Chiang Mai: The Rose of the North
Contents
Visiting Chiang Mai for the first time is quite exciting. If you are flying from the Philippines, you will pass by Bangkok because there is no direct flight from the Philippines to the place. Flying Bangkok on a Sunday is never a joke. Sunday usually is the time where many tourists arrived.
During my trip, thousands of people were in the immigration area and I can’t see an obvious line to follow. I thought I will be missing my flight. Just a tip, if you are heading for Chiang Mai and you will be passing Bangkok immigration, make sure that you get a flight with at least 3 hours gap in case you are flying on a Sunday. But, thank God, I was able to reach the place safe and sound.
Chiang Mai
The land of Chiang Mai is something that always intrigues people of its origin. It seems to be mysterious enough, inviting us to unravel the beauty of the truths behind it. In this article, we would be providing you with trivia about its origin. Be ready to explore the beauty of Chiang Mai.
Formerly labeled as the “Nop Buri Nakorn Pink,” the place serves as the ancient capital of the Kingdom of Lanna. This place was once a place of beauty and grandeur. The location was covered with natural beauties of nature, cold weather, and different cultures. The area also served as a center of trade among all the nearby Kingdoms. Thus, making it as the center place of academic exchange, sharing of religions, architecture designs, and commerce for more than a hundred of years. All these attributes paved a way to the uniqueness of the entire Kingdom.
Those who opted to stay at the Chiang Mai brought different handicrafts which they may always use and share with others in the community. They had woodcrafts, umbrella making, and silverware. Additionally, they also have the traditional event of celebration for the New Year, the Lanna Songkran Festival. They have also brought with them the belief and practice of worshipping the Inthakin Pillar. Aside from the festival, they also celebrate another festivity, the Tan Guay Salak. It is a festival being observed by the entire community which takes place every October at the city center as well as the other nearby provinces.
Chiang Mai is Thailand’s principal northern city, and the provincial capital of a largely mountainous province. The city was founded in 1296, about 700 km north of Bangkok and located in a fertile valley some 300 meters above sea level. The place was the capital of LANNA Thai (Kingdom of One Million Rice Fields) until 1755 when LANNA Thai once more became part of northern Thailand. The place is known for its beautiful women, distinctive festivals, and historic temples dating from the 1300’s, arresting scenic beauty, temperate fruits such as apples, peaches, and strawberries, and a crisp, invigorating cool season climate.
In this place, men are in-charged of making the baskets while the women put candies and fruits into those baskets. These baskets then are being offered to the Buddhist monk to remember their departed loved ones. This is their way of giving thanks, recognizing them, and seeking a longer life to be reincarnated finally. They practice a lot of ceremonies like releasing hot-air balloons which signifies the release of bad luck to the family. There are also temples located in the area, the image of Buddha hall or also labeled as the Wat Chedi Luang, the biggest one in Chiang Mai.
Mountains surrounding the city form lower extremities of Himalayan foothills and host several hill tribes of Tibeto-Burman origin. Forests still worked by elephants, waterfalls, caves, gorges, cultivated orchards and, plantations adorn mountains that invite detailed exploration. The people of Chiang Mai have their own dialect, customs, architectural traditions, a wide range of indigenous handicrafts, dances and, cuisine.
All in all, this place is a beautiful place consisting of a beautiful and serene place and the warm acceptance of the locals. It has a total of 1,100 Buddhist temples as well as a rich heritage of arts and culture. This 700-year old Chiang Mai city is very influential and rich in culture making it have its dialect, own costume or way of clothing, own architecture, own cuisines, and private dances. They managed to build everything on their own. Despite the fact that it is an old place and has been an ancient one, visitors still flock here to have a glimpse of the past civilization, this is the main reason why the area is called “The Rose of the North”, it has become a rose in the midst of the place, bringing beauty and grandeur to the old place.
Money/Currency
The basic unit of Thai currency is the baht (baat). There are 100 sataang in one baht. Coins include 25 sataang and 50 sataang pieces, and baht in 1B, 2B, 5B and 10B coins. Paper currency comes in denominations of 20B (green), 50B (blue) 100B (red) 500B (purple) and 1,000 B (gray). Exchange rates are printed in the Bangkok Post and Nation newspapers every day. You can also walk into any Thai bank and ask to see a daily rate sheet. There is no black market money exchange for baht, so there’s no reason to bring in any Thai currency. The banks and legal moneychangers offer the best exchange rates within the country. Bank commission and duty for each traveler check cashed are around 33 Baht. You will save on commissions if you use larger denominations.
Banks are on the Ground Floor of Central Airport Plaza and opens for business daily from 11 a.m. to 8 p.m.
You cannot exchange Malaysian ringgit, Indonesian rupiah, Nepali rupees, Cambodian Riel, Lao kip, Vietnamese dong or Myanmar kyat for Thai currency at banks, although some moneychangers may accept them.
Great photos of a beautiful place. It always amazes me how much the Himalayas impact the whole of Asia, even Thailand is at their base!
i love your photos!
thank you!
thank you for dropping melvin 🙂