Our traveller’s guide to visiting Chiang Rai and Wat Rong Khun, the ‘White Temple’ in northern Thailand.
Continuing our 4 week guide to Thailand with a visit to the fantasy White Temple in Chiang Rai.
Chiang Rai is a picturesque province in the mountains of north Thailand in a remote area known as the Golden Triangle. Together with neighbouring territories in Myanmar and Laos these mysterious lands were infamously known for their opium fields and drugs running…
Thailand has come a long way since those days and cleaned up its act in many respects; of the countries I have visited in South East Asia, it is the most modernized without losing its traditional exotic appeal, has the politest and most helpful people, as well as being safe and easy to travel around on clean efficient transport.
Visiting Chiang Rai
The history of Chiang Rai City goes way back to 1262; it’s a small provincial capital with a large cultural agenda.
Juan and I arrived on the afternoon bus from Chiang Mai some 200 km to the south, getting off at the bus depot in the middle of town. We were staying in a wood cabin at a nearby hostel, a place with a Jamaican ambiance which seems a bit bizarre in the far reaches of Thailand.
The Chiang Rai bus station is smack in the middle of downtown and a good point of reference. The adjacent streets are full of shops and markets, a wide range of eateries and there’s a cool cat café, the first one I’ve ever seen! I gravitated towards the heart of the bazaar, looking at the gorgeous garments and craftwork, handmade by the hill tribes.
There’s a large plaza with a wood engraved pavilion, an elegant restaurant overlooking a stage where musicians were playing, the sort you’d dine at on holiday but not on long-term budget travel!
Chiang Rai Outdoor Night Market
We discovered the outdoor night market just around the corner in a huge square, an incredibly popular place lined with dozens of food booths cooking all kinds of goodies. I ordered what took my fancy from different stalls while Juan grabbed table and chairs in the central patio.
From an overwhelming choice of fresh vegetables, meats or seafood, Thai curries, noodles and soups, we ate a selection of tempuras and spicy skewers. A live band and cultural dance show on the platform at one end of the precinct made for a memorable evening.
Chiang Rai White Temple
In the morning Juan and I got the local bus to Wat Rong Khun, the must-see ‘White Temple’ that Chiang Rai is famous for – it’s an ongoing piece of original architecture financed by local artist Chalermchai Kositpipat, in the lines of Gaudi’s Cathedral in Barcelona but modernist Buddhist style!
The pure white ‘ubosot’ prayer hall is the focal point set upon a small lake and foreigners are charged a fee to enter.
Hundreds of white carved ‘hands’ stretching out to visitors as they cross the ‘cycle of rebirth bridge’ are reminiscent of a Dali work-of-art while the interior contrasts with vivid comic strip scenes portraying worldly temptation and mass destruction.
The remainder of the astounding complex is free to see, the compendium of exquisitely embellished temples and shrines, and the golden spire stupa set beside another man-made lake which is currently in construction.
A songthaew passenger pickup stopped on the main road so I checked it was going in the right direction and jumped aboard for the ride back into town, these are a cheap and convenient transport.
Chiang Rai Cat Cafe
I just had to have a Cat’n’aCup!
It took a bit of patience to get a table inside as you can’t reserve and places are limited. This special café has normal prices, a lovely choice of hot or cold drinks, and delicious looking cakes.
It’s absolutely spotless and the cats are adorable, long-haired Persians, a white Kuching kitty from Borneo with one blue and one green eye, lucky black cats, velvety greys, gorgeous gingers, and a soft haired little one that resembles a lion with a mane and pompom on his tail.
They sit sweetly looking out the wall-to-wall windows or napping on perches and baskets, and cuddle-up for a stroke when they get bored.
Chiang Rai Saturday Night Market
Our last night in Thailand and we headed for the Saturday night walking street food and craft market. I know I’m obsessed with Thai food but you really don’t know what you’re missing until you try the real thing!
It was only 10 minutes walk from downtown, past the glitzy clocktower with its unique laser show beaming along the main street, and into a neighbourhood we hadn’t yet explored.
The roads were full of stalls cooking all kinds of Thai food. In South East Asia everyone loves eating outdoors, it’s almost a religion! We ate a little of whatever took our fancy walking along munching or sitting down on typical low stalls… a black sticky rice pancake, a bowl of green curry, a plate of authentic Pad Thai and small tasty portions of other delicacies, I’ll try most things except the grubs.
It was extremely busy and a typical Thai night out.
Chiang Rai Flower Festival
On our way back I heard music, so we followed the sound and purely by chance came across the annual Chiang Rai Flower Festival in the local park – the grounds decorated with an extraordinary display of flowers and potted plants creating a fantasy world of Alice in Wonderland statues, romantic love tunnels, miss you walls, and surrounding the stage where a famous group was playing.
Lying under the stars in a hammock dangling from a huge tree and sipping rice wine back at the hostel, I was wondering about tomorrow and our journey over the border into Laos, a country that has been inaccessible for centuries, and the excitement of the getting the legendary slow boat down the River Mekong.
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Sounds amazing, I would LOVE to spend 4 weeks – Mike misses his own bed after about 2 weeks so when we head back to Asia this year I think I’m going to explore a little bit solo. Oh and I completely agree about trying everything but the grubs. I always thought I’d be okay with them until I had the option and I realized… “hmm, no thanks”. Haha
On the 4 week trip, we spent 3 days in Bangkok (which we love and visited before, there’s so many interesting sites to see and the street food is awesome!) and then got the train to Chiang Mai (incredible number of temples and great atmosphere – was here for New Year’s Eve!). Stayed on a fruit farm in rural Chiang Mai for a couple of weeks and enjoyed real village life…people are really friendly and the local fruit and veg market incredible (hired a scooter to get around to see different places)! Then got the bus to Chiang Rai – loved this town and wish we had stayed longer, would have hired a bike into the mountains. Definately recommend coming here first week of January for the Flower Festival! Finally got a bus to the Lao border, and the Slow Boat down the Mekong!