Jay and I did not have anything planned for today, so we were able to sleep in. Even though we did not have to get up early, we still were up and eating breakfast by 9. Our hotel, Tamarind Village, provides you with a walking tour of twelve temples or monuments in the area around the hotel. You can either take a guided tour or you can do it on your own. Jay and I elected to do the tour on our own.
You leave out the hotel and the first stop is right across the street, Wat Umong, The next stop was Wat Duang Dee, the name means the Temple of Good Fortune. Next up was The Three Kings Monument. This monument represents King Mengrai, the founder of Chiang Mai city and two allies, King Ram Khamhaeng of Sukhothai and King Ngam Muang of Phayo. Across the street was the Lanna Folklife Museum and behind the statue was the Chiang Mai art & Cultural Center.
After the two museums, the Wat Sadeu Muang is next on the tour. It is a small open sided temple originally built in the 13th century. The name means The Monastery of the City Navel and was believed to be the symbolic center of the city.
The next stop is the Shrine to King Mengrai. This shrine was erected in memory of the city founder. Next we went to the Khum Chao Buriratana. It was the home of a former ruling family of Chiang Mai, It was built in 1889 and combines the colonial style with the traditional Thai style.
Next we headed to the Wat Pan Tao (The Temple of a Thousand Kilns), It is believed that they used to cast buddha images on this site. Next door is the Wat Chedi Luang, which was built in the 15th century. Then it was on to the Wat Prasart and finally Wat Chiang Mun, the cities oldest temple. At the end of the tour I was tired, so we took a Tuk Tuk back to the hotel.
After resting for a while, we decided to go get some lunch, but it was pouring down rain, so we decided to eat at the hotel. I had the steak in a black pepper sauce and it was very good. After lunch we went back to hotel, where I took a nap and Jay went exploring by himself.
At 6, we took a taxi to the night bazaar. We needed to buy another suitcase because we purchased so many souvenirs we did not think they would fit in our two suitcases. We ate dinner while we were there. Then we went looking for a suitcase, After checking at several stalls we found one that was on sale for 990 baht (about $30 US). Then it was back to the hotel by taxi.
