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AhPek Biker - Riding Adventures
Thailand Chiang Mai-Mae Hong Son Loop 2024 Day 11 & 12: Chiang Mai To Chiang Rai
Chiang Mai, Thailand Days 11 & 12: 19th & 20th January 2024 (Friday & Saturday)
This is part of a non-cycling road trip tour of the Chiang Mai-Mae Hong Son Loop, Thailand. Days 11 & 12 from Chiang Mai to Chiang Rai & back:
Chiang Mai (Lanna Thaphae)>Mae Kachan Hot Spring>Golden Triangle Viewpoint>White Temple>Black House>Red Temple>Blue Temple>Wiang Pa Pao>>Chiang Mai (Lanna Thaphae).
Chiang Mai (Lanna Thaphae)>Mae Kachan Hot Spring>Golden Triangle Viewpoint>White Temple>Black House>Red Temple>Blue Temple>Wiang Pa Pao>>Chiang Mai (Lanna Thaphae).
This is page 10 of a 10-page blog, Click Here To Go To Title Page.
1. Traffic Directions!
Traffic in Thailand is right-hand drive, so drive/cycle on the left. The same thing applies when crossing the road, take note of the direction traffic is approaching!
2. Getting around the Chiang Mai-Mae Hong Son Loop.
Our tour package was for ground arrangements and included a 10-passenger van to take us around the Mae Hong Son Loop, starting from & returning to Chiang Mai. It also included relatively good hotels/homestays. Charge per pax was at a very reasonable discounted rate. This excluded meals (other than hotel breakfasts), airport transfers, entry tickets, and tips. This allows for individuals to have meals according to their own liking & budget. Allow THB100-150 per pax per meal should be adequate.
Note: Malaysian Touch n Go debit cards can be used where Alipay is accepted, such as at 7-Eleven outlets. Just ensure that the cashier sets the exchange to Thai Bahts.
Those interested in joining this guided tour can contact Eddie at +60-612-2600, whom we find a very good & flexible guide and very attentive to our needs
3. Route & Traffic Conditions
Most of Thailand's main roads are paved well well-maintained and almost without portholes. In outlying rural areas, roads could be gravel & un-tarred. No toll is charged for most roads (including highways)! Traffic at the rural areas is fairly light, but there are traffic jams in Chiang Mai try to avoid peak hours.
The Chiang Mai-Mae Hong Son Loop roads are renowned for their scenic beauty AND also the many turns and bends. It is known as the Snake Route with 2,000 bends, some of them very sharp hair-pins, so do get motion-sickness medication in case you need them.
The Chiang Mai-Mae Hong Son Loop roads are renowned for their scenic beauty AND also the many turns and bends. It is known as the Snake Route with 2,000 bends, some of them very sharp hair-pins, so do get motion-sickness medication in case you need them.
4. Weather
Weather at the Chiang Mai & Mae Hong Son provinces differs a lot between day & night time and between the lowlands and highlands. November to January temperature ranges from a daytime high of 33°C to a night-time low of 14°C. At highland areas like Pai, Doi Inthanon & Pang Oung, night-time temperatures can go as low as 10°C. So bring warm clothing and practice layered clothing to keep warm and still allow for stripping during the hotter time of the day.
5. Communicating with Each Other
When travelling in a group it's important to be able to communicate with each other, especially if one gets lost from the rest. Many Thai pre-paid phone sim cards can now be purchased online before the trip and delivered within a few days.
We separately opted for DTAC & SCT-AIS sim cards.
DTAC Happy Tourist SIM for calls & data covers 8 to 30 days with unlimited data and costs about 40-50THB per day. For just data only it covers a period from 8 to 15 days and costs about 35-40THB per day. These DTAC Tourist SIM cards can be purchased via Lazada.
AIS (Advance Info Service) is the largest mobile service provider in Thailand, offering excellent network quality throughout the country, including rural areas. AIS Tourist SIM packages range from 8-day/15GB (at 299THB) to 15-day/30GB (at 599THB) to 30-day/50GB (at 899THB). We purchase SCT sim cards that connect to the AIS network; the 15-day/7.5GB was bought via Lazada.
6. Communicating with Locals
Except for those involved in the tourist industry, most Thai don't speak English, especially in the rural areas. It will be helpful to have a driver who speaks English.
In case of emergencies call the Thai Tourist Tourist Police at 1155 or (+66) 2308-0333 This hotline is available 24 hours a day and responders speak English. OR go to a clinic or pharmacy as most doctors and pharmacists can speak English.
