CHIANG MAI, July 5 — Some cities fade away, their glory days long past. Others find a new golden age, relinquishing history in favour of rapid modernisation.
And then there are those who manage to straddle the two: preserving its heritage while embracing gentrification without losing its soul.
In Chiang Mai, the old is new again when seen with fresh eyes.
The buildings are much lower than those in Bangkok, so there is a sense of a more relaxed pace. You wouldn’t have guessed this from the speeding vehicles buzzing by though.
The most distinct are the songtaews, red open-sided pick-up trucks that are Chiang Mai’s version of taxis.
The word songtaew means “two rows” in Thai; when you board the truck, you sit on one of the two long benches facing each other.
It’s another nod to how Chiang Mai doesn’t bother to change with the times (something that is often over-rated) and owns its identity with pride.
The songtaew trucks buzz by us, making rapid U-turns along bridges that intersect the 600-year-old moat that encircle the Old City perimeter.
The banks of the canals are girded by rows of mature trees, offering shade to old men trying to fish and young couples on first dates. Statues of elephants stand guard over the waters.
There is a hypnotic, almost spiritual rhythm to life here in the Old City.
There are coffee shops at every street corner; everyone in Chiang Mai enjoys their local coffee. Backpackers wander around, still holding weathered copies of travel guides instead of staring at their smartphones. Time stands still even if the city doesn’t.
Amidst all the commerce are scores of Buddhist temples such as Wat Chedi Luang and Wat Phra Singh.
Enter some of them and you may encounter a wall of yellow flags emblazoned with a crimson wheel in their centres. These are known as the Dharmacakra (meaning “Wheel of Dharma”) flags; the red Thammachak wheels turn, symbolising great change.
This seems almost counter-intuitive since Chiang Mai is slow to change but perhaps the greatest transformations don’t happen overnight.
What we do experience on our spiritual walk around the Old City is a sense of the circle of life turning all around us. Slowly but surely, life goes on.
Finally we reach what is unofficially considered the heart of the city: the Tha Pae Gate. Once part of the fortress that guarded the Old City, the Tha Pae Gate tells the story of an earlier time when Chiang Mai was the capital of the Lanna Kingdom since the 13th century.
The walls that used to defend the city from attacks from the Mongols are now broken into different sections, of which the Tha Pae Gate is the most impressive.
Naturally there seems to be more tourists here than elsewhere but who could blame them? The gate is quite a sight to behold.
But its immense significance doesn’t distract from the daily necessities of life. Nearby enterprising locals sell sunflower seeds to visitors to feed to the flocks of pigeons, a familiar sight from the Piazza San Marco in Venice to Notre Dame in Paris.
We spot one lucky angler hauling his catch from the canal, then efficiently whacking the fish against a tree trunk. One life ends, but another has his dinner. And so it goes, the circle of life.
As if on cue, we notice a flower garland hanging from the Tha Pae Gate, the orange-yellow blossoms an offering, a giving of thanks for what we have: peace, prosperity and food on the table.
It’s late in the afternoon. The air cools as the midday sun that was beating down on us before is now shielded by gentle clouds.
Before we leave the Old Town, we realise that it’s a Sunday and the weekend market is almost in full swing. Most of the stalls have already been set up, stretching from the Tha Pae Gate area all the way to Rachadamnoen Road.
The clamour of people, locals and visitors, elderly and small children alike, fills every soi with the sound of life. Food and festivity abound: Stalls offer all manner of delicious fare such as kluay tap (charcoal grilled bananas), rod duan (deep-dried bamboo worms) and bua loi (glutinous rice flour balls in coconut cream). Love chicken? There are skewers of gai yang (grilled chicken) and chunks of gai tod (fried chicken); why not have both?
We peruse colourful oil and acrylic paintings displayed like rectangles of rainbows on the ground. Aching feet? Enjoy a foot massage on the pavement, why not? There’s even more to do and behold after the sun goes down as the market crowds roll in.
Clearly the golden age of Chiang Mai is far from over. The old is new again when seen with fresh eyes. The beautiful period continues, only in a different form for all things change, and is simply beguiling in its own way.
Tha Pae Gate
Moon Muang Rd, Chiang Mai, Thailand
Sunday Weekend Walking Street
From Tha Pae to Rachadamnoen Rd, Chiang Mai, Thailand
Open Sundays only 5pm till late
