Edward Carter's TRAVELS: Not to be Missed in Bangkok

Not to be Missed… The Jim Thompson House Museum and the Suan Pakkad Palace Collection in Bangkok.

It’s the high season in Thailand and “farangs” (white, European and North American foreigners) are everywhere. The Skytrain is full of them; even Siam Paragon—one of the largest shopping malls in Asia—is full of them! Thank God, because there simply aren’t enough Thais who can afford Designer Labels to keep the stores open. Jeff Rexeisen, MD of Legends of Siam (up-market tour company that caters to tweedy Americans...OK, not in Bangkok but you know what I mean :-), tells me business is finally back up to the levels of five years ago—before S.A.R.S, the tsunami, Asian Flu, and the coup. So if you too are headed out this way, read on.

Bangkok is the hub for travel in Southeast Asia. I’ve been coming here since 1963. Let me reminisce…

In November 1963, I was living in Hong Kong, selling mutual funds for Bernie Cornfeld of Investors Overseas Services fame (not quite the word). My parents didn't approve; they were on a world cruise that would be stopping in Bangkok shortly, and I thought it would be wise to meet them there.

In those days, the best hotel in Bangkok was the old, wooden Erawan, and I was sitting on the front steps when Mom and Dad pulled up in their taxi. They were stunned to see me.

We spent a lovely week or two doing all the things that tourists to Bangkok have been doing for generations: a Thai boxing match, a trip to the floating market, and innumerable tours through innumerable Wats (temples).

The day before I was due to leave for Geneva, mother announced we were dining privately that evening with Jim Thompson, an American who had a fascinating home on a klong (canal). I had never heard of him but my father had classmates who were friends of his.

The house was amazing. Thompson had moved some six different houses from all over Thailand and reassembled them into a compound of such beauty that when he disappeared it became a museum and is now famous all over the world.

The magic serenity of his garden and the swooping Ayutthaya architecture of the house have pulled me back to this sweltering town for almost 40 years, to the point that Bangkok is now my permanent home.

Make time to visit the house that is now the Jim Thompson House Museum. Really! Don’t miss experiencing its magic. There are 25-minute tours conducted in five languages, a nice indoor-outdoor restaurant, and a gift shop where you can see and buy the silks that, thanks to Jim Thompson, have made the Thai silk industry the most important in the world.

6 Soi Kasemsan 2, Rama 1 Road, Bangkok. Open every day from 9:00 AM – 5:00 PM. Take the BTS Skytrain to National Stadium, go down the stairs at Exit 4, walk straight ahead 50 meters, turn right into the Soi, the house is at the end on the left. 100 baht entry fee.

Also unique in the world is the Suan Pakkad Palace Collection.

The Palace stands in one of the finest gardens in Bangkok and contains a remarkable private collection of beautiful Thai objects that are displayed in six, antique, traditional, Thai, teak houses (say that five times fast).

The houses have been reconstructed on columns in the traditional manner, and contain an amazing collection of Asian art and antiques, seashells, mineral crystals, and bronze and ceramic treasures from the pre-historic burial ground at Ban Chiang, in the northeast of Thailand. You will also be fascinated by the musical instruments, images of Buddha, prehistoric tools, and photographs of Thai Royalty.

The highlight is the renovated Lacquer Pavilion. Dating to the 17-18th centuries, the pavilion is actually an amalgam of two temple buildings that formally stood in a monastery along the Chao Phraya River just south of the capital of Ayutthaya. The interior walls are beautifully decorated with gilt on black lacquer: the upper panels depict the life of the Buddha while the lower ones show scenes from the Ramayana. This pavilion is an outstanding treasure of Thai art, and you should definitely make time to visit it.

The gardens, laid out by Princess Chumbhot, contain many ornamental trees from Thailand and other countries, lotus ponds, Khmer stone heads, and a magnificent, 19th-century, royal barge.

Suan Pakkad Palace is located at 352 Sri Ayutthaya Road, not far from the Phaya Thai BTS Skytrain station. It is open everyday, except Sunday and national holidays, from 9.00 a.m. to 4.00 p.m. 100 Baht.

Other Highlights of Bangkok:

Visit the National Museum with its ancient artifacts and very interesting exhibits.

See the Vimanmek Mansion that houses a fine art collection set in a picturesque surrounding.

Cruise the Chao Phraya River and the canals which once earned Bangkok the reputation of the "Venice of the East," see timeless, traditional riverside life, and visit the Royal Barge Museum.

Visit Wat Arun for expansive views of Bangkok and the Chao Phraya River, and Wat Phra Kaew with its amazing Emerald Buddha, colorful mosaics, and sparkling spires.

Shop at Chatuchak Weekend Market, the most famous of Bangkok’s markets where you can buy almost anything from clothing to the best artificial flowers—a “must-visit” for travelers to Bangkok.

Also shop at Mahboonkrong or MBK Centre—one of Bangkok's biggest shopping complexes filled with hundreds of independent sellers, Pantip Plaza for IT stuff, Siam Square, a popular teen hangout, or the adjacent Siam Paragon—the biggest and best of them all where the food halls are always jammed and the designer label stores always empty; but hey, at what other department store can you buy a Ferrari?!

Finally, get your kicks at a Muay Thai (Thai Boxing) bout at either the Lumphini or Ratchadamnoen stadiums.

Hope to see you.

All the best,

Uncle Ted

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