Chiang Rai

After the relaxing cake laden, food filled frenzy that was Pai, I could not have been happier as I pulled into Chiang Rai. I had already seen some photos of the White temple from fellow travelers and it was breath-taking. Unfortunately I did not realise that the White Temple was the extent of things to see and do in Chiang Rai. The minivan I was on tried to drop us all off at a shopping centre 8km out of Chiang Rai. Luckily when I said I had been told we would be dropped off more centrally, he let us all back on and drove us to the centre of town before doubling back with the rest of the passengers going towards to the border. This doesn’t normally happen – tourists are usually dropped off in the middle of nowhere (when they are on the tourist buses as opposed to the local buses). Again I took this as a good omen and I was in buoyant mood. It didn’t last.

I had to walk around with my backpack (getting heavier by the day) for quite some time before I found accommodation that was not only affordable but had a bathroom attached and also had windows. They do like their windowless prison cell like rooms here. The room I found not only had a window and hot shower but also had the comfiest mattress I have had in a long time. My mattress in Pai had left alot to be desired and my back was rebelling. I took a walk to go find some food. Its Thailand, you normally cannot get more than 5 metres without finding some sort of eatery. Not in Chiang Rai. The people here don’t appear to eat. I found one restaurant and honestly thought there had been a mistake on the menu. Pad Thai was advertised as 130B for the veggie version without shrimps. Thats over $4. To put it in perspective, from a food stall it usually costs 30 – 45B. At the western tourist restaurants I have never seen it above 80B. It got worse. The next restaurant was selling it at 170B and the third at an eye-watering 210B ($7) I wondered if the place was full of millionaires. That the only shops in Chiang Rai appeared to be air-conditioning units and an obscene amount of stationary shops convinced me that they were not catering to a millionaire population! On my first day I walked around the town a couple of times. I did find a great deli and spent alot of time chatting to the lady who owned it. She also made feta and spinach samosas (two for 25B) which solved my eating dilemma’s. I also got chatting to Orn, a German who had been living here with his family for over 20 years. He had the only bookshop left in the city and we talked books for hours. The next couple of days were a wash out, but I was ensconced with some good books, cheese and a really comfy mattress – I certainly wasn’t missing out by not been able to wander around the city more.

During a break in the rain I did go visit the White temple or Wat Rong Khun to give it its proper name. Despite its appearance it is a functioning Buddhist temple. They started building it in 1997 and it is not completed yet. There are many skulls incorporated into the design, the railings and even the traffic cones are also adorned with skulls. The place is teeming with tourists and a man with a loud speaker shouts at anyone who tries to double back and not follow the correct path around the temple. You are not allowed to take photographs inside the temple which is a shame – the walls are amazing. Artists are still painting them, there were 5 working whilst I was there. The back wall is not traditional Buddhist images, there are spaceships, explosions... and cartoon characters. How many characters can you spot? I found Superman, Batman, Spiderman, Elvis, Ben 10, Predator (there is also a model of Predator in the garden) Japanese Manga Characters and someone who looked alot like George from Rainbow but I think it was an Asian character. It’s one of those places you really do have to see to believe. The same chap who designed the temple (Chalermchai Kositpipat) also designed the other thing of interest in Chiang Rai – the Clock Tower.

It is also a roundabout at the busiest junction and at 7pm it lights up for 10 minutes and changes colour, whilst spectators stand in a purpose built traffic island to watch it. So how else did I fill my time – massage of course. With the help of Orn, he gave me directions to the only massage parlour that wasn’t a front for prostitutes. It was the place where the locals go. I decided to be brave. I have had a number of thai massages now – it was time to advance to the two hour massage. The Thai’s will tell you that a minimum of 2 hours is required – they consider the 1 hour ones more for tourists. In fact this massage parlour did not even have the option of 1hour sessions. Now I have mentioned massage alot but I do not think I have explained them properly. The Thai massage is always done clothed. You will usually be given clothing to change into. These resemble hospital scrubs and the key element is that you should be able to move freely in them. You will not be on a massage table but on a mattress on the floor – neither will you be alone, they is usually up to 5 other mattresses in the room. It is not considered a private relaxing experience, the masseuses and other clients will be chatting and laughing across the room. The masseuse sits on the mattress and starting with your feet presses down on pressure points. She will use her thumbs, elbows, palms and her entire body weight at times to press down. As well as the pressing, there is also the “assisted” stretching. She will manipulate your limbs into position and then twist them round. Alot of these positions are familiar yoga positions. She will push her feet into your back whilst holding your arms backwards to ensure you fully arch your back. She will also stand on your feet and maybe your back. The Thai’s believe this type of massage is medicinal and a weekly massage is considered a requirement to maintain health. You do feel better at the end but I have yet to achieve the zen like state that some claim the massage will bring on. At no amount of massage could have made me feel any warmer towards Chiang Rai - I had to get out of there...