7. Places & Things of Interest
There were many scenic and beautiful places of interest, but one should not miss the following (Note: click on the GPS coordinates for a directional map to the respective places):
b. White Temple (Wat Rong Khun) (วัดร่องขุ่น) (GPS: 19.82431, 99.76315). (Entrance 100THB)
c. Golden Temple (GPS: 19.82274, 99.76272).
d. The Golden Triangle (GPS: 20.35290, 100.08295).
e. Wat Phra That Sam Mum Mueang (วัดพระธาตุสามมุมเมือง) (GPS: 20.35337, 100.07950).
f. Phra Buddha Sirirat Statue (GPS: 20.35353, 100.08127).
d. The Golden Triangle (GPS: 20.35290, 100.08295).
e. Wat Phra That Sam Mum Mueang (วัดพระธาตุสามมุมเมือง) (GPS: 20.35337, 100.07950).
f. Phra Buddha Sirirat Statue (GPS: 20.35353, 100.08127).
h. Baan Dam Museum (Black House) (พิพิธภัณฑ์บ้านดำ) (GPS: 19.99203, 99.86075) (Entrance 80THB).
8. Food
a. Lunch: Thai Food at FA Mai Restaurant (ร้านอาหารฟ้าใหม่) (GPS: 20.27885, 100.08816) at Chiang Saen, nice food with a view of the Mekong River.
b. Dinner: Thai Food at UAN Phochana (อ้วนโภชนา) (GPS: 19.36901, 99.50339).
Note: For most lunches & dinners we ate together at the same restaurant, although we split into two or 3 groups and ordered by our group. This way each group can order food to their liking and budget.
9. Stay
10. Navigation
I used MapMyRide to track our routes and stops. Geo-tagging of places of interest was done via FaceBook and Google Maps.
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PRELUDE
A day earlier, we said goodbyes to Gain & his family our warm hosts of Tong Luang Homestay, but did not head straight for Chiang Mai and instead headed back up Doi Inthanon for a good hike at the Pha Dok Sieo Nature Trail. Rejuvenated after a good-paced hike, only then did we head back to enjoy the cosmopolitan sights and lights of Chiang Mai.Today was supposed to be a free & easy day for us to individually enjoy the city, but instead, we opted for an optional day tour to Chiang Rai. The extra we paid was money well spent as Eddie together with Mimi our local guide made sure that we covered all the important places of interest at Chiang Rai and even beyond!
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THE TRIP DAY 11: CHIANG MAI-CHIANG RAI
There are many pools and channels of hot spring water here, those nearer to the source are rather hot, so we opted for one a little bit "down-stream" and just soaked our feet in.
Upon arrival at Chiang Rai, our first stop was the White Temple. Designed by National Thai Artist Chalermchai Kositpipat, it was built with the assistance of his student, and was opened to visitors in 1997.
The place was quite crowded with visitors from all over the world, but with some patience, I managed to capture the main temple with its whiteness reflected in the dark blue pool.
Chalermchai Kositpipat's style of sharp protrusions is evident in close-up views of the sculptures. I was exposed to his artwork (many predating the White Temple) when I visited the MOCA museum in Bangkok.
While there, do slip around to a back portion where there is the Golden Temple.
We left the White Temple, but instead of heading straight for the other temples, Mimi headed much further north, right to where the Mekong straddles the border with Laos. I had done some similar straddling of the Mekong when I did a 2016 cycling tour of Isan Thailand & Laos.
Here we stopped for a good lunch at FA Mai Restaurant; the food was not too bad, but it was the boss's happy humorous disposition in recommending his menu, everything on the menu was "WOW!" So we will always remember his place as the WOW! Restaurant.
From 'WOW!" we headed another 8 kilometres, and drove up a hill to this "thousand years" old temple, Wat Phra That Sam Mum Mueang.
Nearby, a stairway flanked by a couple of nagas led up to the Phra Buddha Sirirat Statue.
It is from here that we have a good viewpoint of the Golden Triangle, the point where the borders of Thailand, Laos and Myanmar meet. From the photo above, the Golden Triangle is slightly left of the triangle land at the confluence of the Ruak & Mekong rivers. On this side is Thailand, on the opposite bank is Laos, and Myanmar sits on the triangle and stretches further north. Below at the river bank are blue-roofed boats that take tourists on a short boat ride around the rivers.
But then there is no gold here! The Golden Triangle actually refers to the large, mountainous region of approximately 200,000 km2 in northeastern Myanmar, northwestern Thailand and northern Laos, centred on the confluence of the Ruak & Mekong rivers. This was the largest opium-producing area in the world since the 1950s until the early 21st century. The Chinese troops of the Kuomintang in Burma led by warlord Khun Sa, were in effect the forebears of the private narcotic armies operating in the Golden Triangle. The "Gold" moniker comes about because gold was the barter payment made for the opium.
That's yours truly with a large painting of the renowned artist in the background.
