A red-eye flight to Bangkok, a connecting flight to Chiang Mai and a walk through the Walking Market on our first day, we had planned to keep this second day a little light. The plan was to see the pottery works, the silk factory and the umbrella factory during the morning. Chris came and picked us up from the hotel and we soon arrived at the pottery factory. Just two months earlier the Thai King had got married to one of his bodyguards and today was the new Queen’s Birthday. It was a public holiday and the pottery factory was closed. The showroom was open but they do not permit photography, nor were they doing any sales that day. We did get to see their showroom and saw some of the beautiful wares that they were making and selling. It was by no means cheap, but then quality and class come at a price.
Our next halt was the Shinawatra Thai Silk Factory, a reputed place for good quality Thai Silk. Fortunately, they were open and we were given a guided tour of the small factory where about 4 or 5 women were going about their work. The silkworm cocoons are placed in boiling water, which loosens the silk thread, and this thread is wound on to a wheel, the process being quite similar to how a charkha spins cotton to a thread. This silk thread is then dyed, wound on to bobbins and then hand woven using handlooms into silk fabric. This fabric is used for dress material, scarves, neckties and other fashion wear, which were on display and on sale at their beautiful and well stocked showroom. We spent a fair amount of time here, indulged in a bit of shopping, photographs, and then moved on to the next attraction – the Doi Saket Umbrella Factory.
Pictures of our visit to the Silk Factory are below:
Thai Umbrellas are another attraction and are known the world over. They are hand crafted out of bamboo and oil paper or fabric, hand painted once assembled and are often used for decorative or for ceremonial purposes. At the factory, there is a team of about 20 people, working in an assembly line kind of set up, each doing his own portion of what goes into the umbrella – the handle, the mechanism, the canopy, then the assemblers, the painters, till finally the completed product is ready to be sold or shipped. Many of the workers have spent their entire lifetime here, doing just this work, and many of them have pictures of themselves with the Thai Royal Family where they have been honoured or praised for their work. In keeping with the times, the painters will also do a paint job on your mobile phone cover, or hand paint your jeans if you so desire. Some pictures from our visit to the umbrella factory are below.
After this we headed back to the city for lunch. A quick Thai Lunch at a cozy little Thai place, unfortunately my sea food dish was not what I expected it to be. My sea food is limited to Fish and Chips or some prawns and crab meat thrown in at a Chinese Meal. This one had squid, octopus and other stuff which actually scared me, and then only thick noodles and no rice. Bad choice of dish and my fault. The place has rave reviews and one actually has to wait for a table. After lunch Nira and Chris needed to go and visit one of their colleagues who happened to be in town, which was fine, and Tiny and I took off on our own to visit some of the many temples that Chiang Mai is well known for. Actually they are not temples, they are Wats. A wat is a whole complex place of worship consisting of many buildings and structures and a temple is just one part of the Wat. You know you always think that once you’ve visited one temple, you’ve seen them all. But in Chiang Mai, we were able to visit 5 out of the 6 Wats that we had earmarked to visit, all within reasonable walking distance of each other, and believe me, each one was unique and different. Besides, it was the Queen’s Birthday and all of them wore festive looks and were full of happy people. I think it is best I just add photographs of the Wats for you to admire and refrain from adding the intricate and historical details about these beautiful places. The picture gallery is below:
An interesting sight that can be seen in the photographs at one of the Wats is how holy water is sent by a rope cable, to be poured over the Buddha which is at a considerable height. The devotees pour the water into a tubular vessel, which is the pulled by a rope and sent upwards. At the right moment, the container is turned downwards by pulling at another rope which is also attached to it and the water falls on the Buddha and bathes it. Like the Shiva Abhsihekam in India (bathing the Lord Shiva).