en.infoglobe.cz » Thailand VII: Chiang Mai – City with the Taste of Coffee - VIDEO
Thailand VII: Chiang Mai – City with the Taste of Coffee - VIDEO
Published: 7.7.2015
Countless shrines, dozens narrow streets with beautiful old houses, luxurious hotels, museums, omnipresent food aromas, and the best coffee in Thailand. You will fall in love with Chiang Mai instantly. There are kind people, international atmosphere, and it is really clean in there.
Chiang Mai is about 700 kilometers from Bangkok. The city makes a natural center of northern Thailand. Its international airport connects it to other local airports such as in Laos, Cambodia, Vietnam, Philippines, Barma or Malaysia. You can travel with one of many daily flights to Bangkok and directly take a flight to Europe or Dubai. A one-way flight tickets only occassionaly costs you more than 1000 crowns. Even if you had bought it on the day you would fly.
Another pleasant option how to travel from Bangkok to Chiang Mai is a night train. The train is bit cheaper than a flight. Thanks for it you also save one night worth of money for accommodation. Carriages are clean, beds comfortable, and the journey very safe. Just beware that you have to book your train ticket in the morning before your departure at least. You can do it only at the train station (travel agencies would ask you thrice the money). The cheapest means of transport is by bus. Even in this case you can count mostly on much better standard than in Europe.
Should you be interested in Thai shrines , then you can spend many days in Chiang Mai exploring them without getting sick of it. Moreover, there are many architectonic styles to see. Every shrine has its specific atmosphere. Be sure to see Wat Doi Suthep that was built on a hill behind the city. It will show you unforgettable vista of local landscape and the mountains that surround Chiang Mai.
City’s oldest temples Wat Chiang Man, Wat Chedi Luang are also worth a visit. They show typical architecture of the 15th century kingdom of Lanna, or Wat Umong – cave and forest shrine near local university.
Interesting options are the so called „monk chats” that take part in the city center. Many local monks know English perfectly. They would gladly talk with you about Buddhism, local history or they can tell you about how one can become a monk and what such a life brings. Don’t be afraid to ask about anything that is interesting for you. Monks are really friendly, and helpful.
You can take a walk to many places in Chiang Mai yet the best way to explore the city is by bike. I had rented mine for 40 baths a day. The only thing I had to do was to give my ISIC card (no longer valid, by the way) as a deposit. Don’t forget that the left is the side you drive in Thailand!
Místní historii a kulturu vám krom mnichů přiblíží i několik zajímavých muzeí jako například Chiang Mai National Museum, City Arts and Cultural Center nebo Tribal Museum, kde vám představí několik horských domorodých kmenů a jejich tradice.
Jestli jsem již několikrát vychvaloval thajské jídlo, tak právě Chiang Mai je místo, které mě nadchlo ze všech nejvíce. Stovky pouličních stánků, rozsáhlé trhy, nekonečný výběr chutí i barev, všudypřítomná nasládlá vůně grilovaného masa, omáček a koření, čerstvé ovoce a fresh džusy, ale i luxusní high-end restaurace s nejlepšími kuchaři celé Asie. Mimochodem, trochu to tu připomíná pohádku o dvanácti měsíčkách, v lednu koupíte na každém rohu vynikající čerstvé jahody...
Chiang Mai got famous for some interesting festivals. Perhaps the most famous and most beautiful is Loi Krathong that takes place on the full moon in the 12th Thai month, usually November. On this day, thousands of lanterns shine in the city. Locals set afloat small boats made from banana leaves decorated with flowers and candles. In such a way they worship gods in a belief the rest of the year will be under the omen of good luck. In mid April, many people travel to Chiang Mai to celebrate Songkran, Thai New Year to which dozens of religious celebrations are related and also parades and cultural events.
To many visitors Chiang Mai is an ideal boot camp from where they set off to the mountains. You can choose from hundreds of offers starting with one-day trips and even adventures lasting three weeks. Some indigenous tribes live in Thailand’s north mountains. However, it is really difficult to find such that are not just a tourist attraction. However, local travel agencies will take you to such tribes that would give you an idea how life in the mountains would look like.
Around Chiang Mai you can find the best Thai coffee farms . The mountains have ideal climate for the Arabica kind. I highly recommend to visit a coffee farm to have idea about the work behind your morning cup of coffee.
