“HI, I am (a long unpronounceable Thai name) but you can call me Mr K. I am your taxi driver and … possible tourist guide. You want to see temples and …”
We were tired and since we were in the land of temples, I thought I would start with temples. So I cut him short and agreed to visit the famous temple atop the mountain Doi Suthep.
Next morning Mr K was nice and early. He turned out to be a very fair man, good driver and pleasant company. He just bubbles with enthusiasm.
“Tomorrow, where you want to go? Tigers, elephant’s sanctuary, Chiang Rai white temple, night market,” he rattled on.
“Oh, tomorrow we move to another hotel,” I said.
“Which one?”
“Dhara Dhevi.”
“Dhara Dhevi? Oh, then you don’t want to go anywhere else. You just stay there.”
Wow! Such is the fame of this hotel that the very mention of its name was enough to silence a talkative taxi driver. Needless to say I was more than excited to get to the place. The next day I found out why. It is not just a hotel. As we crossed over the moat on a noisy bridge (the bridge is built with loose wooden boards which create a clackety-clack noise to announce the presence of visitors or intruders) we entered a wonderland, a magic kingdom. However, it is not the tinsel and plastic magic kingdom of Disney World. It is a re-creation of an ancient kingdom – the Lana Kingdom of old.
However, it is not a replica; rather it draws from the rich architectural and cultural heritage that flourished during the Lanna period, which held sway for 300 years from the mid-13th century.
The resort brochure reads: “Offering some of the world’s most spacious and exclusive accommodation, the 123 luxurious villas, colonial suites and signature residences have been sympathetically crafted in keeping with traditional Lanna architectural styles. They feature extensive museum-quality artefacts, sumptuous Thai silk and local hill-tribe textiles, spacious terraces … The exquisitely designed interiors seamlessly blend age-old tradition with modern convenience with high technology. These essential elements contribute to an overall atmosphere of unparalleled luxury and serenity.”
I could only say “Amen” to that as I soaked in my own private Jacuzzi on the patio of our villa overlooking a terrace of ripening rice, complete with farmers and water buffaloes. There is even a functioning organic farm that I presume supplies the hotel restaurant.
Chiang Mai, the capital of the north was relatively untouched by urbanisation and development until quite recently. The city itself had a small town feel to it and the people lived life at a slow and gentle pace. By the late 1990s, the world had caught up with this gentle city. A modern highway was built: cutting through rice fields, past small, sleepy tree-lined villages. Townhouses, generic housing projects, modern condominiums, shopping malls began to line the highway.
A small but vocal group of historians, artists and local residents joined forces to protest against the changes and to raise awareness of the need to preserve northern Thailand’s cultural and architectural heritage. It was a business man from Pattani in the south of the country who put his money where his mouth (rather in this case, his heart) is. He came to Chiang Mai in 1999 and fell in love with the beauty of the north and dreamed of building a place that could recapture Lanna’s unique cultural glory. He recruited a team of passionate, young Thai architects, artists and designers. Together they travelled through Thailand, Southeast Asia, visiting little known sites in search of ideas and visions. It was a young team — the architect/designer was 32 and the youngest member only 18.
As I sat there, amidst the splendour of the buildings and matured trees (all of them transplanted) that sit on 60 acres of land, I wondered about the man who took on this Don Quixote-like challenge.
“Is this a project of the government?” I asked the guest relations manager.
“No, the owner is Khun Suchet Suwanmonkol. He is coming from Bangkok tomorrow and he is inviting you and your family for lunch.”
Wow! What an honour to meet the visionary and artist. When I met him I was even more impressed. The man exudes modesty. I know it sounds like a contradiction in terms but that is the only way I can express it. He walks around the place without giving an air of a hint that he is the owner of a US$150 million plus property. The staff too did not appear to accord him any extra deference.
I just could not contain myself; I had to ask him the pointed question.
“Khun Suchet, what made you start this place?”
“I am crazy,” he replied with a twinkle in his eyes.
“I had a summerhouse here and I fell in love with the culture and people here.”
Suchet is an accountant and runs an auto business. He came to Chiang Mai in 1999, liked it so much that he bought a restaurant, Le Grand Lanna. It is a very beautiful place and is still going strong. Around the property were rice fields and some empty land. He acquired them from the 68 owners one by one over a number of years and started on his dream project with a team of young artists. For accountant Suchet, it was a case of a romantic artist crying to come out. It took nine years to complete. It is a labour of love.
“What did your family and friends said when you started this adventure?”
“They said I was crazy.”
Thank God for crazy love. For it gives us Dhara Dhevi, the Star Goddess.
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