My City Chiang Mai
FRIENDLY LOCALS AND FABULOUS SCENERY KEEP CHRIS AND ANGELA SCOTT HAPPY IN THEIR THAILAND HOME
*There’s no better way to get to the heart of a city than through the people who live there. Every month, we ask someone, clearly in love with their city, to take us on a personal tour and tell us what makes it so special. You may feel inspired to visit one day or to rediscover the charms of a city closer to you, but for now just sit back, relax and enjoy some vicarious travel.
How long have you lived in Chiang Mai?
More than five years. We live within walking distance of the city centre, known locally as the Old City. It’s an almost perfect square, one mile by one mile, surrounded by a moat, with five towering brick gates and remnants of ancient walls along its perimeter.
Tell us what makes your city unique.
Chiang Mai is a blend of East and West, and old and new. There’s a strong international community, so Japanese, Chinese and Indian people mingle with Americans, Brits, Australians, and Germans. It’s also possible to sit on the front steps of a modern coffee shop with a view of an ancient Buddhist temple.
What is it like in November?
November is our favourite time of year in Chiang Mai. The hot rainy season is officially over and what’s left are balmy afternoons with robin-egg blue skies and puffy white clouds. This is also the month of the magical Yi Peng Lantern Festival, when hundreds of thousands of glowing paper lanterns are released with a wish into the night sky. This year it’s on 22 November.
What time of day do you most enjoy and why?
We enjoy the late evening. The heat of the day has dissipated and lights around the moat twinkle. Thai tunes float out of bars and restaurants into the city streets, vendors playfully call out to hungry passers-by, and the colourful evening markets come alive.
What’s the nature like?
Chiang Mai’s Old City is surprisingly green thanks to the trees lining its narrow streets and potted plants along its pavements. But, take a 30-minute drive out and you’ll find stretches of shamrock-green rice paddies and silvery green pineapple farms. You may even spot fat-bellied water buffalo. Doi Inthanon National Park is a great place to go birdwatching and you can feed elephants in the Elephant Nature Park.
Where’s your favourite outdoor space?
Huay Tung Thao Lake, just a short ride north-east of the Old City. It’s a wonderful place to enjoy a cheap »
“By night the city sparkles with gold and the evening sky is a dusty royal purple”
local lunch of spicy green papaya salad, grilled fish, and local whisky while admiring the blue-green Doi Suthep mountain reflecting on the lake’s surface.
Tell us about the colours and light of your city.
With its ancient brick walls, wooden buildings and shady trees, Chiang Mai is a rich brown and emerald green by day. By night, the city sparkles with gold and the evening sky is a dusty royal purple.
Tell us about the people who live in your city.
The local Thai people are wonderfully friendly and their smiles are contagious. They are very welcoming to international travellers and love talking about their city. In fact, if you know a few phrases in Thai, they get excited and you’ll hear the ubiquitous response, “Ooh, you speak Thai very good.”
Where are your favourite places to go with friends?
Nimman (short for Nimmanhaemin) is our favourite place to hang out. It’s the hippest place in town and has the highest concentration of restaurants, rooftop bars and boutique shops.
Tell us about eating in your city?
Dishes to try include khao soi ( yellow Thai curry with egg noodles), gaeng hunglay (stewed pork with ginger) and nahm ngieow (spicy Thai pork and tomato curry), whether from the street-stall vendors at the North Gate (Chang Puak Gate) or South Gate (Chiang Mai Gate), or from a posh restaurant in Nimman.
What’s your favourite way to get about the city?
Definitely by moped. The narrow city streets are overcrowded with cars, red truck taxis, and tuk-tuks, so a moped quickly gets us where we need to be. It’s satisfying to zip between the larger vehicles and squeeze into tight parking spaces.
What’s the shopping like?
It’s a shopper’s paradise! There are five malls where you’ll find local vendors and international brands. The Night Bazaar sells touristy knick-knacks, great for bargain hunters. The Saturday and Sunday night walking street markets are where the real treasures lie. With the traffic barred, stalls set up selling handmade pottery, jewellery, embroidered bags and clothing, sculptures, paintings, and more.
Where do you like to escape to?
Once a month we like to escape to the countryside. A little more than an hour’s drive and we can relax on a
floating bungalow at Mae Ngat Dam, gaze out at the terraced wildflower fields and vegetable gardens at Mon Cham, or enjoy breathtaking views of the Twin Chedis ( bell-shaped towers) on Thailand’s highest mountain, Doi Inthanon.
What’s Chiang Mai’s best-kept secret?
Warorot Market is hardly a secret, but there’s a good chance there won’t be a single tourist in sight, so you’ll feel as if you’ve discovered it! Open 24 hours a day, it attracts chefs, artisans, guesthouse owners and locals buying fresh produce or goods such as flowers, textiles, clothing, jewellery, and craft items.
What would surprise a newcomer to your city?
Rats’ nests of electrical lines hanging above city streets; families riding four deep on a ramshackle 125cc motorbike; groups of saffron-robed monks riding in the back of red truck taxis; motorcycle drivers weaving in and out of traffic, riding on pavements, running red lights, and driving against traffic while remaining miraculously unscathed. These are just what you’ll see on the street, so the list could go on and on!
If you could change one thing, what would it be?
We’d reduce the air pollution. It’s a problem stemming from slash-and-burn farming techniques, non-existent vehicle emission regulations, and locals burning their rubbish. It’s at its worst between February and May, which coincides with the dry season. The skies are perpetually yellow and the air smells like a bonfire.
Where would you recommend staying?
Within the Old City because, thanks to the moat, it’s nearly impossible to get lost. Within its borders, there are countless hotels and guesthouses, tour agencies, cafés, smoothie stands, noodle stalls and Thai massage shops. Plus, there are nearly 50 Buddhist temples, so it’s the ideal place to go on a DIY ‘temple hopping’ tour.
What’s your favourite building?
The Silver Temple, or Wat Sri Suphan. Made of silver alloys and metals (for which it’s named), it’s in stark contrast to the traditional white and gold temples. It’s adorned, inside and out, with intricately hammered, Buddhist motifs. At night, it’s lit up with colourful lights. Women are not allowed inside the tiny temple (though this isn’t typical of temples here) but it’s well worth a visit just for the beautiful exterior.
What keeps you in your city and where else in the world would you like to live?
The combination of a low cost of living, safety, friendly locals, year-round warm weather and convenient access to Western comforts, such as lightning-speed WiFi, keep us in Chiang Mai. If we were to live elsewhere, we’d probably live in Bangkok. »