So . . . . I’ve been in Northern Thailand for just over two weeks now, have been to and finished a retreat, and have been kindly reminded that no blog post has come out yet. A lot of my experience in this time (minus the retreat which I may or may not post later – that may be more a ‘let’s sit down and chat over tea’ kind of sharing) was around temples, art, and monk life, with some eatin’ and tuk tuk ridin’ thrown in there for good measure!
From Malaysia I made my way back to Thailand, through Bangkok and up to Chiang Mai in the north. I’m starting to lose track of the times I’ve been to this city for varying amounts of time. There is something about it that keeps calling me back. This time it was for a sort of retreat that I intended on attending for two weeks. Except . . . I was having spotty communication with the leader of the event. I made my way to Chiang Mai on a Friday, the course was supposed to start Monday, and I still hadn’t heard from him (I never did until a few hours before it was supposed to start asking me if I was still coming!)
Now, no matter how many “I don’t knows” I seem to have in my life, I still haven’t quite come to terms with being comfortable with these unknowns, so before I let my mind go completely into overdrive of what to do, I spent a couple days just wandering around the city and hitting some of my favourite spots.
Then I found a tour with a guide who used to be a monk taking us up to Doi Suthep temple (one of the most famous temples here) at the crack of dawn to listen to the monks chant and watch the sunrise. Yep . . . that’s for me!
So at 4:45am, I was picked up by our guide, we drove closer to the mountain, picked up a Korean girl, and the three of us made our way up to the temple to officially start the tour.
Our guide was awesome. He was a good storyteller and made historical information come alive, he was born, raised and stayed in the area, so he knew a lot of the context, and he had been a monk for a period of time (turns out that’s not uncommon for many men in Thailand), so could share information and answer any questions we might have (and I had a lot!) about Buddhism and life as a monk.
Our next stop was a short drive down the mountain to a temple called Wat Pha Lat, or the Secret Jungle Temple. Here’s a fun fact I learned (among many . . . did I mention I actually asked a lot of questions!) Temples that are more ornate, colourful and more “flashy” are city temples. The quieter ones in more obscure areas are not as “flashy” and are forest temples. City temples are more for the people, such as offering blessings and a place for them to go to have some peace. They are a bit more loose in terms of rules for the monks. Forest temples are for serious practice of meditation and mindfulness. There’s less contact with the public and more rules that have to be followed to focus on practice.
This temple was the definite fav of me and my Korea tour pal.
Now while I was doing my wanderings, eating and touring, I was also doing some googling. In that process, I came across a retreat that sounded like something for me. So after a few days and a few back and forth emails, I found myself headed for Chiang Rai.
I’ve been through the city of Chiang Rai once, but only to stop with a tour at the White Temple (we’ll get to that). So, I set off for another newish to me destination. Chiang Rai is about 190km northeast of Chiang Mai and is very close to the borders of Laos and Myanmar. Chiang Rai is the name of the city, but also the name of the province, and you might recall this name as it was in this province where the cave rescue of the football team occurred. Amongst travellers, Chiang Rai is associated with temples and when I wasn’t in the retreat, this is what I also ended up doing.
Let’s just refer to the following temples as the “Big Three” because these are THE ones you’ll hear about when you head in the direction of Chiang Rai. They are (in the order I visited them) . . . . The Blue Temple, The Black Temple and The White Temple.
The Blue Temple (Wat Rong Suea Ten)
The blue temple is the newbie on the ‘tourist temple scene.’ The “Big Three” were all designed by artists with the Blue Temple being designed by Putha Kabkaew who was a student of the artist who designed the White Temple. In 1996, the village decided to rebuild it’s temple. They started work on it in 2005, and in 2016 it was officially complete though there was still work being done while I was there. Even if temples aren’t your thing, the artistry is pretty amazing and the blue colour is so beautiful!
I got there early, so I didn’t experience any of the crowds.
The Black “Temple” (Baan Dam Museum)
This isn’t actually a temple, but is probably often referred to as one to fit in with the crowd. It’s technically called The Black House and is a museum housing the works of artist Thawan Duchanee.
Duchanee began building it in 1976 with work and construction still occurring right up until his death in 2014. It began as his home and art studio, but has since evolved into 40 buildings and eventually morphed into the museum it is now.
I found his art to be so dark, but the structures were so incredibly beautiful, and it was spread out over this amazing natural environment. Also, I caught it at a quiet time (or it was just so spread out that we visitors weren’t constantly stumbling over each other) I was so intrigued and found such peace amongst the darkness that I ended up wandering around and hanging out here for a couple of hours!
The White Temple (Wat Rong Khun)
This was my second time to the White Temple. The first time was when I was in a group tour with some of my Thai massage classmates/friends and we were passing through on our way to the Golden Triangle. I remember being so taken by this temple, not having enough time to wander more and vowing to return.
Wat Rong Khun is designed and financed by an artist named Ajarn Chalermchai Kostpipat who has dedicated his life to continually improving and restoring the temple. Construction of the structures began in 1997 and are continually ongoing.
It was still interesting, impressive and busy as the first time I was there, but this time there was something different that I was drawn to. But first . . . the White Temple!
Turns out that across the bridge in a different area (the grounds are fairly big) is another structure that I didn’t even notice the first time. I don’t think anyone else that was there that day did either, most likely because, like me the first time, you only have a very short amount of time in your tour that is packed with other things to spend here. Though there are some great tours, and I love supporting the people of the country I’m in, I also love DIY to slowly wander and explore and find gems like this.
This is the Ganesha Shrine and not only was it peacefully quiet, it had a deeper connection for me at that moment. I visited this area after I had finished my retreat. Part of my retreat involved doing some work with Ganesha (you may or may not know what that means, and either way it doesn’t really matter), so it was nice to see and connect with him again!
Bonus – Wat Huay Pla Kang
I first arrived in Chiang Rai in the early afternoon, so I dropped off my stuff and decided to head straight for this temple. It’s not one of the ‘Big Three’ and it isn’t really one many people were talking about, but I liked the idea of going higher to look out over the city I had just arrived in.
It’s often referred to amongst travellers as the Big Buddha, but it’s actually not a Buddha but the Goddess of Mercy or Compassion Guan Yin. I had heard of her, but knew very little. So fun fact time from what I learned . . . Guan Yin is a being who DID achieve enlightenment, but instead of moving on chose to stay here in the physical world to help humanity achieve the same. Her name actually means “observing the sounds (or cries) of the human world”
So . . . what about the “Red” in the title? Well . . . I did come across a temple that was red . . . .
. . . . but why don’t we highlight something else that Chiang Rai is famous for . . .
The Golden Clock Tower
The clock on the right was the original tower. A few blocks away at the centre of a roundabout is the newer tower that was unveiled in 2008 and designed by the same artist that is working on the White Temple.
Then at 7pm, 8pm and 9pm there’s a light and sound show to bring in the hour. Here you’ll see lots of different colours like . . .
I LOVE northern Thailand and though I feel like I’ve spent some time here, I’m pretty sure I’ll be back again. Right now, I’m back to the concept “I don’t know” What will I do next? Where will I go? Is it time to go home? For now, I’m back in Chiang Mai for a few days focusing on connection as I visit with a friend from Thai massage school who also happens to be here now, and reconnect with a buddy I made on my retreat. My next few days are sorted. From there . . . . 🤷🏽♀️ and though I’m still not comfortable in the I don’t know space, I’m getting just a little bit closer to really understanding and realizing whatever unfolds is good, and sometimes it turns out better than I could have planned it!