If first impressions were binding, Bangkok would be in big trouble. The first thing visitors on their way into town from the airport encounter is what they see from their taxi on the expressway: a grey, off-white urban moonscape studded with anonymous hotels, offices, homes and shopping malls. Fortunately this is not 100% representative of Bangkok. And this half-day tour to two of the city's authentic, cultural and architectural treasures - Jim Thompson House and Suan Pakkad Palace - proves it...
The Jim Thompson House
The first stop, Jim Thompson House, is comprised of six lovingly maintained teak houses. The exterior is so very Thai: the lyrical tropical garden, the boldly upswept roof eaves, the spirit house offering protection in a shadeless corner. But step inside and you find a stunning home/museum that flaunts the exquisite taste and high-cultural leanings of its Asiaphile owner, Jim Thompson.
He was a former architect and US intelligence officer who after WWII fell in love, not with Thailand's beaches or its women but its lustrous, hand-woven silk. In between reviving this ailing cottage industry - which today thrives largely thanks to him - he spent his days snapping up Southeast Asian antiques. And not gaudy bric-a-brac, but some truly eye-popping paintings, pottery, furniture and sculptures.
Herein lies everything from decrepit old doorways rescued from a Chinatown street corner, to a 13th Century seated sandstone Buddha and crumbling Chinese stone lions. It's all stunning stuff. His taste was, is still, exquisite. And, ambling from room to room, it's clear from the 'oohs' and 'aahs' that others agree (as one American puts it while eyeing some Benjarong ceramics: "such an eye - and to think he was one of us!")
Home Improvements
It is clear also that while Jim Thompson was a huge fan of Thai art and customs (the threshold of each building is elevated to keep out evil spirits, for example), he was no slave to them. The stairways are found indoors. Black and white Italian tiling lines the entrance hall. And the decorative window panels, which traditionally face outwards, face in. This wasn't cultural irreverence - just home improvements.
As were other personal touches like the chandeliers, a Chinese blue and white porcelain set on a European dining table (he wasn't into dining on the floor) and, my favourite, a porcelain bedpan in the shape of a cat. Jim Thompson disappeared mysteriously in 1967 while in the Malaysian highlands. But it's easy to picture him still sitting at the work desk in his study, looking out at the sun shining between the giant palm fronds. This is a museum, yes, but one with a stirring, ghostly aura.
Suan Pakkad Palace
Suan Pakkad Palace, the tour's second stop, is the perfect companion-piece to the Jim Thompson House - more low-key but no less a teaky treat.
Its name means 'cabbage patch' - a reference to the days when this land was nothing more than that. Today, however, it's as it has been for over 50 years: a lush, preened tropical garden dotted with eight traditional Thai houses, each brimming with fine arts, antiquities and oddities belonging to Prince and Princess Chumbhot.
There's a modern extension building housing prehistoric painted pottery, bronze weapons and tools, all from a site up north known as Ban Chieng. But the real joy here is in hopping from one cute teak house to the other and discovering the hotchpotch - family heirlooms mostly - that awaits...
A hotchpotch of delicious antiquities
Like the gong wong yai, a bizarre-looking percussion contraption that sits among many other bizarre musical instruments. Or the lovably wistful 'Torso of Uma', a classic 7th century Khmer statue found upstairs. There are gilded books depicting the life of Lord Buddha, hoardings of 19th century silverware and a mildewed Thai throne with palanquin and a gold-stitched umbrella. And that's only the start of it. One house is dedicated to Buddha images from different periods, another to the family's collection of minerals, shells and fossilised fish, and another to their exquisite glass, silver and porcelain collection. Lovely, all of them.
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Truth be told though, the best thing here is out back. I'm talking not only of the lovely garden area with its ponds and quietude, but also the cute Laquer Pavilion which sits, like a child's secret playhouse, at the rear. Dating back to the 17th century, it's an exquisite example of Thai architecture, with intricate murals depicting the Ramayana and life of Buddha drawn in gold leaf on black lacquered walls. Absolutely gorgeous... quite unlike those first impressions.
Reviewed by: Max Crosbie-Jones
This half-day tour includes:
- Air-conditioned vehicle with English-speaking guide
- Admission fee as mentioned on this program
- Transfer from/to hotel
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