Thanks to local coffee plantations you can enjoy the best coffee in Thailand in Chiang Mai. Perhaps even in all of southeast Asia. Of course, it is cultivated on local plantations and it is freshly roasted. For instance, Nine One Coffee or Akha Ama are world famous cafes..
Chiang Mai is for countless reasons the most popular destination among digital nomads (i.e. people who can work remotely) from all around the world. Thanks to the fact that you can count on high hygienic standard there, perfect English, and pleasant, cosmopolite atmosphere. I think that Europeans, Australians, and even Americans take the best to Chiang Mai from our culture. But stress and worthless worries they leave on the other side of the ocean. Even though more than million people live there you will feel like at home.
The Phu Hin Rong National Park is home to countless beautiful places. Among other things, the unique stone formations Lan Hin Taek and Lan Hin Pum. Many Thais come here for the unforgettable sunsets and exits of Phu Tubberk.
Most visitors to North Thailand visit only Chiang Mai and its surroundings. A bunch of daredevils go to Chiang Rai or Mae Hong Son, sometimes someone stops at Phayao. Few people, however, take a trip to the province of Nan at the border with Laos, yet there are countless places to find.
Even in case of Thailand, the Chinese influence is felt very present. But the town of Mae Salong was founded by the Chinese in the mountains in the north of the country in the 1960s. From the beginning, he was mainly opiate, but today, you have an ideal opportunity to look at tea plantations and taste great food from Yunnan Province in South China.
An ancient city in northern Thailand, the history of which dates back to 1296, was famous for its more than three hundred Buddhist temples. Wat Chedi Luang in the very center of the city is one of the most famous, oldest and most visited, so let's take a look at it together.
Ang Khang is an astonishingly beautiful area in the mountains slightly over three hours of ride from Chiang Mai. Thousands upon thousands of visitors from Thailand travel here. We didn't meet any foreign tourists during the whole day. Villages where ethnic minorities live, a botanic garden, tea plantation, and amazing vistas are all worth the long journey.
The climate in the mountains in the north of Thailand is very different to the south of the country. Mountains usually rise as high as 1500 meters. Temperatures can easily drop below 10 degrees Celsius in winter. That's why strawberries are grown here, for instance. The mountain climate is great for high-quality arabica coffee as well. About 50 kilometers from Chiang Mai town, there is a coffee plantation I went to visit. It was there where I finally realized how much work is behind one simple cup of coffee.
80 kilometers north of Bangkok there is Ayutthaya, former capital of the Siam empire, today's Thailand. Many historic temples and palaces make it one of the most popular tourist destinations in the area. We take a peak at it today.
The north of Thailand consists, for the most part, of beautiful mountains that rise to over 2 000 meters above sea level. Here you will find waterfalls, karst caves, ethnic villages and secluded Buddhist temples. Let's now go together to the Chiang Dao National Park and at the same time to the 3rd highest mountain of Thailand.
When I was arriving at the center of Krabi province I didn’t expect much. Guidebooks don’t mention it at all and it is rather an obligatory stop for many travelers while transporting to local islands or to nearby Ao Nang resort.
Krabi province in south Thailand has been more and more popular. Ao Nang resort and Ko Phi Phi are its greatest attractions. They offer splendid sceneries around limestone cliffs, many great bars, restaurants, and nearby are beaches like Railay, Ko Poda, and Ko Hong which are among the most beautiful in all Thailand.
Ko Lanta island is an ideal place for peaceful rest, or to enjoy cool tropical atmosphere of southern Thailand. Half-empty beaches, bungalows, and small pensions scattered across coconut groves will enchant you. The same applies to sleepy bars, restaurants, and there are also great possibilities where to dive, or you can visit a vast national park in the mountainous middle of the island. It will take you mere three hours to get there from the Krabi airport.
Most of us, when we say Thailand, think of the famous Thai islands of Phuket and Samui. But have you ever heard of Koh Chang in eastern Thailand? Koh Chang is one of the largest islands in the Gulf of Thailand, located near the border with Cambodia. Not only is it full of white sandy beaches, but it also offers unique natural attractions. The shape of the island's promontory resembles an elephant's trunk, and it was the elephant's head that inspired its naming, even though the elephants did not originally live in the area.
Let's end the latest series of articles and videos from near-uncharted by tourists parts of northern Thailand to end up in a region that surprised me most of all. In the vicinity of Loei and Phetchabun, you will find beautiful table mountains, beautiful jungles, waterfalls and amazingly nice and hospitable people.
