Treats at the temple door

Leisa Tyler visits the boutiques and galleries bringing new life to the former colonial enclave of Chiang Mai.

When, in the late 1800s, King Chulalongkorn signed a treaty with British merchants giving them access to the Siam kingdom's vast teak and rosewood forests and permitting them to live in the genteel northern city of Chiang Mai, he had one condition: that the foreigners and their entourage reside on the far side of the Ping River, away from the native Thais and Chiang Mai's ancient city ruins.

Britain, the colonial rulers of neighbouring Burma and British Malaya, had already signed an agreement recognising what is now the kingdom of Thailand's sovereignty. But the Thais, well versed in the crafty tactics of Britain's colonial system, preferred the extra precautions of keeping the foreigners an arm's length away.

The British and their entourage settled in Wat Gate, a leafy neighbourhood flanking the eastern bank of the Ping River that is named after a Buddhist temple complex in the vicinity. They planted towering trees and lush gardens and built stilted wooden houses adapted for Chiang Mai's sultry summers with low-hanging latticed eaves, slated shutters and shady verandahs.

Wat Gate is undergoing a revival. A string of designer boutiques and galleries have been opening in the old wooden houses lining Charoenrajd Road, the borough's main thoroughfare, with cafes and bakeries tucked under the gangly limbs of the old trees.

Wat Gate's most newsworthy opening is 137 Pillars House, a stunning luxury hotel built around a house belonging to Louis Leonowens, a British merchant who was best known for being the son of Anna, the schoolteacher whose friendship with King Chulalongkorn was immortalised in the film Anna and the King. Built in 1889, the rambling espresso-coloured teak house with latticed wooden eaves and a sweeping tile roof supported by 137 pillars now stands as the hotel's lounge and bar. The 30 guest rooms are spread throughout newly built two-storey colonial-style bungalows scattered around the perimeter. Each is furnished with four-poster beds, separate dressing rooms, claw-foot bathtubs and rattan planter's chairs set on balconies shaded by ancient bodhi trees.

Artefacts from the old pillared house now reside at the Wat Gate Museum, a musty hall packed with vintage curios and traditional lacquerware in the peaceful grounds of the Gate Karam temple nearby. Most of the collection is a bit dry, but the elephant bones and a rather grotesque series of photos showing vivid early 20th-century beheadings in Chiang Mai manage to raise a few eyebrows. While there, take a peek at the old temple, an ornate prayer hall (closed to women) whose exterior walls are richly adorned with gilded apsara dancers and dragon friezes.

For shops, continue through to Charoenrajd Road, where an exceptional collection of boutiques and galleries offer goodies from local designers and northern Thailand's many hill tribes. Sop Moei Arts (150/10 Charoenrajd Road; sopmoeiarts.com) started in 1977 with the Swedish International Development Agency to provide income for Karen minorities living in Mae Hong Son Province. It's all gorgeous, but the rich maroon bamboo baskets, Chinese teapots and wall hangings inspired by "pha tung", fabric banners hung to celebrate temple festivals, are keepers.

At the Colour Factory (154-156 Charoenrajd Road; colourfac.com), Philippine-born Miguelle La Salle sells the adorable hand-painted elephant figurines from Elephant Parade, a Dutch organisation that raises funds to help the endangered Asiatic elephant. Miss China is a pretty-in-pink elephant with red lipstick and a flower on her head; Delightful Durian is a sunflower-yellow elephant peeking out of a cracked durian shell. Head upstairs for La Salle's stylish collection of leather handbags and purses.