What’s Happening?
+ ARTS & EXHIBITIONS Now – 20th June MY STORY @ MUMU Arthouse, Nimmanhaemin Road Soi 7 081 286 9676 The Best Friend Library presents a retrospective exhibit of photos from the the ‘MY STORY’ photo project by photographers on the Thai Burma border and from inside Burma. Now – 31st July CHUENTA CHUENJAI @ Siripanna Villa Spa and Resort Chiang Mai You are welcome to an art exhibition featuring 1 … Continued
City Sport
+ BASKETBALL The CMBL – Chiang Mai Basketball League provides a year round programme of clinics, events and tournaments for students and adults, male and female, Thai and foreign basketball lovers. The first 3 on 3 Street Ball Tournament was held on April 23rd 2011 and attracted 12 teams and was a great social occasion. All are welcome, including visiting players looking for a game. See: www.chian … Continued
Community Service
01 Informal Northern Thai Group June 14th: Louis Gabaude on Twisting Buddhism Through the Christian Lexicon: ‘Ordination’. For more information please call 053 117 319 or gabaudel@loxinfo.co.th. 02 Dog of the month Introducing Erin. This sweet young lady is 2 years old and is very friendly and calm. She gets along well with everyone _ people and dogs. She has a lovely silky black coat and is mediu … Continued
Oh for a Plastic Cup
Daughter #1 will finish her law degree in a couple of weeks and already has a job lined up in Sydney. As a parent, this is great news and we now have three years to save up before D2 spreads her wings and leaves the Daring household. No doubt she will also require great dollops of money as she does whatever she ends up doing. Then it will just be Mrs. D and I. Oh God. Mind you, we don’t really see … Continued
Seeking the ultimate comfort food
I enjoy Vietnamese food wherever I can find it, even when the food that’s put in front of me is far from authentic. Close enough is often good enough; I’ve learnt to compromise when I need a fix. I was born in Australia so in many ways I’m more Australian than I am Vietnamese, but one of the strongest links I have to my cultural heritage is the abiding love of the cuisine that my parents raised me … Continued
Tree Top Laos
Standing by the railing of a freshly-stained wood deck, we stared up at a massive cliff face framed in the lush green vegetation of the Laos jungle, with multiple flows of water falling some 100-something feet to the rocky pool below. The girl next to me wowed to herself, “This is the most beautiful thing I’ve ever seen”. On the cliff face, a family of monkeys move about on the hanging vegetation. … Continued
Pakse Versailles
The dusty little town/city of Pakse in southern Laos is sometimes portrayed as a mere stopping point on the way to other locations in the region. It is the jumping point to the Four Thousand Islands (Si Phan Don) in the Mekong River as well as the Bolaven Plateau known for its amazing waterfalls, pristine forests and scenic vistas. In the city itself, there are a number of small cafes, restaurants … Continued
The Music is Over
Chiang Mai’s fledgling music scene has suffered a setback of late due to the crackdown on foreign musicians playing live music in the city. A number of arrests were made during the months of March and April at Guitarman and Northgate, nightspots that have gained cult status within the foreign community, among local Thais as well as tourists. The arrests, which the immigration police have said were … Continued
Indochinas’s Cities’ Secrets
It’s a small capital city, but enjoys a mix of international communities and social activities, and at only an hour and a bit flight from Chiang Mai, this is a great city to pop over for a visit during a long weekend. Vientiane’s dining and entertainment centre is located around the Nam Phou Square (The Fountain), a great place to walk around and check out bars and restaurants. Hungry? The Aria Mi … Continued
The Great Firewalls of Indochina
Journalists in French Indochina (Laos, Vietnam, and Cambodia) have since the beginning of investigative – or even controversial – journalism in their countries been constrained by the limitations imposed upon them by dictatorial governments and the threat of venal public officials. Exponents of free speech and human rights are continually being incarcerated all over Indochina and Mainland South Ea … Continued
Clients’ Spot
Chiang Mai’s Chinese history is long and lustrous and is honoured, as well as tweaked, by the innovative Mo Rooms, previously Mo Hotels. Mo Rooms draws on the twelve Chinese zodiac signs, using them to conceptualise their rooms, each one having been designed by one of twelve famous artists. This 45 million baht plus investment on 1.5 rai land is a sight to see. The owner of the hotel wanted to cre … Continued
City Women
