The Ada House journal

Local culture

Local culture, hidden corners and practical tips — from the people who actually live here.

A warm Lanna-style illustration of five songbirds perched at different heights on a temple rooftop at sunrise, musical notes drifting over the old city of Chiang Mai

Local culture · July 5, 2026

Thai tones explained without tears

Thai has five tones, and every one of them changes a word's meaning — not its mood. Here's how to hear them, why you'll get them wrong at first, and why that's absolutely fine.

A warm Lanna-style illustration of a lively Chiang Mai morning market, vendors and visitors chatting across baskets of fruit while speech drifts between the stalls like ribbons beneath hanging lanterns

Local culture · July 5, 2026

Kham mueang: the northern Thai language all around you

That lilting speech at the market isn't Central Thai — it's kham mueang, the north's own language. Here's what you're hearing, and the few words worth learning.

A warm Lanna-style illustration of Wat Suan Dok's golden bell-shaped chedi rising over a field of whitewashed royal cenotaphs at sunset, with the dark ridge of Doi Suthep behind

Local culture · July 4, 2026

Wat Suan Dok: the temple of the flower garden

Just west of the Old City moat, Wat Suan Dok pairs a golden chedi with a field of whitewashed royal cenotaphs — and a legend it shares with Doi Suthep.

A warm Lanna-style illustration of a multi-tiered teak temple roof sweeping low over carved gables, with crossed kalae finials and a naga stairway in late-afternoon light

Local culture · July 4, 2026

How to read Lanna architecture: a field guide

Chiang Mai is written in an architectural language all its own. Learn to read the roofs, the finials and the naga stairways, and the city never looks the same again.

A warm Lanna-style illustration of the gleaming silver ordination hall at Wat Sri Suphan, its walls and panels covered in intricate hand-tooled repoussé designs.

Local culture · June 29, 2026

Wat Sri Suphan: Chiang Mai's Silver Temple on Wualai Road

A few minutes south of the Old City stands an ordination hall clad entirely in hand-tooled silver. Here's the story of Wat Sri Suphan, its silversmith neighbourhood, and how to visit it respectfully.

A warm Lanna-style illustration of Wat Phra Singh's golden bell-shaped chedi rising beside the ornate gilded gable of the Wihan Lai Kham, tiered roofs and Naga balustrades glowing under a soft northern sky.

Local culture · June 29, 2026

Wat Phra Singh: the revered heart of Chiang Mai's Old City

At the quiet western end of the Old City stands the temple Chiang Mai holds dearest — a royal sanctuary of gilded halls, glowing murals and the revered Phra Singh Buddha.

A warm Lanna-style illustration of the great ruined brick chedi of Wat Chedi Luang, its weathered terraces lined with stone elephants and Naga-flanked stairways under a soft northern sky.

Local culture · June 29, 2026

Wat Chedi Luang: the great ruined chedi at the heart of the Old City

Right at the centre of the Old City stands a colossal brick stupa, half-ruined by an old earthquake and all the more moving for it.

A charming hand-painted Lanna-style illustration of a Chiang Mai street scene, with cheerful market signs and speech bubbles full of playful Thai-English phrases.

Local culture · June 27, 2026

Same Same But Different: A Love Letter to Tinglish

Three words on a market T-shirt explain an entire country: same same, but different. Come laugh with us — five five five.

A hand-painted Lanna-style illustration of a golden gecko, a sai sin string, a glowing number 9 and a wandering night spirit among frangipani blooms

Local culture · June 27, 2026

Thai Superstitions: A Newcomer's Friendly Field Guide to Luck, Ghosts and Good Timing

Why won't the barber cut your hair on a Wednesday, and what is that gecko trying to tell you? A fond, respectful guide to the beliefs you'll bump into in Chiang Mai.

Charming Lanna-style illustration of smiling friends exchanging warm introductions at a Chiang Mai market, with little paper name tags reading playful nicknames

Local culture · June 27, 2026

Why everyone in Thailand has a nickname (and it might be 'Benz')

Spoiler: the cheerful woman who pours your morning coffee probably isn't really called Apple. Welcome to the wonderful world of the Thai nickname.

Lanna-style night illustration of a moonlit Thai village with a glowing spirit house, drifting paper lanterns and soft mist among tamarind trees

Local culture · June 27, 2026

Thai ghosts and spirits: a friendly guide to the spookier side

Don't whistle at night, and never sleep with your feet to the window. In Thailand the spirit world isn't a horror trope — it's a neighbour worth meeting.

Lanna-style illustration of a seven-petalled lotus, each petal a different day-colour — red, yellow, pink, green, orange, blue and purple — ringed by gentle gold planetary symbols

Local culture · June 27, 2026

Thai day colours: why Monday is yellow — and what your birth day says

Born on a Tuesday? That makes you pink. Thailand quietly assigns every day of the week its own lucky colour — and once you notice it, you can't stop.