One thing I love about this city in Northern Thailand is the amount of colour that surrounds me. Where other cities may harbour a lot of grey and concrete, here find a plethora of every shade of the rainbow. Vibrant Chiang Mai is the City of Colour there is no doubt about that. This post is purely to showcase this quirky and beautiful city through photography.
Red
From shop signs to tuk-tuks and everything in-between, red is as bright as it gets here in Chiang Mai. Its definitely a popular colour, very traditional and brings loads of prosperity. It also represents the blood of life for the Thai people.
In my younger years I shied away from red. It brought too much attention. As an introvert this was a disaster. Red nails, red clothes, just nope. But now, I really love red, like really love it.
Yellow
As brilliant as the scorching sunshine that rains down upon my head, the yellows play a prominent roll here in the city. Can there be a happier colour?
I love yellow, it brings me joy. Its not a colour I wear and normally not a colour I will purchase but I sure do love to see it around town.
Brown
From the softest of tans to deep chocolate and chestnut, there are browns everywhere in Chiang Mai. I have so much to chose from in my camera roll. There are the orangey terracotta’s and brick browns of the temple chedis that I adore. But also the neutral light browns, like raw linen and organic cotton.
Green
Lush trees drooping under the heavy weight of unripe bananas to the emerald green of the most popular Thai beer. Green is everywhere in the city. Those who have visited before will recognize the bright Grab bikes and drivers weaving their way through the traffic.
I adore green. If I had to pick five of my favourite colours, green would be one of those. It feels healing to me, represents mother nature and brings me peace.
Blue
It’s the brightest of blues in Chiang Mai, resting under the big blue sky. The primary colours play a prominent role here in Thailand and that most certainly includes blue.
My favourite shades tend towards the turquoise ones, and the royal blues. I am always attracted to these colours when I travel and end up with a plethora of photographs.
Pink
From soft pale shades to bright almost florescent pompoms, pink is not that common here. She does peek through every now and again and make her presence known though.
Pink was never a favourite colour of mine, with the exceptions of flowers. For me, it’s the epitome of a pretty and delicate blossom.
Black
Black can mean two things. Some say its the sum of all colours, so if you mixed all pigments together, they would equate to black! Other say black is whats left when all colour is removed, the absence of light radiation, is blackness.
Which ever camp you are in, blacks are as common here as they are in any other city. My mind tends to find the happy blacks if that’s a possibility, rather than the evil and dark blacks. I love black. On a practical side, it makes for great travel clothes, especially if you are as clumsy as myself. 😁
Orange
This colour you will see everywhere in Thailand, most especially in the form of marigolds. These flowers that originate in South America came to Thailand in the 17th century. Being a favourite colour of the king, they are commonly used in religious ceremonies and auspicious events.
Orange is also the colour of the monk’s robes and here in Chiang Mai. They are a common and beautiful sight at the temples and on the streets of Old Town. I love orange, especially the pumpkin shades, so warm and lovely are they.
White
One of my favourite colours, alas, a non colour but merely a shade. White is natures purest colour, its clean, its fresh, its unhurt and its simple. I have a multitude of photographs of white flowers, but I’ll skip those for now and showcase other beautiful white vistas from around town.
If I could, I would wear white everyday, I love it that much. But clamouring into bushes to get a shot of a flower, or having the wet nose of a cat smear across my sleeve does not make this a realistic travel option. 🐈
Gold
Probably the most prominent colour you will see in this city, is the golden hue of shimmery gold. It adorns just about everything in the 300 temples nestled inside its embrace.
For Buddhists, gold is the symbol for purity, happiness, enlightenment and freedom. For me, gold is wondrous, tangible and sparkly. I love the warmth of gold, the glitter and the lavishness of this precious metal.
Rainbow
Sometimes you just have to smash all the colours together. In these instances, none is the clear winner and we have to have a category that showcases them all.
Chiang Mai will always be for me, the City of Colour. Its not shy. Quite the opposite. Walk anywhere and everywhere here, inside the old city and out, you will be surrounded by colour.
