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 Chiang
Mai is Thailand's principal northern city. Chiang Mai is the provincial
capital of a largely mountain-out province, also called Chiang
Mai, which is some 20,000 square kilometers in area. Chiang Mai city is
700 kilometers north of Bangkok, was founded in 1296, and is located in
a fertile valley some 300 meters above sea level. Chiang Mai was the
capital of Lanna Thai (Kingdom of One Million Rice fields), the first
independent Thai kingdom within the fabled Golden Triangle.
Chiang Mai flourished as a major religious,
cultural and trading center until 1556 when a Burmese invasion reduced
it to a vassal state. The Burmese were expelled in 1785, where
upon Lanna Thai once again became part of northern Thailand. Many
lowland Thais regard Chiang Mai city and province as being something of
a national Shangri-la, thanks to its beautiful women, distinctive
festivals, historic temples dating from the 1300s, arresting scenic
beauty, temperate fruits such as apples peaches and strawberries, and a
crisp, invigorating cool season climate.
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The people of Chiang Mai enjoy one of the most
distinctive cultural identities in the whole of Thailand. Largely
farmers and artisans, they have their own lilting dialect, their own
customs, their own festivals, their own architectural traditions, their
own indigenous handicrafts, their own dances and their own distinctive
cuisine. Hilltribes also lend a great deal of character and color to the
crisply beautiful mountainous landscape. |
