Chiang Mai

content from wikipedia

Chiang Mai is the largest and most culturally significant city in northern Thailand. It is the capital of Chiang Mai Province, and a former capital of the Kingdom of Lanna (1296–1768). It is located 700 km north of Bangkok, among the highest mountains in the country. The city is along the Ping River, a major tributary of the Chao Phraya River. Chiang Mai means "new city" and was so-named because it was the new capital, founded in 1296, succeeding Chiang Rai (founded 1262) in the capital of the Lanna kingdom.
In recent years, Chiang Mai has become an increasingly modern city and has been attracting over 5 million visitors each year, of which between 1.4 million and 2 million are foreign tourists. Chiang Mai is one of three Thai cities contending to host the World Expo 2020 (the others are Chon Buri and Ayutthaya). It has also recently positioned itself to become a Creative City and is considering to apply for Creative City Status with UNESCO. Chiang Mai is the only tourist destination in Thailand to have made it in to the 2012 list of "25 Best Destinations in the World" of the popular travel website TripAdvisor, standing in place 24.




A moat surrounds the walled city in the older section of town

Chiang Mai's historic importance is derived from its close proximity to the Ping river and major trading routes. While officially the city of Chiang Mai only covers parts of the Mueang Chiang Mai district with a population of 160,000, the urban sprawl of the city now extends into several neighboring districts. This Chiang Mai Metropolitan Area has a population of nearly one million people, more than half the total of Chiang Mai Province.

Loi Krathong - Paper Lanterns

The Loi Krathong Festival (known locally as Yi Peng) is held on the full moon of the 12th month in the traditional Thai lunar calendar. In the western calendar this usually falls in November. Every year thousands of people assemble floating banana-leaf containers (krathong) decorated with flowers and candles onto the waterways of the city to worship the Goddess of Water. Lanna-style sky lanterns (khom fai or kom loi), which are hot-air balloons made of paper, are launched into the air. The sky lanterns are believed to help rid the locals of troubles and are also taken to decorate houses and streets.