Northern Thailand hotels collection

Before it was joined to Siam, the North was the kingdom of Lanna, “a million rice fields”, and it keeps the script and the roofs. Near Lampang, the viharn of Wat Phra That Lampang Luang rests on teak pillars patterned in red lacquer and gold. In Nan, the murals of Wat Phumin record the tattoos and hairstyles of the townspeople of old. Higher up, at Doi Mae Salong, families who had come from Yunnan planted the terraced tea; their grandchildren still speak Chinese. In December, mist holds the valleys through the morning and a jumper is needed, which Bangkok finds hard to believe.