Chiang Mai - Lanna Folklife Museum, Arts and Cultural Center, Historical Center (January 2018)

Chiang Mai Tour Day 2 was a trip to town to visit three museums related to Lanna culture which are all located nearby.

Lanna Folklife Museum
The first place to visit was Lanna Folklife Museum. This is the place where you can taste the folk life of people in the Lanna Kingdom that was once ruled by the Burmese for 200 years and later annexed to Siam Kingdom, the predecessor of the modern Thailand.

Arts and Cultural Center
Chiang Mai City Arts and Cultural Center displays more cultural items than arts, including the cultures of hill tribes. Thailand recognizes six major hill tribes: i.e. Karen, Hmong, Yao, Lahu, Lisaw and Akha. 

Historical Center
Chiang Mai used to attract people with its timer and later minerals. Timber opened trade routes to neighboring countries and trade attracted people in various fields.

This Historical Center was small in size, but displayed quite interesting stories of Chiang Mai. I will surely come back to spend more time reading the stories and understanding Chiang Mai history more in depth.

Outside the three museums were a small Budhist temple and other cultural landmarks,

Chiang Mai is the center in Asia for many mission agencies, due primarily to low cost of living, proximity to neighboring countries, little to no persecution to other religions than Buddhism. Lately, Chiang Mai has become attractive also to retirees who seek warm temperature and who wants to see their retirement money go further than in their home countries. - Jeffrey