Vintage Toys for Old Boys
Troops of perfect condition Tetsujin 28 robots line the walls as original Japanese versions of Power Rangers sit in corners — some caught in a permanent state of mid-transformation, just like the cartoons. This bizarre shop is the only place in Chiang Mai that both collectors and toy enthusiasts can now come and experience some of the region’s rarest toys.
A Chat with Local Author Julian Mihdi
One of the coolest things about our upcoming Garden Fair is the sheer variety of artists and creatives who come out to share their work. You never know who you might encounter! This year we have the pleasure of featuring local American author Julian Mihdi as one of our vendors. In spring of 2017, Mihdi released his fiction debut Chimera: Four Stories and a Novelette in Salt Lake City, Utah. A native of Virginia, Mihdi is a former resident of Chiang Mai and Chiang Rai. Here at City Life we all knew Julian as a weekly host of hip-hop open mics at Sangdee Gallery. We were excited to catch up with him to learn what his new book was all about…
The Cleanest Tattoo Studio in Chiang Mai
When deciding to get a tattoo, the first thing you put your mind to is the design. Do you go for a Japanese style snake tattoo on your leg or settle with a simple, but classic tattoo of an elephant to remind you if your time in Thailand? Whatever your style, the most important thing is going into any tattoo shop with a clear idea of what you want – even if it is to get some advice! There are several other important things you should be aware of before jumping straight in; things that often get forgotten in all the excitement.
Jumbo Sized Fun for the Family
Earlier this year funkily coloured elephants were seen all over our city. From Tha Pae Gate to Nimmanhaemin, Wat Gate to Chang Klan, it seemed that for nearly two months, wherever we looked, there was a pretty statue of an elephant. It was the Elephant Parade’s ten year anniversary and nearly 100 elephants, many painted by local artists and celebrities, were back on their home turf, raising awareness about elephant conservation, promoting the arts and generally prettying up our fair city.
My Journey: 17 Year Old Essay Winner’s Journey to Dublin
At the start of this year, I submitted an essay titled with the theme ‘A Journey’ to Citylife that eventually won me a round trip to Dublin this past summer. Within it I had written: “For every journey one undertakes there must be a will. A will to fight and a want that drives us to be.”
Celebrity Ink Tattoo Chiang Mai
To those who flirt between the beach and the mountains, Celebrity Ink™ maybe a name you have already heard of. With an outstanding fan base locally and overseas, this unique tattoo studio has, over the last decade, developed its name and its reputation as being one of Thailand’s most professional and artistic tattoo studio you can visit.
Goo Farang Debut Single by Ninyo Ausmkiez
Ninyo Ausmkiez is a familiar face around some of Chiang Mai’s hippest party places; from Warm Up Cafe to Hip Hop parties around the city, but now his presence has moved up onto centre stage with the release of his first single, Goo Farang, where he raps hard about the common misconceptions people make about him, even after all these years living in his second home, Thailand.
Be Inspired at the 3rd Northern Digital Expo
The great leaps in digital technology can be utterly bewildering to the average person, as we grapple to keep up with latest devices, trends, gadgets and their seemingly endless possibilities. Wares, both soft and hard, may be simpler to use, but for many, difficult to master and command. Social and new media may feed us, but they also consume us, as we struggle to keep up.
Our Book Culture’s Bright Future
Walking into Chiang Mai’s oldest bookshop, Suriwong Book Centre, on Sridonchai Road, you’ll find a spacious, modern building, brightly lit and filled with rows upon rows of books and stationery. Suriwong Book Centre has come a long way from its beginnings; what began in 1955 as a small bookshop in the basement of the Suriwong Cinema, it has now become one of the largest bookstores in Chiang Mai. Trasvin Jittidecharak, publisher of Silkworm Press whose mother founded Suriwong, recalls her early years in her family’s shop: “Growing up in a bookstore was a blessing. Have you ever read The Neverending Story by Michael Ende? It’s that experience. It’s a place to find an answer. It used to be the place you go to satisfy your curiosity. Now, information is at your fingertips. Groceries will be delivered by drones. You would wonder whether a bookstore has any role in our lives at all, but isn’t Amazon just bringing back brick-and-mortar bookstores? Who knows?”
