to the 11th centuries. The most powerful, though not the largest, kingdom in northern Thailand was Haripunjaya (Lamphun), and there are many legends about its queen, Chama Thevi (c. 650–700). During her reign, Thai tribes from the north began invading the region. The first Thai ruler for whom we have reliable historical information is Prince Prome, son of the king of Chiang Saen. He conquered the ancient Khmer city of Chaiprakan, near Muang Fang, in 857. In the 11th century, King Anawratha of Pagan in Burma extended his empire as far as Cambodia, but after his death, the eastern part of his realm fragmented once again into a patchwork of small principalities. Following the fall of the Nan Chao Kingdom, increasing numbers of Thais migrated south, establishing principalities throughout the region. Among these was the Lan Na Thai Kingdom (the Kingdom of the "Million Thai Rice Fields") in the area around Chiang Mai, Chiang Rai, Chiang Saen, Lampang, and Lamphun.

Little is known about the beginnings of this kingdom: The first king about whom we have reliable information is Meng Rai, who founded Chiang Rai in 1261. In 1281, he conquered Haripunjaya and brought the Buddha statue of Wat Chama Thevi to his capital. This capital, located on the Kum Kam River, where the village of Sarapi is today, was unfortunately situated: It lay too low and flooded every year. Therefore, Meng Rai, accompanied by his allies, King Rama Khamheng of Sukhothai and Prince Ngam Muang of Phayao, set out in search of a new capital. In their search, they came across a village at the foot of Doi Suthep, whose inhabitants showed them a place where a pair of white deer and a white mouse with five young had settled. This seemed a good omen to the king, and so he founded the city of Chiang Mai there in 1296. It is recorded that 90,000 men were involved in the construction of the city walls (2000 m × 1600 m), the moat, the temples, and the palaces. The king brought artists and craftsmen back from his campaigns in Burma and settled them in the area surrounding his new capital. He died in 1317 after a 59-year reign.

Around the mid-14th century, the Thai kingdom of Lan Na expanded its territory as far as Kamphaeng Phet. During this time, the kingdom of Ayutthaya also emerged, and its rulers continually attempted to annex the flourishing kingdom of Lan Na. Two and a half centuries of warfare ensued, in which the kings of Burma frequently intervened. In 1545, Mieng Rai's last male heir died, and the eldest son of the king of Luang Prabang (whose mother, Jetta, was a princess of Chiang Mai) ascended the throne of Lan Na. After a two-year stay in Chiang Mai, he returned to Luang Prabang, bringing with him the Emerald Buddha, the Crystal Buddha, the Phra Singh statue, and other important statues. In 1556, Chiang Mai was conquered by King Bureng Nong of Burma, and Lan Na remained under Burmese rule, with only brief interruptions, until 1775.

After his victory over the Burmese King Taksin, Chao Sawila appeared in Chiang Mai in January 1775 and routed the Burmese garrison after a fierce battle. Chao Sawila, Prince of Lampang, who had fought on the Thai side, became ruler of Chiang Mai. However, the recent fighting had so weakened the city that the starving inhabitants abandoned it and migrated to Lampang. Chiang Mai remained a ghost town for twenty years until, in 1796, Chao Sawila rebuilt the city walls, dug a new moat, restored the temples, and breathed new life into the city. Only fragments of the walls erected at that time remain. The names of the five city gates are reflected in the street names: in the east, towards the Ping River, Ta Pae; in the west, Suan Dawk ("Flower Garden"); in the north, Chang Puak ("White Elephant"); in the south, Chiang Mai; and in the far southwest, San Poong. Some descendants of Chao Sawila still live in Chiang Mai today.

The art and architecture of northern Thailand, in their mature phase, show a distinct Burmese influence, although in their early development they exhibited close affinities with the Mon style (Dvaravati).

Chiang Mai is home to 79 temples, and there are approximately 1,000 throughout the province. Some of these exhibit features of early Mon art and are of great interest as they represent the only surviving examples of this period. The temples of Chiang Mai differ from those of Bangkok both in the overall design of the monasteries and in the style of the sculptures and murals. The interior furnishings and even the decoration of the altars are region-specific, with garlands of colorful paper or silver and gold paper reminiscent of Burmese traditions.

Getting there: By land, Chiang Mai is 800 km from Bangkok. The bus journey offers beautiful views of the landscape but is tiring. A bus departs daily from Bangkok (Pahol Yothin Road bus station) at 5:30 a.m. and arrives in Chiang Mai around 7:00 p.m.

The best way to reach Chiang Mai is by plane. There are several flights daily from Bangkok. The direct flight takes less than two hours.

There are also good train connections. The North Express departs Bangkok every afternoon and arrives in Chiang Mai the following morning. The train has sleeping cars and a dining car. Washing facilities are available, but towels and soap are only provided in first class.