Approximately 400 kilometers north of Bangkok, you will find the once powerful and fabulous but long-deserted city of Sukhothai. In the 13th and 14th centuries it served as the center of the first major empire on the territory of today's Thailand and Laos. Even though it has been abandoned for more than 200 years, it still breathes old glory and is definitely something to admire. Let's take a look at it together.
Approximately 450 kilometers north of Bangkok you will find several unique table mountains, most of which protect national parks. One of the most interesting is Phu Hin Rong Kla, predominantly in the Phitsanulok province. Here you will find the unique rock formations of Lan Hin Taek, to which we are now going together.
Endless beaches with white coral sand, countless of Buddhist temples, breathtaking mountain vistas, many kinds of exotic life, and vivid life in the capital.
Let's explore the other less known places of northern Thailand together. Mountains, lakes, jungles, sunken villages and excellent food. This time in the video and the story, we head south to Chiang Mai to the interesting sandstone formations and the Doi Tao Lake.
Thailand is the most popular tourist destination in Southeast Asia. There is everything you can expect from perfect vacation. Beautiful beaches, perfect cheap cuisine, many cultural and historical sights, Thai massage, unforgettable full moon parties. More than 16 million tourists visit Thailand every year.
I had never been particularly interested in Thailand. Yet me and my friend decided to give it a chance so we travelled to the land of smiles. When we got out of the airport to Skyline ground subway, Thais gave us adviced where to get a ticket, for how and they always smiled at us.
In previous work we have gained sine basic idea of Bangkok and also of what makes it interesting for tourism. In today's episode we look at some of Bangkok's top attractions.
When talking about Thailand many think of beaches with snow white sand and never ending party in Bangkok. Only handful visit the north of the country and if they usually don't go anywhere beyond the towns of Chiang Mai, and Chiang Rai. The entire north of the country has beautiful mountain ranges, wild nature, beautiful native villages, and best conditions for making a trip by bike. So let visit the northernmost national park in Thailand today - Doi Pha Hom Pok.
Ko Tao, a beautiful island in the Gulf of Thailand that is known as a diver’ paradise. When you arrive to the island, first things you will see are granite stones scattered around great part of the island, they basically create the island.
We have already mentioned the Phra Nang beach. It is the most beautiful beach (like popular Railey beaches) on cape Laem Phra Nang. The best thing about this beach is that there are no bungalows (only 2 exits from 5 star bungalows).
As it has been already mentioned, the Leam Phra Nang peninsula is known for its four beaches - Railey West Beach, Railey East Beach, Ao Phra Nang and Ton Sai.
In the very north of Thailand, there is the town of Thaton laying on the River Kok. The river flows here from Burma. It flows at the edge of Doi Pha Hom Pok National Pakr. Then, between the mountains it runs to Chiang Rai, and then to the borderline with Laos where it flows into the Mekong. If you are one for some adventure, take a small boat from Chiang Rai to Thaton. The journey is great. It is an adventure which can continue in Doi Pha Hom Pok National Park.
When you say Chiang Mai people mostly think of Chinese lanterns, hundreds of them flying towards the full moon. I spend the better part of winter in this north Thai town. When I planned my journey there I didn’t hope for making it to see the festival. Eventually I made it. And it was the best experience of my life.
Emerald islands scattered in the Andaman Sea, mysterious caves with 3000 years old paintings on the island of Ban Tho BHO or slender and tall karsts formations, towering waves of the azure sea. The province of Krabi in southern Thailand's most popular harbours several places across the country and ranks as the sites where you will visit every year a huge amount of visitors.
Do you want to rest from your everyday worries and visit some place with a absolutely different climate? Do you want to have some sporting activity during your vacation (including climbing)? One of the best option is Thailand, a country in southeastern Asia.
Lovely Thailand each year of its beauty lures millions of tourists. They are looking there primarily the gently arms of the Andaman and South China Sea, many of them have just as easily fail Thai inland, high mountains with tropical forest, smiling Thai girls or mystical Buddhist temples.
You can choose from hundreds of offers starting with one-day trips and even adventures lasting three weeks. Some indigenous tribes live in Thailand’s north mountains. However, it is really difficult to find such that are not just a tourist attraction. However, local travel agencies will take you to such tribes that would give you an idea how life in the mountains would look like.
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