Chaing Rai, North Thailand

 Tuesday Jan 16 / Chiang Rai at Leisure

We moved north to Chiang Rai, another new to us area. All I have known of the area is that it is in the Golden Triangle (but I, Pat, wasn't really sure what that was), it had been a center of the Opium Trade, and there are native women (aka long-necked women) who stretch their necks with metal rings. It was time to learn more.

We arrived to a delightful boutique hotel with amazing service. The most amazing of the trip. For one example, Bill couldn't get on the internet. That happens to one or both of this every now and then. And ususally the staff gives us 5 minutes of their time and then blows us off. These guys were the opposite extreme. One attacked it and did all the obvious stuff (the stuff we had already done). No luck. She passed it on to someone more expert. Shortly she passed it on to the top dog. He spent about 10 minutes and then just gave Bill access to the top speed main hotel internet. 

We settled in. Then went to the bar for a snack. 

The next morning we walked into the center. Along the way we passed a number of food stands. One had a good collection of grubs. Other stands were more normal to a Westerner's taste.

Then we discovered the Flower Festival. 

It started to rain. We did some quick reconnoitering and spotted a fine little Mediterranean Restaurant. We ducked in the door and seconds later there was a downpour. 

We were now in the town center. After lunch we explored We noted gold-tone signs with the King and Queen, gold-toned wrought iron utility poles, and the gold-toned clock tower. There was also an interesting truck with water buffalo horns. And for a change of pace, colorful rain boots.

Next we visited the small Hill Tribe museum. The Hill Tribes are minorities who have maintained their own cultures for centuries. They represent 2.2% of the Thai population but 50% of the population of Chiang Rai. The Akha represent 31% of the local Hill Tribes. The Red Lahu 22% and the Hmong 13.4%. Five other tribes combined represent 16%. 

 

Finally we checked out the night market. Unimpressive. THEN (31 years ago) the night markets had character. The spread their wares out on the sidewalk and either they had a more varied assortment, or we've seen a lot more of such wares over time, hence finding them less interesting. NOW, they have a built-up area with separate booths for the vendors. So it's much more comfortable for the vendors and shoppers now. We enjoyed the flowers and food the most.

 

Wednesday January 17 / Blue Temple, The Black House, The Golden Triangle

The first stop was The Blue Temple. It was definitely blue. Kinda makes you think of Disney's movie "Frozen". The Blue Temple (Wat Rong Suea Ten) is one of the newest temples in Chiang Rai. It was completed in 2016. The temple walls, roof, and surrounding statues are all covered in this gorgeous hue, unusual when most temples are made of gold. This color is symbolically associated with purity, wisdom, and the lack of materialism that Buddhists aspire to.

Nearby is the Black House (Baan Dam Museum). It might be confused for a temple but it is a private art museum and studio. Its construction is a blend of traditional Thai architecture with a contemporary flair, designed by Thawan Duchanee.  Covered in art and installations made of taxidermied animals, the Black House may be the world’s largest collection of animal remains made into furniture and art installations. Rather than a single structure, the Black House is actually made up of about 40 buildings built in heavy wood and metal surrounding a large garden. Everything is painted black and deep brown.

Photos from the Black House, clockwise below:

• Ganesh, the elephant-headed Hindu god of prosperity and wisdom
• Self "portrait by Thawan Duchanee
• Building with a water buffalo horn ladder
• The Black House main building/"temple"
• Assembly of Gods. oil and gold-leaf on canvas by Thawan Duchanee, 

We moved on to visit a HIll Tribe village, the now home of members of the Karen (or Kayan) Long Neck tribe. These people are originally from Myanmar/Burma and crossed the border to Thailand as refugees. Today they are free to not wear the rings but many do because they feel a sense of identity through the rings, which is linked to their culture, their heritage, their family and ultimately who they are. 

Some visitors feel it is ethically insensitive to consider people as objects to view. Maybe so, but we found them interesting and friendly, as well as beautiful. And given that as refugees (not citizens) they have no other source of income than tourism, it seems more ethical to give them a means of support. And yes, we bought more scarves.

We continued on to the Golden Triangle. This is where Thailand (South), Laos (East) and Myanmar /Burma(West) all meetup on the Mekong River. With China (North) only 20 km upstream. See map & river photos in collage below.

Nearby we visited the House of Opium, a museum of the Opium Trade. This exhibition portrays every angle of the story, starting from the origin of opium, the opium war, opium warlords, drug smugglers, opium effects, the battle against opium and poppy growing, to rehabilitation of living conditions of the people who live in the central of the Golden Triangle, the former worldwide infamous drug trading zone. 

After lunch at a riverside cafe, we took a Mekong River Cruise, leaving from Thailand, passing by Myanmar, crossing over to Laos and back to Thailand. We aren't sure where the official borders are, I think the waters are international territory, but we passed within feet of Myanmar and Laos. 

Collage below shows:

• The shore of Thailand
• A monument to elephants in Thailand
• A Chinese Casino in Laos
• Island in the Mekong River
• Monument in Golden Triangle Park
• The shore of Myanmar

Thursday January 18 / White Temple, Organic Farm, Chiang Mai

The nearby White Temple (Wat Rong Khun) is often described as “heavenly”. I question that. It seems to have a lot of "Gates of Hell" aspects with demons and wretched characters reaching out to be saved. One of the most distinctive features of the temple is its white color, which symbolizes Buddha's purity; its glittering mirrors signifies the teachings of the Buddha to reflect kindness on to others.

The other distinctive feature is the endless ornate detail. Even many building that look possibly complete are in fact waiting for the true details. 

Rong Khun Temple is still under construction. The mastermind behind the temple is Chalermchai Kositpipat, a famous local visual artist who is personally funding the project which he has declared to be  his life's work. Plans call for it to have nine buildings. There are several buildings in various stages of completeness but many more to go. Chalermchai is in his mid 60's and in good health but it is doubtful that he will see his project completed. He was onsite when we were there preparing to go mountain biking with friends. 

The White Temple is guarded by dragons and mythical creatures. Hands reach up, symbolizing the way to happiness through overcoming cravings. The details of the temple represent “the cycle of rebirth” and encourages visitors to reflect on the Buddhist teachings that show the way to escape from the worldly temptations, desires and greed and focus on the mind instead.

Below is Pat enjoying some of the "Behind the Scenes" features, plus a small globe on the main temple showing the temple inverted. 

Next we headed to Chiang Mai. Along the way we stopped to visit an Organic Farm. The family-run farm was started by a couple raising food for their family. The daughters have expanded operations physically and business wise, adding in training in organic farm techniques. They served us lunch. Everything was raised and harvested on the farm. The veggies. The fruit. The fish. The meat.