Dusk was approaching as we looped back another ten kilometres south and headed up a small hill to the Wat Huay Pla Kang (Goddess of Mercy Temple).
Small group tour of the Chiang Mai-Mae Hong Son Loop, Thailand. Days 11 & 12 from Chiang Mai to Chiang Rai & back:
Chiang Mai (Lanna Thaphae)>Mae Kachan Hot Spring>Golden Triangle Viewpoint>White Temple>Black House>Red Temple>Blue Temple>Wiang Pa Pao>>Chiang Mai (Lanna Thaphae).
Today is going to be a long day as we opted to go for a day trip to visit Chiang Rai's attractions. Normally, others would stay at least one night in Chiang Rai, but we had only one day before returning back to Kuala Lumpur. So see how we did it, and more as we "visited" the Golden Triangle too!
(Click here for around to Chiang Mai to Chiang Rai Route Map)
Instead of writing afresh, I am linking to my day-to-day Facebook postings during the trip and embedding them here with some brief comments where necessary. Some additional photos are added for emphasis. (NOTE: Click on respective posts to link to the FB post to read in more detail. If you can't see the posts, please log out from your Facebook first)
Seventy kilometres & an hour later we are at the Mae Kachan Hot Spring & Geyser. This is a mid-way stop for the tour drivers to take a break. But for us tourists it was a good waypoint too, the hot spring is rejuvenating, and at the front, a small geyser spouts out water every once in a while!
Instead of writing afresh, I am linking to my day-to-day Facebook postings during the trip and embedding them here with some brief comments where necessary. Some additional photos are added for emphasis. (NOTE: Click on respective posts to link to the FB post to read in more detail. If you can't see the posts, please log out from your Facebook first)
Seventy kilometres & an hour later we are at the Mae Kachan Hot Spring & Geyser. This is a mid-way stop for the tour drivers to take a break. But for us tourists it was a good waypoint too, the hot spring is rejuvenating, and at the front, a small geyser spouts out water every once in a while!
To one side are private baths where one can bath with spring water toned down in hotness.
After the hot spring relief, one can go shopping at the many stalls before the entrance.
Upon arrival at Chiang Rai, our first stop was the White Temple. Designed by National Thai Artist Chalermchai Kositpipat, it was built with the assistance of his student, and was opened to visitors in 1997.
While there, do slip around to a back portion where there is the Golden Temple.
We left the White Temple, but instead of heading straight for the other temples, Mimi headed much further north, right to where the Mekong straddles the border with Laos. I had done some similar straddling of the Mekong when I did a 2016 cycling tour of Isan Thailand & Laos.
Here we stopped for a good lunch at FA Mai Restaurant; the food was not too bad, but it was the boss's happy humorous disposition in recommending his menu, everything on the menu was "WOW!" So we will always remember his place as the WOW! Restaurant.
From 'WOW!" we headed another 8 kilometres, and drove up a hill to this "thousand years" old temple, Wat Phra That Sam Mum Mueang.
Nearby, a stairway flanked by a couple of nagas led up to the Phra Buddha Sirirat Statue.
It's quite a tall statue, and the afternoon sun shone a halo from behind it.
But then there is no gold here! The Golden Triangle actually refers to the large, mountainous region of approximately 200,000 km2 in northeastern Myanmar, northwestern Thailand and northern Laos, centred on the confluence of the Ruak & Mekong rivers. This was the largest opium-producing area in the world since the 1950s until the early 21st century. The Chinese troops of the Kuomintang in Burma led by warlord Khun Sa, were in effect the forebears of the private narcotic armies operating in the Golden Triangle. The "Gold" moniker comes about because gold was the barter payment made for the opium.
From the viewpoint, we looped back south to head for the Black House on the outskirts of Chiang Rai.
Officially called Baan Dam Museum, it is a sort of temple dedicated to Thai National Artist laureate, Thawan Duchanee, another famous Thai artist/architect. He was so well known that on big section of the 4th floor of the MOCA museum is dedicated to his artwork. At the entrance banners in his bold bright red and black art style of animals fluttered in the wind.
The museum covers an area of about 160,000 square meters, consisting of over 40 different structures scattered around the site. One of my favourite buildings is shown above, it's in a simple Lanna, with a symmetrical tiered roof, and decorated with Thai and Lanna features such as swan tail (Thai:หางหงส์), balalee (Thai:บราลี).
Dusk was approaching as we looped back another ten kilometres south and headed up a small hill to the Wat Huay Pla Kang (Goddess of Mercy Temple).
Some call it the Red Temple on account of the red tiles of the tiered roof of the nine-storey, 49-meter-high, pagoda there (called the Phop Chok Dhamma Chedi). Within the pagoda is a large sandalwood statue of Guanyin, flanked by her handmaidens.