Being a child of the 80s, my first ever experience with a computer was using a strange device that plugged into the TV. It brought up a black screen with a bat and ball (well a white line and a round spot) and was not even vaguely entertaining. Things only slightly improved on the computer front when we upgraded to a Commodore 64! This was when Back to the Future was my guide of what was to come. … Continued
The Kings Romans Casino
The Kings Romans Casino sits across the Mekong River on the Laos side, a gaudy beacon of civilisation in what is otherwise an empty stretch of green. We are in the Thai portion of the Golden Triangle, the historic land of opium production where Burma and Laos meet, and no one will tell us how to get across the river. We ask three people, each of which smiles and uses a suspiciously identical phras … Continued
City Buzz
Located on the same road as the Royal Rajapruek Project – Hang Dong, Sunshine Kindergarten is great for families who want their children learning in a tranquil atmosphere while acquiring first rate skills with trained teachers. Much of the emphasis of learning is on the environment and nature, plus there are classes in art, gym, cooking and English. In the morning, they study English, instructed b … Continued
Special Scoop
www.northernthailandgolfmap.com Northern Thailand Golf Map may sound like a bit of a mouthful, but Citylife and our partners Coco Golf, with the backing of the Tourism Authority of Thailand (TAT), have created a web site, and are soon to publish a booklet, which will provide the best information for local as well as visiting golfers on playing golf and planning a golfing holiday in the north of Th … Continued
City Vibes
Artist: Bill Callahan Album: Apocalypse Rating: It’s not every month that you get two of planet Earth’s best singer-songwriters releasing LPs. But this is the month for pure indulgence in their works of genius. Callahan has been performing since the Cretaceous period, yet he remains one of the finest contemporary musicians. A deep baritone voice, a penchant for sardonic religious references and an … Continued
Chiang Mai on the WWW
www.qualitycondoschiangmai.com www.qualitycondoschiangmai.com The Shell, Quality Condos in Central Chiang Mai The Shell, located in the Nakornping Condo building, is a plush new set of apartments with lots to offer. The condo itself is right next to various shopping amenities, the large mall Central Kad Suan Kaew, Chiang Mai Ram hospital and lots of cool restaurants and pubs are also close to the … Continued
Citylife In-house
Citylife Next Issue: The 20th Birthday Issue Well, we can’t spoil the surprise can we? Let’s just say that we are going to be featuring some fantastic articles written by top writers and journalists in Thailand. We will also be looking back 20 years to see how far Citylife and Chiang Mai have come, picking the positive and negatives as well as try to foresee Chiang Mai in the next 20 years. It is … Continued
Your Say
• Christian Curious I heard that the church of Thailand is one of the largest owners of property in the north of Thailand. Is this true? If so, what do they own, how did they come about it and what do they do with it. I think that your readers would be interested to know about the good, if any, that they do and their history in Chiang Mai and the north. I am genuinely interested. Though I have my … Continued
The Life of Wine
This month’s question: Why is wine so expensive in Thailand? I have exhaustively researched this and the answer is: It just is, and for now, get over it. Complaining about it is as useful as telling a stall holder in London’s Camden Lock that you expected change from a tenner for those embroidered fisherman’s pants which cost 50 baht on the walking street in Chiang Mai. Thankfully, more and more w … Continued
This is Thailand
1. I would like to start running again but I don’t like going to the gym. Is there anywhere in Chiang Mai I can run outdoors without being chased by dogs? Jane (intern): There are plenty of places to run in Chiang Mai that don’t seem to be populated with crazy dogs. One of the best spots is the Huay Tung Tao reservoir, which is about a 10 minute drive from the city centre. Head north on the Irriga … Continued
Out in The City
That great swathe of South East Asia, tropically sandwiched ‘twixt India and China holds an endless fascination for western gay men. Legends of the epicurean delights, exclusive to the region, spread to Europe via returning French and Dutch pioneers and despite the modern global village, the exotic draw is stronger than ever. Contemporary explorers would be hard pushed to find a better base than C … Continued
The Best of Both Worlds
Indochina’s ‘Croissant City’ is, of course, Vientiane. In March, I drove my Honda Wave (with all 110 cubic centimetres of its engine capacity) over 800 kilometres to Nong Khai (and back again). After this journey, which involved four days of driving, I am more road-savvy and I feel compelled to share my lessons with you. My route from Chiang Mai to Nong Khai passed through Lampang, Phrae, Uttaridi … Continued