Thailand 2023, part 32 (Chiang Mai, Mae Kachan Hot Spring)
Chiang Mai was the capital of the important Lan Na Kingdom (1292-1775) in north of the present-day Thailand. Even later, when the kingdom ceased to exist as such, this remained a crucial area within the Siamese kingdom, contributing to the incredible number of temples not only in the central part of the ancient capital, which has the shape of an almost perfect square and is surrounded by walls, but also in the surrounding areas and throughout the northern region of Thailand. Besides the temples, various other historical sites are present and, from what I’ve read, the nature here has been very generous. Thus, the guidebooks and agencies promote a wide range of interesting excursions, including hiking, rafting or visits to huge caves.
Because of all these aspects, the monuments, sites and cultural landscapes of Chiang Mai, the capital of the Lan Na Kingdom, are on UNESCO’s Tentative World Heritage List.
What is additionally interesting is that besides the possibility of visiting various temples that are still active today, as I did, there are also, in a larger number of them, organised meetings between visitors and monks. These meetings usually take place at fixed times and involve discussions where various questions about monastic life, spirituality, meditations, etc., can be asked.
Chiang Mai is also known for numerous cooking schools, which has become very popular in recent years as an activity for foreign visitors. Not only in Chiang Mai, but also in Thailand as a whole.
However, I had only two days here and that simply wasn’t enough for me to do more than I did, yet in the end, I was extremely satisfied with what I had accomplished.
So, towards the end of the sightseeing on the first full day in Chiang Mai, already quite tired, I went back to the Wat Chiang Man Temple. It was located near the hotel where I was staying and I had partially visited it the previous evening upon arriving in Chiang Mai, but at that time, the temple was mostly closed and I only briefly toured it. Now, I wanted to correct that. To begin with, the main vihara was open this time around.
It is an impressive building with a three-tiered roof, while the front facade is adorned with intricately carved decorations painted in golden and ochre colours. In addition to this, there are numerous decorative details throughout the structure, starting from the entrance portal to the interior.
I have already mentioned earlier that this is the oldest temple in the city, founded in 1296, the same year as Chiang Mai itself. However, this doesn’t mean that all structures date back to that period. The main vihara, for example, was renovated in 1920. On the other hand, the oldest Buddha figure in Chiang Mai is located here – the inscription at its base indicates that it was made in the year 1465. It is one of the standing figures in the next photo and since this Buddha figure is known to be holding an alms bowl, I would say that the figure is visible on the left side of the photograph.
Behind the vihara, there is a chedi known as the Elephant Chedi and it is quite clear why it bears this name.
Namely, the second level of the chedi’s base is adorned with elephant figures emerging from the wall, crafted from bricks with the finish done in the stucco technique. This gives the impression that the elephants are carrying the rest of the structure on their backs.
By the way, the chedi is 700 years old, making it the oldest and most significant structure within the temple complex.
I only circled around the chedi, where I also saw a monument with a statue of King Mangrai (b. 1239-1311), the founder of the Lan Na Kingdom (1292-1775) and its capital Chiang Mai (1296-1775).
Within the temple complex of Wat Chiang Man, there are several more structures, but by this point, I was quite tired. My only desire was to visit the new, smaller vihara to capture something I hadn’t quite successfully done the previous evening. Along the way, I admired the details and decorations that Thai temples typically abound with.
The reason I wanted again to enter the smaller vihara, which I had already visited the previous evening, was to take another look and attempt to take better photos of two figures for which this temple and vihara are renowned. These are the Crystal Buddha, a Buddha figure believed to be crafted over 1,800 years ago, and the Marble Buddha, a standing Buddha figure made of stone claimed to be created over 2,500 years ago (this is the information that can be read within the temple itself).
As these two figures are considered extremely significant, among the most important in Thailand, they are housed in a kind of smaller structure within the vihara and, as you can see, they are well protected.
Regarding their age, different experts provide varying opinions. For the Crystal Buddha, standing at 10 cm tall and crafted from transparent clear quartz crystal, it is said to have been made around 1300 AD or in the 15th century, while its gilded parts are known to date back to 1875.
On the other hand, the standing Buddha figure is actually a stone stele and from a distance the stone does not resemble marble at all. However, the inscriptions within the temple itself use the term “Marble Buddha.” In any case, some suggest that the stele originates from India, while others argue it is from Sri Lanka. Regarding the time when it was created, the most commonly mentioned periods are the 8th or 10th century, and much less frequently, the BCE period.
What is a fact is that both of these figures have been in Chiang Mai since the 13th century, since the founding of the city and this temple.
Now, I thought I had done enough sightseeing, so I headed back to the hotel. On the way, I bought some fried bananas, potatoes and pumpkin. It wasn’t bad, though not spectacular. I also purchased another freshly made mixed juice of mango and passion fruit – the fruit and ice are blended well in a blender, making it quite refreshing in every aspect.
Upon reaching the hotel, I first stopped at the laundry service located just across the street to pick up the trousers I had left there for washing. Excellent job! Everything was nicely and neatly waiting for me there.
And then, I must admit, quite exhausted due to the heat and walking, I went to the hotel’s pool where I sprawled out on a sun lounger. I was sure the water would be cold for me, so I didn’t even think about going to the room and changing into swimwear. It was quite pleasant just to be there, enjoying my juice in peace.