The Pretty Life
As Chiang Mai’s annual Motor Show comes to a close, a dozen or so ‘pretties’ put their slinky dresses back into wardrobes wedged between faux leather biker jackets and skimpy Japanese schoolgirl dresses, cover up their cleavages and return home. Muscles sore from standing in teetering heels all day, cheeks aching from smiling, they head out for a night with friends, or another job serving beer to grinning late-night patrons. Thailand’s ‘pretty’ culture is alive and kicking.
An Operatic Hmong Voice
Let’s face it. The opera scene in Chiang Mai is relatively hard to come by. Aside from the 2nd Chiang Mai Ginastera International Music Festival coming this autumn, opportunities to hear and see live performance of classical music and operatic excellence are hard to come by. Lucky for us, there is something in the interim, with Fun, a vocal performance student at Payap University, who is giving new life to the local musical scene.
We Have A Winner!
Congratulations to Kathrin Khanchanok Kemmler, 17, the first northern winner of the Dublin Junior Literary Awards competition in a decade! Kathrin won 10,000 baht plus tickets and accommodation for two to attend the national competition in Bangkok where she went on to win the national prize for essay writing.
The Exonerated at The Gate Theatre
When the lights go down in the orchestra of the Gate Theatre, a single spotlight illuminates the stage. A lone man looks up at the audience and begins to tell his story. His character is the first of six to come forward and recount the events that led each of them to be wrongfully convicted in American courts, condemned to death row, and then released years later when their convictions were finally overturned.
Dee Jai at Jai Thep: A fantastic new festival on Chiang Mai’s calendar
I am an American student studying at Chiang Mai University who had the honour of attending one of the best festivals Chiang Mai has ever seen, according to many of its fans and followers. Doors opened at 10:30am, and I arrived at the festival in Pun Pun Organic Farm by 2pm ready to engage, dance, twist and laugh the day and night away with people prepared to spread love and positivity. The promotion flyers for the Jai Thep Festival were hanging on the walls of many music and eclectic arts venues all over town for weeks leading up the festival, such as Northgate Jazz Co-op, Mixology, and Overstand Cafe, so I knew the work put into it would be immaculate.
Copycat Copyshop Cowboys
For students at Payap University, the old photocopy shop couple are well known. Every day they rock up on a black vintage Vespa, both kitted out in matching cowboy-style outfits; double denim one day, leather chaps the next. Chumpol ‘Uan’ Promchitmart, 62, and Saisunee ‘Tuk’ Khampunya, 56, have, for the last 30 years, been working at the university in their little shop. Some would say they are a match made in heaven, others would say the Wild West.
TDC 62 Travelling Exhibition
This unique exhibition is organised by TCDC (Thailand Creative and Design Centre Chiang Mai) and TAB (Typographic Association of Bangkok) for the first time in Chiang Mai, and the second in Thailand. It features typeface design winners from New York’s 62nd Type Directors Club (TDC) annual competition. The works were awarded by TDC, an international typographic organization, with the purpose to educate offer inspiration to those who are interested in or love typography. The exhibition has travelled to countries including Germany, Poland, Spain, South Korea, Vietnam and is now in Chiang Mai.
Once Upon a Star: Love of a Groupie
“I cried for three straight months when he left,” said Monthathip ‘Mona’ Thukjai, 24, a pretty young medical technologist at Chiang Mai University, giggling self-consciously. “It was a personal matter and one we weren’t clear on, but I had just bought my ticket to go see him when he left. At first I thought I would cancel, but then I decided that I needed to show my support, so I went anyway.”
The Rise of Thai Women in Tech
When we think of iconic figures that have worked, or are working, at the apex of the computer tech industry, for the most part it is men’s names that populate our thoughts. The industry is seen as a masculine domain, and if you look at the ratio of women-to-men employed, or holding leadership positions, within the tech milieu you see a vast disproportion in male to female employees; from developers to CEOs, jobs in the tech industry are traditionally filled by men.
