Thailand’s famed ‘Rose of the North’ is wilting
This 700-year-old city nestled in a green valley of northern Thailand has long enjoyed a story-book reputation for its myriad Buddhist monasteries and charming wooden homes, the delicate manners of its citizens and a tranquillity hardly ruffled by its temple bells.
More than 10 million tourists visited the city and its surroundings in 2018, according to official data, while local expatriate groups estimate that the area has attracted up to 60,000 retirees from various countries.
But recent visitors to the “Rose of the North,” as it has often been called, may have wondered what the fuss was about.
Denis D. Gray
