And You Don't Even Need to Wear a Tie

On our list of places to visit while living in Southeast Asia (it’s a VERY long list by the way) was Bangkok.  We had visited Phuket in March, but this time we decided to visit the large, crowded, vibrant city of Bangkok.  The reason was that it was a 3-day weekend in Singapore (Happy Hari Raya Puasa!) and what else would we do?  We booked flight on Air Asia, found a 1 bedroom suite at Asoke Residence and took off for Thailand.

Julie had booked a couple of tours in advance, but we basically had all day Friday to explore before our evening tuk tuk tour.  Christopher had read about the Jim Thompson House in one of his many tour books so we decided to head there in the morning.

Google Maps can be a real aid when traveling (note that in many places you can download the local maps on Wi-Fi so you have them available when out and about without using mobile data) , but this time the “recommended route” directions were  in Thai.  We looked closely at the map and decided that we could take the “bus boat” along a canal to get there.   

The public boat was a trip.  You stand at the wharf and a large boat comes speeding up, a deckhand loops a docking line, and you have seconds to get on board.  Getting on was not like walking up a gangway, it was climbing over tires used as bumpers, onto a 12 cm wide gunnel, and then down onto the crowded, covered, deck.  The problem with the cover was that it was WAY too short for Brian.  He had to find a place to stick his head outside the cover.  The deckhand also collected fares, 11 Thai Bhat (about $0.33 USD) for the ride.  It was quite the experience and one I am glad we didn’t miss.

After making a transfer to another boat we ended up walking along the canal.  Lots of cool graffiti lined this section and there was a sign saying “Private Property—Please paint “.  A short walk brought us to the entrance of Jim Thompson’s House.

Thompson was with the OSS in WWII and stationed in Thailand.  After the war he set up a firm to revive silk weaving in Thailand.  He chose the location for his house as it was across the canal from the Muslim neighborhood that was home to many of his weavers. 

His house is actually a combination of six teak buildings that were each at least two centuries old.  Thompson was a practicing architect prior to the war and used his eye to make the houses flow together both visually and functionally.  The house was completed in 1959.

Thompson also used his eye to collect Thai and Khmer art.    The house has an extensive collection of art, tastefully displayed.  My favorite was how he used former windows of a building that abutted another building.  Rather than closing up the widow, he turned them into niches for the display or artifacts.

On 26 March, 1967 Thompson mysteriously disappeared in the Cameron Highlands of Thailand—his body was never found and his death remains a mystery today.  Was it a tiger, a robbery gone bad, or a political assassination because of his intelligence work?  It is doubtful that we will ever know.  What we do know is that his legacy will continue in Bangkok and future generations will appreciate what he created and save.

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