The City of Chiang Mai

I don´t think I have wrote a word about Chiang Mai so far, the city which has become my home in the past three month. Maybe because this place is already so familiar to me, that I don´t realize its extraordinary beauty anymore.

First of all, Chiang Mai is not only the destination for thousands of travellers every year, but also the economic centre in northern Thailand. In fact, the wealth of the city has grown fast in the last years – I found some old travel guides in the volunteer house and it´s very interesting to compare the Chiang Mai they describe with the one I experience. Chiang Mai isn´t a city where you have to miss anything, maybe that´s why a lot of western people mad it their home.

 Chiang Mai is not as hectic as a big metropolis but has all comfort of city life.  Don´t get me wrong, it´s definitely a busy place, the traffic is always a nightmare and no matter what time, you´ll find always an open bar or street food stable. But there is something about this city, that makes me relax, makes me smile.

Maybe it´s because of all this cosy cafes where you can drink a lot of coffee and where your office work seems to be a little bit easier than home. Maybe it´s because of the small galleries all over the place, showing works of local artists. Seeing their view of Thai society, their thoughts about developments – both positive and negative, I remember works to the invasion on western deserts – their dreams for their country expressed in art impressed me very much. Of course not all art is about social or political issues, it´s just the part that interests me the most. You´ll find a lot of landscapes, self-portraits or abstract sculptures, too. In fact, Chiang Mai´s art scene is much to diverse to describe it in one blog post – it´s a city of art!

Nicola,