Doi Suthep is a mountain just west of Chiang Mai. This mountain is also a national park and contains waterfalls, villages, a royal palace, and a beautiful temple, all of which make it a perfect half-day trip.

Wat Phra That Doi Suthep

My primary destination for the day was Wat Phra That Doi Suthep (generally just referred to as “Doi Suthep” even though that’s just the name of the mountain), which is a Buddhist temple and a Thai holy site.

There is a story about this place that is apparently commonly told here:

A monk was led by a dream to find Buddha’s right shoulder bone. This relic broke in half, and a king placed half of the bone on the back of a white elephant which was released into the jungle. Apparently, the elephant climbed up Doi Suthep, stopped, trumpeted three times, and then dropped dead – which was interpreted as an omen. The king ordered the construction of a temple at the site, and the relic can be found within its construction.

Getting to the temple this morning took a little bit of time. I decided get there by songthaew since this method only costs 50 baht (less than $2). Songthaews are shared taxis with fixed routes, and drivers generally wait for eight people to get into the vehicle before they’ll begin the journey. Because of this, you never know how long you’ll be waiting, and this morning the wait was about 45 minutes. The drive to the temple was also about 45 minutes long, characterized by winding roads leading up the mountain.

In the area where visitors are dropped off to go to the temple, there is a whole section full of shops. As it was nearing noon, I decided to have a meal here before visiting the temple. At a small shop where I only saw locals eating, I ordered my first khao soi – which I’ve been told about a million times to try while I was in northern Thailand. And now I can see why! This was a perfect meal: spicy and creamy and very flavorful.

It was then time to go up to the temple. The journey there first entails a climb of a few hundred steps, flanked on either side by serpents.

Once you reach the top, you take off your shoes just like at any other Thai temple and nearly every other building in Chiang Mai, and enter.

My first reaction to entering the temple was awe at the amount of gleaming gold that was there. The gold looked extra nice against today’s grey sky.

Off of this central courtyard are a few smaller buildings for meditation and prayer. I entered each, sitting down on the carpeted floors while I admired the decoration, murals, and images of Buddha.

Before leaving the temple area, I walked around and admired some of the exterior structures, along with the view of Chiang Mai from this height. The crowds here were a fairly equal mix mix of foreigners, locals coming to pray, and Buddhist monks, which led to a nice opportunity for people-watching.

Finally, I left the temple by taking a funicular back down to the shops.

Break time

I noticed on my map that there was a waterfall (Rup Sadet Waterfall) only about a fifteen minute walk down the mountain from where I was. I decided to take a short walk there and back, and though the waterfall was not too huge or impressive, it was nice to see.

When I got back to the area full of shops where the songthaews were parked, I bought myself a mango smoothie and sat down in a small park to rest. I was joined in this park by a great many ducks and chickens!

Bhubing Palace

I hopped in another songthaew, this time headed toward Bhubing Palace: the winter residence of the Thai Royal Family. It was about a fifteen minute drive further up the mountain.

I was getting so high up in altitude at this point that my visit to the palace mostly took place within the clouds. Visibility was pretty low, and it was raining off and on while I was there. I think this added a dramatic atmosphere to my visit! And I am not sure if the cloudy day was the cause, but I only saw about a dozen other visitors the whole time I was at the palace, so it felt like I had the place to myself.

What they don’t tell you when you go to visit the palace is that you’re not actually allowed into the palace’s buildings. The visit was really a walk around the palace’s gardens, which turned out to be quite spectacular.

I started out in the rose gardens, and then wandered through greenhouses and all sorts of other flowers. [[Prepare yourself for flower photos!]]

Then I entered an area called the fern garden. I’m including some videos here because I was so in love with the sounds of the forest that I was experiencing. At this point, though it was raining, I was completely sheltered by the leaves of the trees overhead.

Another staircase had a sign saying that it lead to a water reservoir. Though I climbed the staircase, I only barely saw the reservoir because of how thick the fog was getting the higher up the mountain I climbed!

At this point, I was satisfied with my palace gardens visit and took a songthaew back into Chiang Mai’s old city.

Wat Phra Singh

The songthaew dropped me off in front of Wat Phra Singh, which is one of a huge number of temples within the old city, and the closest one to my hostel. I went in to visit the temple briefly before going back to the hostel, and it was a very tranquil experience. It apparently contains a renowned image of Buddha, and there were a large number of monks here during my visit. Outside, there is a park full of trees, each of which has some sort of Buddhist ideal written on a plaque nailed to it.

Sunday Walking Street night market

After an hour resting in my hostel, I met back up with Ashley and Amber to visit the Sunday night market. I found the Sunday market one level less crazy than the Saturday one, which suited me just fine. We got some nice food (I had chicken satay, a waffle with bananas, and a lemon-honey juice) and did some souvenir shopping, and then headed back to the North Gate Jazz Co-Op for their rock/blues night.

I walked the fifteen minute journey back to my hostel, and now it is absolutely time for bed.

Get excited: I get to see elephants tomorrow!