CHIANG RAI is the northernmost major city in Thailand, with a population of about 200,000, located in the Chiang Rai Province.

HISTORY
The city was founded by King Mangrai in 1262 and became the capital of the Mangrai Dynasty. The word 'Chiang' means 'city' in Thai, so Chiang Rai would mean 'the City of (Mang) Rai'. Subsequently, Chiang Rai was conquered by Burma and remained under Burmese rule for several hundred years. It was not until 1786 that Chiang Rai became a Chiang Mai vassal. Siam (Thailand) annexed Chiang Mai in 1899, and Chiang Rai was proclaimed a province of Thailand in 1933.

In 1432, during the reign of King Sam Fang Kaen of the Mangrai Dynasty (1402–1441), the Phra Kaeo, or Emerald Buddha, the most revered Buddha statue, was discovered in Chiang Rai when an earthquake split the chedi at Wat Phra Kaeo of Chiang Rai city. The beautiful jade figure was then seen concealed within. Another telling of the story has the "Emerald Buddha" hastily covered in mud just before marauders entered to pillage. Many years later, the clunky-looking mud Buddha was found to actually house a magnificent jade statue, perhaps by way of the earthquake mentioned above—which caused a piece of the clay to break off—revealing the jade beneath.

GEOGRAPHY
Chiang Rai lies on the flat alluvial plain of the Kok River, a tributary of the Mekong, between two hill ranges in the north and south. The Kok River runs along Chiang Rai's north side, flowing eastwards out of Burma, bending north-east and joining the Mekong River about 40 km (25 mi) north-east of the city. The Lao River, a tributary of the Kok, flows south of Chiang Rai.

There are four bridges spanning the Kok River within the town's boundaries. Most of the terrain surrounding Chiang Rai town is either flat or has moderate hills. The exception is outward in the west and north-west directions, where limestone hills are evident, some of which have vertical exposed cliffs. Most of the region's hill tribes have their villages in this north-westerly direction.

The city is 860 km (530 mi) north of Bangkok, about 200 km (120 mi) north-east of Chiang Mai, 62 km (39 mi) south of the Burmese border; and 90 km (56 mi) north of Phayao town. The Golden Triangle, the tripoint of the Thailand, Laos and Myanmar borders, is some 55 km (34 mi) north-east of the city.

Chiang Rai has a tropical wet and dry climate. Winters are fairly dry and warm. Temperatures rise until April, which is hot with the average daily maximum at 35C (95F). The monsoon season runs from late April through October, with heavy rain and somewhat cooler temperatures during the day, although nights remain warm.

In this last set on Chiang Rai, I present images from out hotel grounds and on the adjacent Mae Kok River as the night descends and the hotel gears up for a night-time outdoors party.


Notes
TRIP INFO: Set # 1 provides a brief introduction to THIS SERIES on SOUTH & EAST ASIA. See it at
https://www.uglyhedgehog.com/t-724330-1.html

THAILAND COUNTRY INFO in set # 143: https://www.uglyhedgehog.com/t-755664-1.html

EARLIER POSTS of this series: Access my topic list at UHH, the new posts are listed in reverse chronological order:
https://www.uglyhedgehog.com/user-topic-list?usernum=45105

Thanks for visiting, for improved clarity please view the downloads. I look forward to your comments and questions.

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