A Day Journey from Chiang Mai to Lampang Thailand

Most people visit Lampang by bus, private vehicle or on a group tour. What many do not know is you can go by train through beautiful mountain countryside, which makes getting there a totally different experience.Once you arrive there are several wonderful temples that should be visited that are not on the normal tour circuit. Also, Lampang is famous for it's ceramics industry so a visit to at least one of the factories should be included. Here is my story.

It was a wonderful, cool sunny morning as I headed to the train station in Chiang Mai Thailand. I arrived around 6:30 AM and purchased my ticket to Lampang for 23 Thai baht one way for the 2 and ½ hour ride. This train only had 3rd class seats but that was fine for the short trip. I planned to have breakfast in the dinning car once the train was in the mountain countryside and enjoy the view.

Leaving the city behind we rode through lush rice fields with farmers plowing their paddies pulled by their buffalos. The bright morning sun shimmering on the water filled paddies in contrast with the dark green mountains in the background and the stunning orange and gold temples with red roofs was a colorful sight.

I decided to make my way to the dinning car so I walked slowly from car to car swaying back and forth with the loud click clack as the wheels clambered on the tracks. I entered the dinning car to find the staff fast asleep on the table tops. I made my way to the rear of the car and talked to one of the cooks. She told me that they had worked most of the night on the evening run from Bangkok to Chiang Mai and didn't get to sleep until 4:30 this morning. She asked me what I wanted and I said just a simple omelet with vegetables over rice.

Twenty minutes later she made a place for me to sit at a table and brought my breakfast, which she didn't have to do. I ate among the snores of the tired staff thinking how hard they must work for so little income day after day night after night. When I finished I paid for my meal with a courteous thank you and a generous tip.

We were entering the mountains as the train slowed as the weight of cars resisted the incline against the pull of the engine. I left the dinning car and went to the back of the train where the door was open offering a fantastic view of the valley slipping away in the distance. The rest of the trip would be through dense forest, across streams over high trussed bridges with sheer drop offs and through tunnels.

We made a few stops on side spurs as we waited for the special express and rapid trains to pass on their way to Chiang Mai from Bangkok. As we waited vendors from the nearby villages walked the isles selling Thai sweets and fried rice dishes and fried chicken and barbeques pork.

Coming down the mountain we picked up speed as the tracks straightened out. On the outskirts of Lampang, again there were beautiful rice fields lined with tall palm trees, small temples and farmers working feverously in the paddies. One last bend in the track and we were in Lampang. I was greeted by my driver and formed a plan to visit 4 temples, a ceramics factory and the Friends of the Asian Elephant Hospital.

In the heart of the city you will discover a different form of architecture. The buildings are old, constructed of brick, stone or wood, and columns from floor to roof are a distinctive feature. Balconies adorn the upper levels and large window and door shutters are a predominant characteristic. In many Thai cities, modern day constructions have replaced the buildings of the past, but in Lampang many forms of Lanna architecture can still be seen in old shops and homes that have been retained and preserved. The river is another place to view authentic and ancient constructions. At intervals, old stone bridges straddle the two banks and some of them have been painted in a most attractive blue and white. With one bank bordering the inner city and the other facing onto mainly residential and rural scenes, a trip on a boat down river is an interesting and worthwhile venture.

Lampang also has more than its fair share temples, but it is the diversity of the architecture that make these old places of worship so interesting. Many temples have strong Burmese overtones as a result of the 300-year occupation of both Chiangmai and Lampang, but there is also a strong Lanna influence as that of well as that of the early Haripoonshai period:

Wat Phra Chetuwan is a classic example of Lanna-Thai style, and wooden carvings along the top of the main wiharn are simplistic yet attractive. In a very good state of repair, this temple is worth a look and is only five minutes walk from the city hall on the regular horse-drawn carriage route.

Wat Chedi Zao Laang is one of Lampang's most famous temples as well as being one of the oldest. Dating from the Haripoonshai period (11th - 13th century) one of the many magnificent features of this temple is a large compound holding no less than 20 sparkling white Chedis. This temple is five kilometers out of the city.

Wat Phra Gaew Don Tao is a classic,old style Burmese temple. The wiharn,which is carved from wood, and a gleaming white chedi with a golden spire are at the center of this temple. A visit gives you a better feel as to just how pronounced the Burmese influence was on the Buddhism of the region.

Wat Phra Thart Lampang Luang once housed the famed Emerald Buddha, which rested there for 30 years. The Emerald Buddha has occupied many temples over its history including the Luang Phrabang Buddhist center in Laos and Wat Chedi Luang in Chiangmai. It is now in Bangkok at Wat Phra Gaew. Wat Sri Choom is another Burmese style temple and the center of attraction here are the many wood-carved lintels on the temple buildings. It is also one of the few temples in Thailand that retains the classic Burmese gilt work on the walls and ceiling of its main wiharn.

Lampang is also the center of Northern Thai Ceramics and many of Lampang's kilns are situated on the road leading out of the city to the north. This area, known as Tambon (subdistrict) Hangchat, is composed of traditional northern Thai houses, many built in small compounds housing a number of families, the early version of today's housing estates. Bordering the main road you will find over 20 ceramic kilns in a distance of 2 to 3 kilometers.

Unlike the Chiang Mai ceramics industry, which concentrates on glazed products and the famous Celadon, Lampang covers the whole range of items including stoneware. Blue and White glazed ceramics are the type for which Lampang is famous. Some kilns specialize in simple clay pottery, red and brown colored bowls, vases, and other vessels that are seen so much in everyday use in Thailand, while others make elegant gold-washed blue and white overglaze items. Lampang's own five-color Bencharong ware is another distinctive and attractive product.

Apart from these specialized products, the majority of Lampang's kilns concentrate on painted earthenware items ranging from miniature ornaments, watermelons, chili peppers and lemons, through to flower vases and planters of every shape, size and design imaginable. Everything from dinner services to a vast array of individual coffee cups and mugs are available and every piece is not just hand painted but has also been hand crafted and shaped, even the miniature items. A visit to Lampang must include a visit to some of the kilns, which are an attraction to both commercial buyers and the ordinary person interested in fine ceramics and glazed stoneware.

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