Flower Market and Wat Kate Karam

Monday, January 9, 2017
Walking to the Flower Market and Wat Kate Karam

There was a small break in the rainy weather today, so I headed out on a longer walk. My intention was to walk from the old city down to Warorot Market (Kad Luang), walk by the flower market, and then across the new walking bridge over the Ping River to Wat Kate Karam. 

Walking to Warorot Market

 Along the road from the old city to Warorot Market I saw this wicker and basket shop. Quite an extensive inventory of various tightly woven wicker household items. On a visual examination, the quality seems quite nice.

I have passed this store before. These are brand-new foot-pedal-operated Singer sewing machines. The store has more this year than last, so these must be still made. I was once told that for some types of sewing, foot-pedal-operation is preferred for the better control it offers. Hard to believe, but they are selling them here. There are other brands of similar sewing machines in this shop; I photographed the Singer models because I know that brand.

The Flower Market

Warorot Market, known as Kad Luang (Kad = Market, Luang = really large), is a large market near the Ping River where many Thai locals do their shopping, so one can find the same or similar goods that are seen at other markets, but often cheaper and usually of better quality. There are also many, many goods here that cannot be found in the tourist markets like the Night Bazaar. One can buy almost anything at Warorot Market. There are fresh/dried fruit - vegetables - flowers, butchery and bakery items, herbs, condiments, clothing, shoes, cosmetics, jewelry, lacquerware, silks, hemps, handicrafts, ceramics, wood carvings, beauty supplies, household appliances, electronic gadgets, sunglasses, watches, souvenirs, and fireworks, just to name a few.  I skip Warorot Market because it is complex, extensive, and confusing.

Adjacent to Warorot Market is the Flower Market, known as Ton Lamyai Market, my first target for the day's walk. The Flower Market is along the Ping River on Praisanai Road, and is really just made up of a series of small shops that specialize in one or a few types of flowers. When I have been here in the morning, it is a flurry of activity unloading freshly cut flowers from pickup trucks. The sheer volume of flowers along the market itself is impressive.

 And here are an extensive collection of fresh pussy willows for adding to arrangements.

 The collections go on and on, and each little shop has a large collection of the flowers they sell.I am not a flower expert of even very knowledgeable, but these look like orchids. And I only got a small group in the photo...there are more here.

And more and more...


The flowers are striking and beautiful every time I come here. The Thai people seem to love fresh flowers.

The Walking Bridge

A walking bridge between the Flower Market and Wat Kate Karam had been in place parallel to the busy highway bridge for many years. In 2005, a flood seriously damaged the walking bridge and people continued using it though it was deemed unsafe. The government finally destroyed and removed the walking bridge citing safety concerns, and promised it would be rebuilt. For the past 5 or 6 years, I have heard that the walking bridge was to be replaced "next year" but no evidence of planning or construction was seen. Last year, that changed, and the new walking bridge arose. It opened for use in the spring of 2016, shortly after I had left.

And now, here is the new walking bridge across the Ping River. Stable, solid, and an easy walk over the river from the Flower Market to Wat Kate Karam.

Wat Kate Karam

 Wat Kate is one of my favorite temples. It is not particularly fancy, but it has a very appealing personality. And the inside of the viharn (worship hall) is very beautiful in its rich woodwork.

The spelling and sounds of the name does not translate well into English. At the temple, the name is spelled in English three ways: Wat Ket, Wat Kate, and Wat Gate. The sound of is not quite like the English hard "K" sound or the hard "G" sound, it is a sound in between those two.






A special event was in preparation, so the doors to the major and lesser viharn were closed today. I'll return and get pictures another time.





















A long walk today, almost 16,000 steps according to my FitBit. That is more than walking one circumference around the wall/moat (which I shall do again).

After a cleanup and a bit of a rest, it was time for dinner. Rose and John of Wild Rose Yoga suggested an Italian place very near where I am staying. I went there, and on their menu was gazpacho (!) Yay! Gazpacho is one of those things that varies quite a bit, and is usually quite good. The ingredients, tomatoes, cucumbers, and other vegetables, are all here and fresh, so I ordered the gazpacho. [I think gazpacho is more of a Spanish dish than an Italian dish, but why not.]

A bowl of chunky gazpacho with croutons and a watermelon fruit shake (no dairy). Very, very tasty.

And at John's recommendation, I tried their pizza and it was also very good. Mmmm... A very good day in Chiang Mai.

Next: A Haircut in Chiang Mai