Temples, temples, temples everywhere we look!

Chiang Mai, Day 66

Well, I feel much more like my 'normal self' today. I'm not sure if that's because I've been rested and caught up on some much-needed sleep or because I am starting to catch up once again on my backlog of blog posts, so it feels like I am back in control of these again. However, I also did a little research last night, and today we decided to get a Grab ( less than £4) to the Wat Phra Singh Temple in the walled city as our starting point for the day. This means we save a 40-minute walk just to get there, and we can enjoy this place whilst we are still fresh and not too hot and sweaty from the heat. Then we can wander around more and for a bit longer in the walled city before starting to walk back to the apartment.

I have suggested to R that we do need to try the Songthaews (shared taxi vehicles), but he's not very keen on them at the moment - so I might need to persuade him a little more...

If going to visit temples, it's worth remembering that all visitors must ensure they are dressed respectfully. This includes covering knees, shoulders, and midriffs. Don't worry, it's only the shoulders that I need to worry about and I carry a very light scarf in my bag for when needed.

Wat Phra Singh (also known as the “Monastery of the Lion Buddha’ or the ‘Temple of the Lion Buddha’) is a Buddhist temple and ranks as one of the most revered temples in the northern parts of Thailand. It is located in the heart of the old city of Chiang Mai. It currently houses hundreds of monks who still live, work, and pray here.

The temple was originally constructed in 1345 when King Phayu had a chedi built to house the ashes of his father King Kham Fu. It underwent some renovation in the early 19th century but generally, it remains unchanged. King Ananda Mahidol (Rama VIII), bestowed upon it the status of Royal temple of the first grade in 1935.

One of the most significant parts of Wat Phra Singh is the presence of the Phra Singh, also known as the Lion Buddha. This statue is housed in the tiny chapel at the back of the temple’s compound. A walk inside the temple will lead you up to the gold-laced patterns and stunning murals.

The compound includes several buildings, including the Lai Kam assembly hall, a library housing ancient Buddhist scriptures, and a large reclining Buddha.

I also really enjoyed all the little notices that were hung around the garden grounds in both Thai and English. The gardens all around this temple are really beautiful, and there are lovely shaded areas and benches to sit at and admire, contemplate, or have a drink of water at (we do all three!).

There are also markets located on the grounds where you can purchase trinkets, food, and cold drinks.

After we leave the beautiful temple of Wat Phra Singh, we start walking along the Singhharat Road, and very quickly, we come across another temple.

Wat Pha Bong is a small Buddhist temple located just off the famous Wat Phra Singh.

Inside, the red colour is dominant, at the level of the apparent frame, columns, or side walls. The latter are also punctuated with frescoes on the life of the Buddha.

The altar, at the back of the room, presents several statues, two of which in particular have a sacred character.

The largest Buddha first, by its dimensions, but also the smallest in front of him, with his ushnisha (the bulge at the top of the head that takes here in the form of a lotus bud) then his crossed legs define the position of the lotus.

There are multiple signals and messages in different languages, as well as flowers decorating the surroundings.

It seems a much quieter temple with fewer visitors.

We continue along this long, straight road towards the right-hand side of the city wall and moat area. By this point, we are also looking for a place to have some lunch. We see several places, but nothing that is grabbing our attention. One of the things that also puts R off a place is if he sees too many foreigners in it! So we discount the pub and weed-selling type of establishments and just continue on some more. As we reach the ancient wall, our eyes take hold of another very impressive-looking temple.

Wat Lok Moli is another Buddhist temple in Chiang Mai. The temple is situated on the north side of the north moat surrounding the old part of the city, about 400 meters west of the Chang Phuak city gate.

It is not known when the temple was built, but it is first mentioned in a charter in 1367 CE.

The sixth king of the Mangrai dynasty, King Kuena (1355-1385), invited ten Buddhist monks from Burma to spread their teachings on Theravada Buddhism. The monks were housed in this temple.

In 1527, King Ket commissioned the chedi, and in 1545, he also had the vihara (assembly hall) built.

The ashes of several members of the Mengrai dynasty were placed in this temple. Until the demise of their dynasty, the Mengrai royal family took the responsibility for maintaining the temple. The ashes of Queen Wisutthithewi are interred in a chedi at the temple.

The brickwork of the large chedi is left mostly bare; this is in contrast to the often recently stuccoed chedis of other temples in Chiang Mai. Of note are the finely sculptured Nāgas and the wooden temple façade. The temple is aligned along a north-south axis – most Buddhist temples are orientated towards the east, towards the rising sun.

