Thailand - Chiang Rai
Photo Gallery of Chiang Rai.

Chiang Rai was founded by King Meng Rai as the first capital of Lannathai kingdom (Kingdom of a million rice fields) in 1262. Afterwards, capital was moved to Chiang Mai in 1296. Chiang Rai was conquered by Burma and declined but became a territory of Thailand in 1786 and was proclaimed a provinces in Thailand in 1910 during the reign of King Rama VI.
It has Chiang Saen which is a gateway for the " Golden Triangle " where the borders of three countries, Laos, Burma (Myanmar) and Thailand, cross on the river.
It seems that Chiang Rai is called " Switzerland in Thailand " and is famous for the beautiful royal residence " Phra Tamnak Doi Tung " (Doi Tung Palace).
I didn't visit but there is " Wat Phra Kaeo ", best known of the northern temples and once enshrined the Emerald Buddha, the most important Buddha statue of Thailand, now in the royal Wat Phra Kaeo in Bangkok.
About Chiang Saen (Golden Triangle), see the " Photo Gallery of Chiang Saen".
- Around the airport
- Wat Phra That Doi Tung
- Wat Rong Khun
- Akha Village
- Mae Fah Luang Garden
- From Maesai to Myanmar
[ChiangRai] Around the airport |
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About one and twenty minutes will fly you to Chiangrai. Chiangrai is the northernmost province in Thailand. Chiangrai has a long history as Chiangmai. The weather is cool in winter and I like this place very much. (Picture above: The view of Chiangrai airport. Tranquil atmosphere.)
Chiang Rai international airport is located about 8 km from the city. More
than 500 million people use it every year not only for trips but for business.
It's managed by AOT (Airports of Thailand Public Company Limited) since 1998. |
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From BKK (This is the airport in Bangkok (Domestic flight). You must get something to eat, anyway.) |
Aboard (Get it the airplane and let's fly to Chiangrai.) |
View of the city (The city of Chiangrai from the sky. It has a lot of green.) |
Got to Chiangrai (A cozy plane will take you there like this.) |
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Portrait of the King (You'll see a big portrait of the King of Thailand.) |
Seats for monks (There are seats only for Buddhist monks and novices. People in Thailand are very religious.) |
Water here (You can get water. A little interesting shape to me.) |
Let's go into the city (Now, let's go to the city from the airport. Calm atmosphere will welcome you.) |
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Around (Scenery around the airport. Peaceful country view goes on.) |
Face (Human face shaped mountain. Looks like it's the mountain of Doi Tung below.) |
Street (Some people ride on a bike with a parasol.) |
Shop along the street (There are some fruit shops along the street. They have fruit, fruit juice, wine and so on.) |
[ChiangRai] Mae Fah Luang Garden |
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On top of Doi Tung Mountain in the suburb of Chiang Rai, northern
Thailand, they have " Wat Phra That Doi Tung " (posted up of this article), " Doi Tung Palace " (Phra Tamnak Doi Tung - royal villa where King's Mother formerly
resided) and " Mae Fah Luang Garden " that you'll see what it looks like here.![]() I heard that King's Mother is called Mae Fah Luang by people in Thailand. This is why the garden is called "Mae Fah Luang Garden". You'll feel really relaxed here with very wide space, a lot of kinds of flowers and plants, wonderful scenery of the mountain, and fresh air. |
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scenery of the garden 1 (very beautiful with a lot of flowers here and there in the garden) |
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scenery of the garden 2 (This is a scenery of the garden as well. There is a small pond.) |
in front of the garden (It's on the mountain with a spacious atmosphere.) |
if you are thirsty (I didn't try but they have water to drink here and there.) |
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the garden (After a walk, you'll see a wide space with a lot of flowers.) |
statue (Statue in the center of the garden.) |
around the garden (The garden is surrounded by trees with purple blossoms.) |
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cactus (Not only flowers but plants of cactus are growing up in a small house.) |
orchid (Various orchids can be seen all over the place.) |
nepenthes ? (This seems a kind of Tropical Pitcher Plant. Written "Paphiopedilum hirsutissimum"(left) and "Paphiopedilum callosum"(right) on a plate. They may have been improved. |
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facility for research (There is a facility in the garden and you can see what they are working for. A lot of pictures of improved flowers on the wall.) |
[ChiangRai] Akha Village |
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This is a village of Akha tribe, one of hill tribes in Thailand. It's located near Doi Tung Mountain, 2,000 meters high and the highest mountain in Chiang Rai Province. I dropped by here on the way to the Golden Triangle. |
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The village (The atmosphere of the village.) |
Gift shop 1 (Gift shops are along the main street of the village.) |
Gift shop 2 (This is a gift shop also.) |
Gift shop 3 (View from the back of the shop.) |
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Gift shop 4 (These products are sold.) |
People of Akha 1 (Kids of Akha tribe.) |
People of Akha 2 (Mom ? and the kid. They are cheerful and the kid is very cute. :D ) |
People of Akha 3 (Close-up of their native ornament. Beautiful. :) ) |
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House 1 (Bamboo fence. What is this for ? ) |
House 2 (In front of the front door. Chicken is over there. :) ) |
House 3 (Inside the house. Right after the front door.) |
House 4 (Back of the house. Bedroom ..? ) |
Myanmar - Tachileik |
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Now, we enter Tachileik city in Myanmar. Let's go around and see what the city looks like. :) |
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City (Looking down from the gate. A lot of shops along the street.) |
Street 1 (Entering the city, a lot of shops are along the street.) |
Street 2 (Not so a wide street but a lot of shops.) |
Street 3 (It is very warm. Bags or something else are on sale under the strong sunshine.) |
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Street 4 (Is this a main street ?) |
sellers 1 (Sellers are selling around with a lot of bottles of juice on a cart.) |
sellers 2 (This seller is carrying bottles of juice in a basket on his shoulder.) |
sellers 3 (This seller is also selling around with a lot of bottles of juice on a cart.) |
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Shops 1 (Various products are on sale. They are calculators, flashlights, telescopes and so on.) |
Shops 2 (This shop sells CDs and DVDs. Doraemon, a Japanese cartoon, is there...) |
Shops 3 (This shop sells table clocks, musical instruments (guitars) and so on.) |
Shops 4 (This shop sells toys and musical instruments (keyboards).) |
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Square 1 (After the shopping street, you will see a square. The board says " CITY OF THE GOLDEN TRIANGLE ". (About Golden Triangle in Thailand is here) |
Square 2 (After the shopping street, bicycle taxies wait for customers in a line.) |
Back to Thailand 1 (It was only for a short time stay in Myanmar, now, go back to Thailand. The gate on Myanmar side.) |
Back to Thailand 2 (Going through the gate on Myanmar side. The Myanmar letters are round and cute. :) ) |