After some time, I retreated to my room, took a shower, changed and rested a bit more. Later on, I decided to go for a slightly longer walk. Considering the great experience in Sukhothai, I wanted to go to the Night Market for dinner.
So, I headed towards one of the night markets (I got an impression there were several of them) and it was on the eastern side outside the core of ancient Chiang Mai. In the beginning, I strolled along the eastern moat, which had lost its former defensive function and is now beautifully maintained. The space around it serves as some kind of a park.
Soon, I crossed the moat using a bridge and delved into the side streets of Chiang Mai because I found it more interesting than walking along the streets with heavy traffic. As I’ve mentioned earlier, the large number of temples in the city and its surroundings means you are never far from a chedi or a vihara. Thus, along the way, I passed by a smaller temple, Wat Chom Phu.
A dozen minutes later, my route took me past one of the more significant temples in the city, but it was already closed. This was Wat Buppharam.
This temple, Wat Buppharam, was founded in 1497 and encompasses an ubosot, two viharas, a chedi and a Dharma Hall. “Dharma” is a term used in Indian philosophy, Hinduism, Buddhism and Jainism. While it carries multiple meanings, it can be described as cosmic order and law, and on an individual level, as life and behaviour in accordance with religious or moral principles. Consequently, the Dharma Hall is a building where senior monks pray. The one visible in Wat Buppharam, seen in the next photo on the left-hand side, was constructed in 1996, making it relatively new.
Since the temple was closed, I couldn’t go inside, so I captured a few details from the street. One of them is the chedi, which is one of the oldest structures within the temple, built more than four centuries ago.
But my gaze kept returning to the Dharma Hall and the numerous details that adorn it.
However, although there is a large standing Buddha and numerous smaller Buddhas and other decorations, here I saw something for which it wasn’t clear to me what it was doing there, but it brought me great joy. It was – Donald Duck!!!
By this point I realised I was too hungry to explore this area in more detail, so I stopped at the section with numerous food stalls. I quickly decided what to have, ate it hastily and started heading back to the hotel, taking a different route than the one I used in order to get there.
I passed by the proper Night Market with food and souvenirs, which was a pale shadow of the one in Sukhothai, but here, everything, including the street I walked back towards the moat, was quite commercialised and tailored to Western habits and taste.
In any case, I returned to the old part of the city through the Tha Phae Gate.
I have already mentioned earlier that the central part of ancient Chiang Mai had the ground plan of an almost perfect square, surrounded by walls and a moat dug on the outer side of the walls. To enter and exit the city, there were gates constructed in these walls and interestingly, in the materials I consulted, it was mentioned that the gates were positioned in the 5 cardinal directions – north, west, east, southwest, and southeast. The Tha Phae Gate is located in the east. Of course, many parts of these walls and gates have been damaged or collapsed over time, but significant portions have been restored and still adorn the city.
On the way back to the hotel, I passed by another smaller temple, but, of course, it was closed, so I just took a photo of it from the street. It was the Wat Dok Kham temple.
Very pleased with this day, I returned to the hotel and soon drifted off to sleep. The next day, I woke up early because they picked me up around 7:15 am. I was going on one of the numerous excursions offered to foreign tourists. This was certainly the simplest and most efficient way for me to visit some very interesting places.
However, before I get into the part of the story related to this one-day trip, here is a map of Chiang Mai showing all the places I visited and mentioned in my travelogue.
As for the excursion, we started by driving through the still relatively sleepy streets of Chiang Mai in a mini-bus. A bit later, we left the city and continued northeast, reaching the Khun Chae National Park known for its high mountains and waterfalls. Unfortunately, none of this was visible from the mini-bus.
Here, we were just passing through on the highway, continuing towards the city of Chiang Rai. However, right next to the road there was one of the places scheduled for our sightseeing plan – the Mae Kachan Hot Spring.
From the parking area where we stopped, I reached the point where the water, said to be at 90 degrees Celsius, springs and flows further through a narrow canal.
Inspired by a few other people here, I had to get a washtub as well, albeit a cracked one. It was important to me to have a keepsake. I can say right away that the water was indeed hot, but nowhere near 90 degrees C.
Since my feet didn’t get boiled, I returned to the large plateau where the car park was located, as well as a couple of circular pools emitting steam. The water produced large bubbles as if it were boiling, but upon closer inspection, I saw that there were pipes inside these pools allowing air to enter, creating the illusion of boiling water.
But the water was definitely hot and that’s why several Thai women were standing here with small baskets ready for putting eggs inside in order to demonstrate how quickly eggs could be boiled in this water.
Those pipes were a bit disappointing for me because they seemed more like a marketing trick. On the other hand, I know how long it takes to boil eggs in hot water. So, I took a stroll around the area where smaller shops sold a variety of goods, as well as food. Thai people REALLY love to eat and they eat well from early in the morning, so even some pork knuckles were already ready and waiting to be devoured.
I couldn’t eat this at that early hour, but upon returning to the mini-bus, I pulled out some crackers I had accidentally discovered on this trip. Despite all expectations, I liked them, even though they had a very twisted taste, being seaweed-flavoured crackers. Maybe not as tasty as pork knuckles, but I guess somewhat healthier.