On
Friday, June 6th, Cody and I took the Greenbus leaving Tha Wang Pha
at 9:30 PM, for Chiang Mai, arriving at 3:30 AM on Saturday. We waited at the
bus station in Chiang Mai until 6 AM, which is when we thought we were having
someone pick us up. A few failed phone calls and an hour later, we finally left
the bus station at 7 AM by songthaew.
The aforementioned songthaew.
Songthaew are one of the preferred
forms of public transportation in Chiang Mai, and can be found anywhere. It’s
incredibly easy to hail one too.
After checking in at our hotel, New
Mitrapap, we crashed for a couple hours. I barely slept on the bus, so some
rest was badly needed. Still groggy, we stumbled into the Chiang Mai sunshine
around 10 or 11 AM and set out for some grub. The wealth of eating options in
Chiang Mai is overwhelming, but we decided to eat at one of the first places we
passed. We both ordered drunken noodles which hit the spot. Still waking up, we
ambled down the road some more after brunch. It wasn’t long before we crossed
our first wat, which was down a side alley, so we decided to take a look before
continuing. It was an o.k. wat. Nothing to write home about. After a few
requisite photos, we walked back to the main road and kept going.
With no certain destination, we
headed west until we hit the walls of the old city. Shortly after making it to
the old city, we figured it would be a good time to shore up our plans. After a
brief period of deliberation, we settled on Wat Phra That Doi Suthep. Now all
we needed to do was find a songthaew. Comically, we had forgotten how much we
were told was reasonable for a return trip ride to Doi Suthep by songthaew, and
refused a perfectly good deal thinking we were being taken advantage of. We
called up our friend Chin after refusing the first offer, only to learn of our
mistake. In the end, we paid 50 baht more for our ride, but live and learn.
Wat Phra That Doi Suthep sits,
unsurprisingly, on top of Doi Suthep (“doi” meaning “mountain”). The ride to
the summit is winding and full of scenic views of the city below. Our songthaew
parked kind of far from the staircase to Doi Suthep, so we wandered around
aimlessly for a minute before asking a group of Thai girls for directions. They
kindly led us to the stairs.
Once
we had ascended the stairs, we respectfully removed our shoes, and walked
through the main entrance to the wat. This might be an unpopular opinion, but I
was expecting more. I had heard from several different people how impressive
Doi Suthep is, but once you’re up close, it could have been any number of wats
I’ve already seen. Not to mention it is constantly swarming with tourists, so
it’s difficult to get a decent picture of the chedi (stupa) without people in
it.
What I found to be the most
remarkable about Doi Suthep was the view. The platform outside the walls of the
temple provides a stunning panorama of the city below. I might have enjoyed
more time taking pictures of the view, but we had been given an hour by our
driver, so we had to leave somewhat hurriedly. I feel I saw everything, though.
Chiang Mai below.
Doi Suthep was really the main
attraction and the incentive behind our going to Chiang Mai this trip, so there
was nothing planned for post-Doi Suthep. The driver dropped us off on the
western end of Rachadamnoen Road and told us there were plenty of wats and
things to see around that area. She told us right. Our first stop was Wat Phra
Singh. Solid wat. As a side note, apparently Wikipedia is considered an
official source in Thailand as it is cited on the official information signs
around the temples, describing their history.
After
that wat, we returned to our hotel, but not before stopping at Wat Chedi Luang
along the way. If we are judging wats purely based on their architecture,
disregarding location, this was probably my favorite wat in Chiang Mai. It is
almost Mayan-esque in appearance. It looks like it belongs in the jungle,
overgrown with gnarly tree roots and moss. Some Thai students approached us as
we were leaving and asked if they could interview us for their English
homework. We gladly obliged. It’s hard to escape teaching English in Thailand.
In
the evening, we went to the Night Bazaar on Chan Klan Road and browsed the
various stalls. The Night Bazaar is a massive semi-open-air extravaganza of
odds and ends including clothing, carved soap, and paintings, among other
things. Most of the stalls sold the same tacky touristy stuff that you could
buy anywhere. You know, tasteless shirts with crude, often sexual sayings or
innuendos on them. I did find a shirt at one stall that I didn’t see at any of
the other stalls, and it made me laugh, so I had to buy it. It has nothing to
do with Chiang Mai, but its message really strikes a chord with me. I also
purchased a small drawing of Ganesha. Check me out on that “remover of
obstacles” tip, son.
We caught the 10 AM Greenbus back to
Tha Wang Pha the following morning and arrived at 5 PM. My computer is sort of on the fritz, and I'm hoping I can get it resolved ASAP. If I can't, it will seriously throw a wrench in my blogging. So, if their is a hiatus in my blogging, you will know why. Also, please excuse the poor presentation. The blog's formatting is acting strange, but my internet connection and computer are so slow, I'm lucky I can get anything posted at all.