The Bookworm: An Interview with Trasvin Jittidecharak of Silkworm Press
Trasvin Jittidecharak, whose mother was the founder of Suriwong Book Center, Chiang Mai’s first and largest bookshop, is the publisher and owner of Silkworm Press, a long-established and reputable publishing house founded and based right here in Chiang Mai. Citylife sat down to talk to Trasvin this month about the world of books and their place in today’s digital age.
The Junior Dublin Literary Awards 2017 – Write a creative essay and win a trip to Ireland
If you love the English language and you have a talent for creative writing, NJ Digital and the Embassy of Ireland are now inviting high-school students across Thailand to compete in the 12th Junior Dublin Literary Awards for Thailand on the topic “A Journey”.
ช่างภาพลุงวิจิตร ไชยวัณณ์ เล่าเรื่องเยือนสหรัฐอเมริกาพร้อมในหลวง ในปี พ.ศ. 2503
ท่ามกลางฝูงชนแน่นขนัดที่ต่างเปล่งเสียงร้องถวายต้อนรับด้วยความยินดีเพียงแรกเห็นพระบาทสมเด็จพระเจ้าอยู่หัวภูมิพลอดุลยเดช และสมเด็จพระนางเจ้าฯสิริกิติ์ พระบรมราชินีนาถ ที่ทรงเปี่ยมด้วยพระสิริโฉมอันงดงามทั้งสองพระองค์เสด็จฯลงจากเครื่องบินพระที่นั่ง ไม่ว่าจะเป็นชาวไทยหรือชาวอเมริกันที่มาเฝ้าฯ รับเสด็จในครั้งนั้น ต่างก็ชะเง้อ ชะโงก เขย่งให้ตัวสูงขึ้น ขอเพียงเพื่อจะได้ยลพระสิริโฉมอันงดงามของทั้งสองพระองค์ขณะเสด็จฯเยือนสหรัฐอเมริกา
Forgotten Frames: The incredible story of one local editor and his trip to America to photograph the King
The crowds cheered as the young King Bhumibol Adulyadej and Queen Sirikit stepped out of the Royal Thai Air Force plane, Thais and Americans alike, craning their necks and standing on tip toe to get a glimpse of one of the most glamorous royal couples to have ever visited the United States. On a platform high above the crowds, photographers with telephoto lenses were busily snapping the historic moment. President Eisenhower and his aides were standing ready to greet the royal couple. As the plane doors opened, a military band began to play. Squeezed in amongst pomp of dignitaries and security services, stood a Thai man wearing a suit with a small 35mm camera hanging off his neck. Mere feet away from their majesties, and clicking the shutter on his new camera for the first time.
Want to be a Writer? Join one of the many support groups in our city
Providing a space to share works with one another, receive critique and talk about literature, writers from all backgrounds with varied experience can get involved. Whether you’re published or just write for fun, all are accepted and embraced. If you’re looking for some direct and honest (but overall positive) feedback on your work, I think it’d be really worthwhile to go along to a meeting.
Breaking Ground: Chiang Mai to Get a New Park
Wandering around the old city, hunting for ideas, I knew that I wanted to write about art, a scene that is still in its infancy in my home town, and something which has truly excited and inspired me during my short time here. After a few weeks of foot- and finger-work (on my laptop), I learnt that the now abandoned Women’s Correctional Institution behind the Three King’s Monument was the hub of the city’s graffiti, and having walked past the imposing structure a few times, I knew that it’s outer walls had become giant canvases for street art.
Top 6 Most Recommended Thailand Travel Apps
Thailand has become a very popular tourist destination lately, and with good reason. The food is amazing, there are so many fantastic things to see and its natural landscapes are beyond stunning – and to top it all off, Thailand is unbelievably cheap. For the same amount of money you’d spend in any other country, you can visit Thailand without ever thinking if you can afford something or not. If you haven’t already put Thailand on your list of places to visit, now would be a good time.