Chiang Mai is often regarded as the Northern Capital of Thailand. It's only about four hours south of Chiang Rai by bus. February is a good month to be in Chiang Mai as the city held its annual Flower Festival when the beautiful tropical flowers in the area in full bloom. We were glad to be there the weekend of Flower Festival 2020.
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| All decked up for the Flower Fest |
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| Flowers from the festival-view from Nong Haad Buak Park inside the Old City wall. |
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Flowers Festival
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| Crab cake stall at night market |
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| Wat Phan On beautifully lit up in the middle of the night market |
Our hotel, the Roseate located on a main boulevard across from the moat and walking distance to The Phae Gate, the Old City as well as The Suan Dok Gate (West Gate)
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| View of the city wall across the street from our hotel. |
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| View of a temple behind the moat. |
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The moat across the street from the hotel
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Flower festival lights by the old city wall at Suan Dok gate |
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| Old city wall at West Gate |
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| The old fort wall - West Gate (Suan Dok Gate) |
Chiang Mai has a large concentration of ancient and majestic temples. From our hotel, it's any easy walk to the old city where we can visit many temples, art galleries, gift shops and a central market.
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| Wat Chang Yun |
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Wat Chang Yun
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| Wat Phan On - day time |
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| Wat Phan Thao |
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| Wat Phan Tao - (bamboo) garden |
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| Wat Phan Tao's pond - Buddha image sitting under a Bodhi tree. |
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| Wat Phan Tao - Ceremonial stupa in the background with lots of orange prayer flags. |
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| Wat Chedi Luang located next to Wat Phan Tao |
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Wat Chedi Luang
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Entrance to Wat Phra Singh
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| Many golden elephant statues in Wat Phra Singh compound |
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| Wat Phra Singh - Golden stupas |
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| Wat Phra Singh - sanctuary with wax model of meditating monks |
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Wat Chang Mun
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Wat Chang Mun - Sleeping and Standing Buddhas
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| Three Kings Monument - Located in the center of the city where palaces used to stand. |
We went to a highly recommended restaurant in the old city for Khao Soi lunch. Khao Soi is a famous Chiang Mai traditional meal. It's spicy (from curry) but quite tasty. We're glad to know this local favorite dish.
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| Khao Soi, Chiang Mai's most popular local dish |
We had three wonderful days in Chiang Mai. And could use at least one more full day to explore the hilltops around Doi Inthanon and Doi Suthep. But our time in Thailand has come to a close. We will fly back to Bangkok the next day to get ready for our trip home.
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