This temple was built in a mixed Chinese-Lanna architectural style, so it was no surprise to see a couple of Chinese Dragons flanking the steps leading up to the pagoda.
Sitting on another hillock is a giant 26-storey tall statue of Guanyin, the Goddess of Mercy. For a 40THB fare, one can ride an elevator inside the statue to the top for an even better view of the surrounding countryside.
As dusk set in, the pagoda and an adjacent white Thai-style viharn lit up gloriously.
Night had set in when we arrived at the Blue Temple (Wat Rong Suea Ten), and it was just the right moment to view it.
Strangely the dark night, instead of diminishing its beauty, enhanced the gold-trimmed dark/bright blue of the temple.
Night had set in when we arrived at the Blue Temple (Wat Rong Suea Ten), and it was just the right moment to view it.
A beautiful blend of blue and gold welcomes patrons into the temple where a large white statue of a Sitting Buddha is at the main altar.
Guess what? They even have blue ice cream to go with the blue temple! It's made from coconut milk (santan), and coloured with the natural dye of the blue-pea flower.
9:45pm - It had been a long day, yet Mimi managed to squeeze in a late dinner of Thai Food at UAN Phochana (อ้วนโภชนา) in Wiang Pa Pao (halfway back to Chiang Mai).
"Fun Dee Na!"
(ฝันดีนะ; that's good night in Thai)
(ฝันดีนะ; that's good night in Thai)
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THE TRIP DAY 12: AROUND CHIANG MAI
Started the day with a bad episode at Single Origin Store Tha Pae. The food here is pricey but still nice; the only thing is that they are rather calculative. When a friend asked for some hot water to thin down her coffee, they wanted to charge her! And worst, they ran out of bacon and wanted to replace them with tomato, we had to ask them to replace them with eggs which they reluctantly acceded. Other places would have apologised and replaced it with something better, BUT no not this place. Definitely not going back there again!
Not wanting to spoil our holidays, we put that ugly episode behind us and took a walk to the Tha Phae Gate. When we arrived in Chiang Mai a about couple of weeks ago, it was nighttime when we visited, so here we are back again for a daytime view. Both day and night time have their own attractiveness.
ลาก่อนและขอบคุณ
(That's Lā k̀xn læa k̄hxbkhuṇ "Goodbye and Thank You" in Thai)It's half a day at Chiang Mai before we board the Air Asia Flight back to Kuala Lumpur. Here's some of the places we went to & the food we had:
1. Places & Things of Interest
There were many scenic and beautiful places of interest, but one should not miss the following (Refer to the map posted at the beginning of this blog) (Note: click on the GPS coordinates for a directional map to the respective places):
a. Tha Phae Gate (ประตูท่าแพ) (GPS: 18.78772, 98.99325)..
b. Wat Mahawan (วัดมหาวัน) (GPS: 18.78793, 98.99568)..
b. Wat Mahawan (วัดมหาวัน) (GPS: 18.78793, 98.99568)..
2. Food
a. Breakfast: A rather unsatisfactory Western Breakfast at Single Origin Store Tha Pae (No links & GPS here as not recommending this place).
b. Lunch: Thai Chinese food (including santan icecream) at Aroon Rai (ร้านอรุณไร) (GPS: 18.78633, 98.99352). Their Ginger Pork Curry (Hanglei) should not be missed.
b. Lunch: Thai Chinese food (including santan icecream) at Aroon Rai (ร้านอรุณไร) (GPS: 18.78633, 98.99352). Their Ginger Pork Curry (Hanglei) should not be missed.
Started the day with a bad episode at Single Origin Store Tha Pae. The food here is pricey but still nice; the only thing is that they are rather calculative. When a friend asked for some hot water to thin down her coffee, they wanted to charge her! And worst, they ran out of bacon and wanted to replace them with tomato, we had to ask them to replace them with eggs which they reluctantly acceded. Other places would have apologised and replaced it with something better, BUT no not this place. Definitely not going back there again!
Not wanting to spoil our holidays, we put that ugly episode behind us and took a walk to the Tha Phae Gate. When we arrived in Chiang Mai a about couple of weeks ago, it was nighttime when we visited, so here we are back again for a daytime view. Both day and night time have their own attractiveness.
Also revisited Wat Mahawan again, the daytime view of this temple with its Lanna & Burmese style architecture is stunning. This time we managed to go inside to offer some prayers of thanks for having been kept safe during our tour.
After checking out from our hotel, we were back again at Aroon Rai, for a simple lunch and definitely did order their yummilicious Ginger Pork Curry (Hanglei).
(For more photos of the Days 11 & 12, Click Here)
This is page 10 of a 10-page blog, Click Here To Go To Title Page.
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