Day 253: Chiang Dao
We had to backtrack through Chiang Mai as we continued our road trip up north, so we left the hotel early in order to make it to Chiang Dao by midday. While Chiang Dao is also a mountainous area, we were blessed with sunshine and nice weather instead of fog and clouds. The main draw in this area is the eponymous cave temple – a maze of stuffy, dark tunnels that meander through the mountain, filled with Buddha statues and small shrines. We had plenty of time to leisurely explore the Chiang Dao Cave, as well as a few other pretty mountain temples during the afternoon.
While our trip to Chiang Dao was a bit of a fly-by on our way north, we discovered that we would be missing out on a couple other cool attractions: sadly, we were a day late for the Tuesday Market, when the hill-tribe villagers come to town and sell produce and local handicrafts; there’s also a two-day trek to the summit of Doi Chiang Do. Oh well, next time!
We arrive in Chiang Dao right before noon, so we register at our hotel (where we get a generous plate of welcome fruit – yum!) before heading off to the temples
The entrance to Wat Tham Chiang Dao – a Buddhist cave-temple
Buddha statues fill the chambers of the cave temple. Certain rocks inside the cave are also wrapped with cloth and have offerings left nearby – locals believe spirits live there (an element the leftover Thai Animism religion – similar to the “spirit houses” that Thais build outside their homes)
The best part of the temple is the interior section of caves. Tourists are not allowed to explore this section solo – we had to hire a local guide for about USD $6 who carried a gas lantern to light to way. We felt very Indiana Jones, as there are many narrow tunnels where you have to crawl thorough on your hands and knees to pass into the next chamber!
Lindsay admires the odd and beautiful cave formations in Chiang Dao
After the guided section, we are allowed to walk ourselves into the colorfully lit cave of Tham Phra Non
At the very end of the Tham Phra Non cave is a reclining Buddha statue – unlike most we have seen up until now (where the Buddha is laying on his side, facing visiting devotees), this Buddha is lying flat on his back, facing the ceiling
Back outside in the sunshine, we see HUGE catfish swimming in the pond below – the temple sells fish food so visitors can feed the fish for good luck – as well as some colorful goldfish in the potted fountains
As we walk along the mountainside, we see lots of Buddha statues – some covered in gold, some covered in moss – hidden in the trees
The Chiang Dao Mountain has several gorgeous temples in the area
Before we left the hotel we asked for sight-seeing recommendations – Wat Tham Pha Plong is a quiet temple at the top of a steep 500-step staircase (which explains the lack of visitors!)
We were entertained by Buddhist quips during our climb up to the temple – some were motivational, some were more somber – kinda reminded us of the cynical “Commuter’s Lament” verses in the tunnel between Port Authority and Times Square
The scenic temple of Wat Tham Pha Plong, in Chiang Dao
The monks living in the temple follow a strict schedule set up by Pha Plong’s Late founder, renowned Thai monk Luang Pu Sim, including a 3AM daily wake-up call! No wonder the place is so quiet – people must be exhausted…
Igor admiring the scerey at Wat Tham Pha Plong
Our hotel is run by a German guy who married a Thai woman, so the menu has a few Western options, including a really tasty fish mousse. As we were chatting with the owner, we found out that his wife will give free “mini cooking lessons” to interested guests – all you have to do is come to dinner early and she’ll teach you how to cook whatever you ordered for dinner! What a shame we are only staying one night – Lindsay would have loved to take a Thai cooking class