• Viharn, the entrance

• Viharn, the interior

• The chedi

• Several shrines at the left side of the vihara

I enjoyed this temple - it had a real charm to it and we left behind a little reminder on the cloth writing pad of our visit.

After this, R spotted a KFC nearby, and well, yes we did go there for lunch which was fine and it had good air conditioning which is always a welcome bonus!

Following lunch, we crossed back over to the city wall area as we spotted another impressive-looking temple, just opposite Wat Lok Moli.

Wat Rajamontean is Located across from Wat Moli on Sri Poom Road. It's an elegant temple complex, beautifully decorated, and as usual, has unique qualities. This Temple was built in the 15th century, during the reign of one of the Lanna Kingdom's most famous monarchs, King Tilokanat. The most distinctive attraction is the north-facing, Beautiful, Gigantic Buddha statue in the posture of the Earth's Witness. The Viham is a 2-story temple with many crowned Buddha statues, wearing ornate robes and intricate ornaments of power and stature, in the style of Chakravaratin, the Universal Ruler. Spacious and beautiful, it is a very sacred space, active with monks.

There is a rare display of 9 large "luknimit" stone balls, which are usually buried in the ground to mark the boundaries of the temples.

We then continued along Sri Poon Road for a bit and came across Wat Khuan Khama.

Wat Khuan Khama has a distinctive horse theme due to a touching tale that led to the establishment of the temple here in 1492. The notice board at the entrance retells the story of a horse groom and soldier serving under General Jaomun Damtuang who, when his much-loved horse died, decided to donate his land for the building of a new temple in commemoration of the horse. He named the temple “Khuan Khama” (or “Khunkama” or “Khuan Kama”).

I think it was just as we were about to go into this temple that a Thai lady (in her 30s, I'd say) fell nearby us as she was walking, and we went to help her up, but she declined any assistance. A Thai gentleman from the temple and another passerby also tried to offer assistance, but she declined that, too. I think she was perhaps a little in shock and did not want to move as she stayed on the ground for quite some time, and when we left the temple, she had moved herself against the temple wall, was still sitting down, and was cleaning her grazed wounds. I guess she had perhaps called for someone to come and pick her up, but this time we just let her be and walked on. It was a somewhat odd encounter and experience.,

We were making our way to the Three Kings Monument along Prappokklao Road when we almost walked past Wat Saen Muang Ma, which would have been an absolute travesty!

Once we were within the compound, we realised that this was a hidden gem, with a beautiful and well-decorated temple. The Viharn was beautiful with a three-tier roof and steps guarded by naga. The smaller Viharn, on the left, had a sitting Buddha. The Ubosot steps were also guarded by naga and two guards standing on either side of the door. In contrast, the chedi looked very old. There were bell towers, which were also highly decorated. This place is a ‘must-visit’ in our opinion.

The temperature and walking were starting to get to us now, so we decided that the Three Kings Monument would be our last key point for today, and then we would head back to the apartment for a shower and rest.

The Three Kings Monument

This monument is located in the center of Chiang Mai, in the area where palaces used to stand. The monument is dedicated to the three Northern Lao Kings who founded the city of Chiang Mai.

The Three Kings Monument consists of the bronze statues of King Mengrai, the founder of Chiang Mai, and his two friends, King Ramkamhaeng of Sukhothai and King Ngam Muang of Payao, who are believed to have worked together to build the city. This has become an iconic part of the city and is reproduced in different forms and installed in different parts of Chiang Mai. There is a square in front of the monument, which is the venue for many festivals.

The Three Kings Monument is located inside the city walls at the centre of the old city. The monument stands in front of the Old Provincial Hall building, which is today the City Art and Culture Centre. The locals regard the monument as a shrine for the three kings. They offer flowers, incense, and candles to the statue to invoke the blessings of these great Kings who conceived of the idea of the city of Chiang Mai.

However, by the time we reached the monument, there were lots of preparations in progress for some sort of event, so we couldn't get near to it to take any good photos.

The area looked a little like a smaller version of a city square with various government-style buildings around it. We decided that we would come back another day when the area was less busy with preparations and we could look around the area easier, so then started to make our way back to the apartment and took the south gate exit on our way back (as opposed to the route taken by the taxi driver earlier in the day).

A useful site if you want to know more details about a lot of the temples in Chiang Mai: https://doorswindowsblog.wordpress.com/

Our rough route plan is below:

Chiang Mai, Thailand

24 January 2025