Crash Course Chiang Mai - The Endless Walking Street Market & Temples Galore

Thapae Gate

I arrived in Chiang Mai on Sunday afternoon, the largest city in Northern Thailand, and as they say, hit the ground running.

I was just in time to check out the Sunday Night Walking Street Market - in reading reviews, people noted that they had been multiple times and never made it to the "end," as it is so gigantic. I made it my goal to reach the supposed end, and had no idea it would take me almost 4 hours. The market starts around Thapae Gate, the entrance to the old walled city, and goes the entire 1km down the historic Ratchadamnoen Avenue.

This might not seem like a very long distance, but it spreads in all directions through the intersecting roads. Also, after 8pm the street is completely packed with people, so it's like marching inside of a pack of sardines, and made my return home a slow one.

Wat Chedi Luang

The beauty of the market isn't fully realized to a newcomer until you discover that it leads you through some of the city's temple (wat) grounds. These are open for everyone to explore, though I was restricted to the outside due to my dress (shorts and tank top). 

I was surprised when I got chills multiple times as I gazed upon some of the most beautiful places and buildings I've ever set eyes on.


There are over 300 wats in the city, which is probably an insurmountable volume for me to visit over the month, but I will certainly try.

All are filled with a mix of tourists and devotees. I felt a little strange taking photographs while people were praying and providing offerings, but I went with the crowd. I definitely have a lot to learn about Buddhist culture and traditions, and visiting the temples is a great place to start. There is a local Buddhist university I want to check out, where they offer a "Chat With a Monk" program to help promote cultural exchange and help the monks improve their English.

Excuse the glare - I found out that my underwater camera
'fogs' up when going from AC to heat

Back to the market - it is filled with an array of mostly Thai foods, but I also found a bit of Japanese and Chinese cuisine.

There are also enough paintings, sculptures, clothing, jewelry, photographs, and really anything you can think of to please every taste. I could have easily bought enough to fill 5 suitcases, but as I am still at the beginning of my trip (and WAY overpacked), I only purchased a few postcards. There are street performers and even outdoor massage stands set up at every block, with many people receiving a public $5 hour full body massage, or $3 foot massage.

Some fun food:

My dinner... some kind of poultry?? claw arm. Delicious.

Mochi!

Chao Kuai, black grass jelly - similar to what's used in bubble tea.
Not sure I liked it. :)

Candied...something

Quali eggs and.. I think sausages.

The first and only sign of Christmas I've seen in Asia

Teeny tiny Thai shoes

Hand carved flower candles

Fake Furby makes its way to Asia

I bless the rains down in Africa

The next morning, I immediately I regretted not buying a pair of harem pants after realizing my temple appropriate clothes were at the cleaners (it's around $4 to pay someone to wash/dry/iron 10 pounds of clothes, so I've given up on hand washing). I went to a street shop and purchased 3 pairs of pants for around $10... for some reason an Africa-themed pair grabbed my eyes, so now I have a brightly colored set with the words "ZANZIBAR" and "HAKUNA MATATA" on them. 

In Thailand, couples walk down the streets watching matching pairs of harem pants. <3 They are definitely the most comfortable, must have Thai clothing item, even if it immediately pegs one as a tourist.

Finally in proper attire, I went and revisited/went inside a lot of the temples from the night before in the daylight.

This temple had a sculpture of each "year of the".. Here's me and my year, Rat. 'Sup.

My favorite part: the trees at two of the temples are covered in what I assume are Buddhist sayings. My friend Christine told me that there are a lot of these types of quotes scattered throughout Chiang Mai - yes!

My feet hurt because I've walked at least 16 hours since I arrived on Sunday. I just got back from a walking street food tour which was AWESOME - my belly and brain are full.

A separate post will follow regarding the tour, but hopefully moving forward I will avoid asking as many stupid questions, like when I pointed at something yesterday and said "Coconut?" and was told "No, fish."

Link to full set of night market/temple photos here.

Link to photos from visiting the same temples in the daytime here.

-Erin