My travel gang and I were lucky enough to reach Chiang Mai just in time for some festival fun at Loy Krathong, (an annual Buddhist celebration of the water goddess at Thailand's Lantern Festival). After being in the crazy capital (Bangkok) for two days, I was ready to explore further north of Thailand and especially with the lantern festival approaching, it was the perfect time to get to Chiang Mai. I've loved it here so far, it's like a hip version of Bangkok with less crowds and the mad hustle and bustle.
Every full moon in November, locals and tourists alike get together and take on a spiritual cleanse to clear out all of their bad luck, whilst sending the adored Buddha their love. However in recent times it's just become a bit of fun for any tourists passing through Chiang Mai and since we were, I definitely had to get involved!
Every full moon in November, locals and tourists alike get together and take on a spiritual cleanse to clear out all of their bad luck, whilst sending the adored Buddha their love. However in recent times it's just become a bit of fun for any tourists passing through Chiang Mai and since we were, I definitely had to get involved!
We grabbed our Krathongs (made from banana leaves, lotus flowers, candles and incense), made a wish and sent our floating rafts flaming down the Mae Ping river; this carries away the owners bad luck and insures a refreshing start in life. Fully immersing ourselves along with the locals in their cultural celebration, we then bought lanterns and set them free along with a sea of others. Looking up at the night sky was truly magical (and a lil bit emotional) with thousands of drifting lanterns and glowing fireworks taking over the atmosphere.
After releasing our lanterns, participating in a street party with the Thai locals and eating the best street food in the world, the evening drew to a close and we started to head back to our hostel...until we met some friendly Americans that kindly invited us along with them to Mojo Bar. The night was still young, so we chanced it and joined them. As we walked closer to the venue I could hear drum and bass blasting through the windows and was immediately bursting to get in. The room was dimly lit, with one DJ and another musician simultaneously rocking out to his sax and would then occasionally alternate to his electric guitar. It was so surreal walking in to that, I didn't think I would have been able to find anything packaged with a heavy-weighted bass-line in Chiang Mai - I had just been spending my evenings in chilled, live jazz bars. However out of pure fate, here I was, thrown into a club playing beastly drum and bass, where I could fully let myself go once again.
I just couldn't resist diving right in, as the DJ blew the place apart, dropping old school classics such as Shy FX's Feelings and an upbeat remixed pounder of The Fugees Ooh La La La. The atmosphere was fantastic, with travellers from all around the world skanking hard in unison. The club wasn't packed at all, which made us revellers take full advantage of the empty space. As one of the lovely Americans walked past me, I stopped and thanked her for randomly inviting me to join them. It's always great to stumble across hidden gems like these in foreign places!
After the early start at the festival and prancing around the club for a mighty long time, we decided to call it a night when the DJ dropped Tidal Wave by Sub Focus. Pretty shocking last song to end the night with, but nonetheless I was grateful for an evening with electronic music in South East Asia. Mojo Bar was a unique night - so intimate with just one DJ and musician playing live over drum and bass.
Chiang Mai has been a wicked place for music and if drum and bass isn't really your thing, then this city has other music styles on offer, especially an incredible Jazz scene. If you ever happen to visit Chiang Mai, make sure to check out The North Gate for some live Jazz played by a bunch of very gifted Thai musicians and of course Mojo Bar every Wednesday for your weekly dose of Drum and Bass. Looks like Chiang Mai City really knows how to party!
Tania x
No comments:
Post a Comment