My first look around Chiang Mai

It is now the afternoon of the 5th January, after a couple of hours rest I decided to venture out and explore my surroundings on foot. Reaching the main road at the end of the side street where the hotel is situated I decided to turn left for no other reason than most of the traffic seemed to be heading in that direction at the time.  I came to a junction and discovered, quite by accident, that I had hit the corner of the old city. A very substantial ruin of a wall and what appeared to be a moat greeted me in the bright afternoon sunshine.


I crossed the main road and delved into a couple of entrances giving access to the many Wat temples in, as I later discovered, the old walled city.  It is interesting that it is difficult to tell whether these compounds were constructed tens or hundreds of years ago as they are, mostly, kept in good repair and new buildings continually constructed within the site.  As I wandered around Wat Saimoonmuang I observed much activity and engaged in a halting conversation with one of the workers who turned out to be a Christian.  I also discovered that the Buddhist year is differs from our own having a different starting point in a different religion. It should have been obvious really but in these days of international travel, time zones, ATMs and global markets it is easy to forget.





 At this point I retraced my steps to the corner and contemplated finding a map. Unfortunately being the end of the four day New Year holiday and the height of the tourist season none were to be found. By this time I was very hot and very thirsty, I hailed a passing Tuk-tuk and asked him to take me to a cafe or some such where I could partake of a late lunch. We found one in a street of cafes and coffee bars via a look at one of the biggest and most popular Wats in the old city.  I did notice the remnants of older construction about the place but one has to keep ones eyes open as they are generally somewhat neglected and overgrown.

A foretaste of things to come however my pre-booked adventures tomorrow would lead me well away from the city to some totally new experiences.

View the full 'Chiang Mai' photo album  (this will increase as we explore the city)



Location: Chiang Mai, Thailand

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