N 117    How we come and live in Cheingmai

I have never imagined to come and live in Cheingmai which is an alienated land. Taunggyi is my hometown and Myanmar is my home country. There is no other place where I can move to if I cannot stay in my hometown. But Thailand offer an option for foreigners to come and stay temporary in their country this year, that we came to grab this opportunity.

When I say I cannot stay in my hometown please don’t take me wrong. We, our whole family have done anything wrong, so as to flee the country, but only the unstableness of the country made us take action. Even if we are right in everyway we cannot say when we will be ignited by stray sparks to fall on us and causing troubles and anxieties.

So hoping to live peacefully even for a short  time we considered to come and stay temporary in Thailand. We chose Cheingmai, where there are many Shan people living there and communicating in Shan language is convenient for everyday activities.

Cheingmai is in the northern part of Thailand and  it’s second capital . It is not a bustling metropolis like Bangkok, but a sprawling vast city surrounded by low mountains on all sides. But this summer the smog is so intense, that the mountains cannot be seen, the air polluted, and temperature rise that cause the city to become an unhealthy place to live in. The city is a little crowded only in the centre ,but beyond that houses are sparse and there are still many vacant plots of land. Because of these  untended plots of land and houses the city is not as pretty as to live up to it’s name.

About its history ….

Cheingmai is an old town built in 1296 as the new capital of Lanna  which means a million rice fields. Lanna Kingdom at that time included Cheingtung, Cheinghung,(Sipsaungpanna ) Luang Prabang (Laos) and had  its own ruler. Sometimes it had to fight with Ayutthia ( Southern Thailand ) and sometimes with the Burmese. That is why the city had to build a  moat and walls to keep the enemy away,  which remnants  of them can still be seen..Zinnme (it was called then ) became a vassel state of Toungoo ( Burmese )from 1556 to 1791 . It was integrated into the Kingdom of Siam in 1899.

The population of the city is over one million as of 2022, so it is not much crowded . Most people living here are Thais and our Tai people. Some say that there are more Tai  people than Thais. Most Tai people are from the Shan State who had fled their homeland because of unrest and come to work for their livelihood. Most have to do manual works like farmworks or construction. But if people from Myanmar get here safely and get a job the wages will be better than they can earn in our country. But unfortunately some are caught by Thai police while crossing into Thai territory and have to face the bad consequences.

As Cheingmai is an old town there are  many historical sites and places of worship like wats, temples and pagodas. Those who like temple visits can visit famous ancient temples like Doi Suthep pagoda, Chedi Leung,Wat Cheingman,etc…Beside these religious places Cheingmai has to offer many places for leisure and knowledge. People can visit museums, parks, walking trails, tribal villages, elephant camps, the famous night bazaar etc…Cheingmai is also liked by Western people that many visited it as tourists and also living here as expats.

Cheingmai is also a cultural city. It is famous for its traditional culture like silk weaving and embroidering, handicrafts made with local material like bamboo, wood, cane and clay. Jewelry made of silver and gold are also famous products of Cheingmai. Because Cheingmai produce splendid and creative arts and crafts it was declared by Unesco  the Creative City for crafts and folk arts in 2017.

These facts are what I have acquired from different sources but not of my personal experience. I had been here only a few times  and stayed not long enough to see and experience all these interesting places, but I hope I will be able to visit and see more in the future as I will be living a little longer this time.

How we live in Cheingmai….

Many people from Myanmar have come and lived in Thailand and Cheingmai now because of the political situations in Myanmar.If someone ask these people including me , if we like living here ,our answer will be “No “ It is not that easy to do so. The transport is better now that we can fly by air which takes only about an hour . But we must have a passport , which is not easy to acquire one now. And a visa  which allow someone to come and stay here which is not our own country.The Thai Embassy give only 14 days for tourists and 3 months the most if we apply for special visas.

But not long before the Thai government offer long term visas for those who want to come and stay. Old people over 50 can apply for retirement visa, but have to stay accordingly to rule like having a fat Thai Bank account, must not work etc; Come to think about it , it is only for the benefit  of this country. We come, we spend, and participate in the economy. We also suffer financially because the exchange rate is not in favour of our currency. And restrictions for non citizens like us are everywhere, like cannot buy land or a house, cannot set up business freely etc.So there is nothing good for expats like us except the condition of electricity, and internet which is excellent. But overall money makes everything here or elsewhere.

I don’t know for how long I will be staying in Cheingmai. I came to stay here because many in our family are coming to stay here. Our grandson Sai Ollie has started to attend school and his mum , my youngest daughter will surely has to stay here at least until the school term is over. Other family members will be going back and forth to our hometown for certain periods. I the oldest in the family cannot go and come as I wish. Travelling needs a lot of energy. So I expect to stay for somewhat long period before I go back and live with whoever are  at this new home.

But our true wish is that all of us can go back joyously and soon to our homeland…..

all photos ....credit to the original photographer