Steeped In Chiang Mai's Culture

The newly opened InterContinental Chiang Mai The Mae Ping offers tailored experiences for an authentic journey through this mountainous city.

- Haziq Yusof

HERE’S HOW TO make the perfect cup of tea. Start by selecting the right tea leaves. Opt for loose leaves over bagged ones for a more refined flavour. Add two teaspoons of leaves into a cup. Pour in boiled water and let the leaves steep. As you pour, observe how they unfurl. Wait for two to three minutes. Any sooner and the tea will yield a weak flavour. Leave it in for too long and the tea will taste bitter beyond repair. Strain the liquid. Finally, sip and enjoy.

I had memorised this ritual in anticipation of my trip to Chiang Mai. After all, this city to the north of Thailand is just hours away from where fleeing Kuomintang soldiers had established tea plantations to survive. With flavours so steeped in the region’s history, I had to have a taste. But upon arriving in the city, I soon realised that the highly anticipated sampling of the region’s tea would be a mere footnote in my journey.

Old buildings cobbled from a mix of discoloured and reddish-brown bricks are interspersed among a myriad of massage parlours, food stalls and cafes that line the streets. Some of these structures are over 500 years old. Several stand tall, while others are toppled slightly, leaving mounds of bricks and earth whose original purpose can no longer be discerned. People on tuk-tuks and motorbikes zoom past on the busy roads. Occasionally, a biker—lugging a rickety cart behind his vehicle— would stop to offer fresh fruits and vegetables.