The Cultures of Chiang Mai

Greeting

The greeting that the Thai people adopt is known as “Wai”, which means saying “hello” or “Goodbye”. To perform “Wai”, one should join the hands at the palms and raise them together to a position between the forehead and the chest. The position of the hands when Thai people greet is also different depending on whom they greet to. For example, if one is greeting to a close friend, then the hands should be positioned around their chest. If one is greeting to the King, then the hands should be placed above the forehead, kneeling and bow down. If one is greeting to the Buddha images, then the hands should be placed at the forehead while bowing the head. The same greeting is performing to the dead while paying respect to them.

For greeting within the family, children usually perform “wai” by putting the palms together then raise them up to the forehead to indicate respect to their parents as well as being obedient. However, “wai” is not just for saying hello or goodbye, but also to say thank you or sorry to an elder as well. For example, if one did something wrong, he/she can apologize by putting the palms together, position the hands at the chest and bow head to say sorry. The “wai” is performed all over Thailand as it shows a respect to someone.

Muay Thai (Thai Boxing)

Muay Thai is a form of martial art and the most famous spectator sport in Thailand for centuries. The approach to close quarters fighting of Muay Thai is distinctive and fighters are allowed to fight whatever they like so long as the opponent’s face is still can be seen.

The two fighters will dance around the rings as the music play before the match start so as to pay respect to their trainers, religious and families. The dance is known as the ‘Raam Muay’ or ‘Wai Kru’.

The history of Muay Thai started when the Thai tribes who migrated to China, were attacked by many people. Thus, those people learning to self-defenses by using their bodies, hands and legs as their tool to attack back so as to protect themselves. Hence, Muay Thai is famous till today.

Food

Rice is the staple food for most people in Thailand including Chiang Mai. The typical snack that most Thai people like is green papaya salad and tom yam soup. There are many variety of dessert that many people love to eat. One of the desserts is the Thai mango sticky rice. The spices that Thai people love to use are chilies, lemons etc.

Festivals

Festivals are also part of the Thai culture and they are celebrated everywhere in the country including Chiang Mai. There are many festivals that are celebrated yearly, bring joys to the locals as well as tourists. Some examples of festivals are Songkran Festival, The Festivals of Thailand, and Elephant Riding in Thailand.