Temples and food - a brief introduction to Chiang Rai

A modern provincial capital, Chiang Rai lacks the old-town charm of some other northern towns, but makes up for it with a great local food scene and markets, a few spectacular temples, good quality and affordable accommodation, and friendly people.

You'll find a wide selection of cafes and restaurants scattered across the town centre: high end coffee shops, vegetarian curry rice restaurants, cheap noodle places and international cuisine. The night bazaar features a busy food court (filled with locals enjoying sukiyaki, beer, and pop singers) and a semi-deserted tourist-oriented restaurant (with well-dressed waiters), plus tonnes of stalls selling snacks, clothes and housewares. There's also walking streets on the weekend, with the Saturday night one being the more central and touristy of the two.

An unmissable local site is the Blue Temple (Wat Rong Suea), just across the river north of the town centre (a 40 min walk or you can take a sorngtaew), where you'll end up chatting with groups of local school children eager to practice their English, and will get tempted by the blue ice cream and sticky rice for sale in the temple grounds.

The other unmissable site is the White Temple (Wat Rong Khun). Either an unconventional absurdist masterpiece or a weird kitsch wonderland, the site combines elaborate decor with pop culture references. Michael Jackson and Superman are painted alongside the Buddha in the murals, and the grounds feature a sculpture wall of famous movie monsters. Its.... different.

The White Temple is 13km southwest of the town centre - local buses and sorngtaews will take you there (some of them will drop you on the highway, a 2 minute walk from the temple entrance).

Yes, that is the xenomorph from Alien

Finally, I'd also really recommend the private Oub Kham Museum, near the site of the Sunday Walking Street (itself a great, less-touristy place to stuff your face). The museum crams a spectacular collection of local history and artifacts into a series of interconnected buildings, surrounded by courtyards, and is little visited so you are likely to end up being shown around privately by the staff. It's well worth a visit.