Chiang Rai
A region in the mountains, bordered to the north-east by the mighty Mekong. Framed by Myanmar and Laos, at its narrowest point it is only a little more than 100 kilometers to China. A bit lost between tea plantations and jungle, off the main tourist route. A province full of adventure and smuggling stories – that is Chiang Rai.
The white temple Wat Rong Khun is known far beyond Thailand’s borders. A work of art, a temple, a mission in life, a tourist attraction, a place of spiritual enlightenment. Everything here is kitsch, everything here is too much of a good thing. And yet it is beautiful.
A bridge leads to the main hall of the temple. In front of it, hundreds of hands stretch out from the ground. Their palms open greedily, they reach for everything they can grasp. The path to happiness and spiritual freedom leads past these miserable creatures that want everything but are ultimately condemned to impoverishment.
We spend the afternoon in Chiang Rai at the old runway of the military airfield on the outskirts of the city. It’s a relaxed place to strike up a conversation with Thais. Seniors use the cooler hours of the late day for sports exercises: Tai Chi, cycling, a walk with the dog or a leisurely evening stroll. We are met with smiles and nods; not many foreigners come here.
In the evening, we take a stroll through the town. The Clock Tower stands at a crossroads, shimmering gold in the light of the street lamps. I can’t take a photo, the traffic keeps jamming in front of the camera. The night bazaar looks sleepy, most tourists are stuck in Chiang Mai to the south. The main street is deserted. Following a dark alley, we reach the river. Our gaze falls into the open living rooms of the beautiful old wooden houses. Families have gathered in front of their televisions.
It’s an early morning. Long before sunrise, we chase our bus through the darkness and wind our way up a curvy road. The higher we get, the more we are surrounded by morning mist. Sometimes a branch or a liana sticks out of nowhere onto the road, sometimes the silhouette of an animal flits across the asphalt. We are disoriented, just following the road markings.
Then our bus glides out of the fog and tired traders blink at us in the headlights. We are joined by a small group of Thais, two dome tents stand not far from the parking lot. Phu Chi Fah is not an insider tip, but the mountain peak is far from overcrowded. Probably also because of the early hour at which you have to arrive for a spectacular sunrise.
After a short climb, it lies before us, the hilly emptiness of Laos. Our viewpoint is right on the border between Thailand and Laos. The spectacular sunrise does not appear this morning – too hazy, too damp. And yet it is a magical moment when the first rays of sunshine make it over the horizon.
Later in the day, a hot coffee and an ice-cold coconut help to combat the tiredness of getting up early. We look at Laos, we look at Myanmar – we are in the Golden Triangle. This is where the Ruak River flows into the Mekong. The air-conditioned rooms of the Opium Museum offer a cool down. The entire region was once an opium center, and there are still hidden production sites in the mountains of Myanmar.
Lunch in Tachilek and then on to the western part of the province. We drive up and down beautiful mountain roads and through vast tea plantations. All we see are government efforts to curb opium cultivation: Tourism, infrastructure, tea as an alternative to opium cultivation. A few decades ago, this was a wild and dangerous region. Today it has been tamed – at least on the Thai side.
Chiang Rai is more pristine than neighboring Chiang Mai. It is less touristy, has less action and excitement to offer and is wilder. As far away as possible from the beaches in the south, Chiang Rai is a province that does not feature on many travel itineraries. That makes it all the more beautiful for us.
Info about our trip
We liked Chiang Rai better than Chiang Mai, although it has much less to offer. The city is very sleepy and honestly not worth the trip, but we were impressed by the stories surrounding the Golden Triangle and the geographical proximity to Laos and Myanmar and the cultural influence that all three countries have on each other in this region. We also found it refreshing to be surrounded almost exclusively by Thais and not by other foreigners. The trip to Phu Chi Fa at over 1,600 meters was a real highlight and we will always remember it fondly.
Chiang Rai is quite cheap, probably because it tends to attract Thai tourists and is not yet on the backpacker’s map so much.
We traveled a lot in Chiang Rai, especially in regions without proper restaurants. That’s why we usually stopped at some snack bar or street stall and ate something. In the city itself, restaurants are few and far between and we struggled to find anything good. Our recommendation: stick to simple Thai restaurants, especially for lunch. We went to a noodle restaurant not far from our guesthouse, which served simple and inexpensive dishes.
We can fully recommend the Homey Dormy Chiangrai. Although it is located on the outskirts of the city, it is perfectly clean, nicely furnished and quite reasonably priced. We felt completely at ease.
The town seemed very sleepy and safe to us. We had an unpleasant experience in the jungle when we were resting for a short break and enjoying the view. Suddenly, a barely clothed man with a rifle emerged from the thicket and headed purposefully towards us. Just before he reached us, he turned off and disappeared back into the jungle. We can’t say whether the man was after us (probably not), but this was the only negative (!) experience we have ever had in Thailand. However, it is by no means intended to stand for the province of Chiang Rai, but rather to show that you can get into unpleasant situations anytime and anywhere (even in Europe) – this does not make the whole country a safe or unsafe travel destination.
Thai society is very open-hearted and fond of children. It was not uncommon to see a bunch of Thais (mainly women) standing around our boy. The way Thais treat children is different to what we are used to in Europe. We would never go up to a stranger’s child and want to take it in our arms. This happens all the time in Thailand – people don’t even ask beforehand. You should also be prepared for Thais to take photos of your children – often without being asked. They will quickly whip out their smartphone and take a selfie with the blond, little farang (foreigner). Think about how you want to deal with this – from our Western perspective – cross-border behavior. You won’t always be able to prevent it. Be respectful and smile and let your counterpart know that you would like a little more distance. At the same time, you are even more welcome everywhere with children and we were often given preferential treatment (e.g. in queues).
However, don’t expect extra changing rooms anywhere – the sanitary facilities are often in an inadequate condition anyway. So take wet wipes and disinfectant gel with you. You can buy basic baby supplies in any 7/11 or supermarket. Diapers are not cheap and are often only available in large packs. It’s best to leave the baby carriage/stroller at home. The sidewalks are usually too bad and there are too many pedestrians and cars, especially in Bangkok, so you won’t have much fun with it. The most flexible option is a baby carrier.
For Chiang Rai, we strongly recommend that you have your own means of transportation, be it a car or a scooter. There isn’t much traffic here anyway, so there’s nothing wrong with renting a car. This gives you full flexibility and allows you to explore unique places such as Phu Chi Fah or the Golden Triangle on your own.
- A very good introduction to Thailand’s history in general can be found in Thailand’s Political History: From the 13th Century to Recent Times by B. J. Terwiel