Klong Saen Saep good way to get from the Banglampoo/Wat Sakhel area of bangkok to the Central shopping area - half way is the Jim Thompson house and museum.


The Klong has a probably well deserved reputation for being polluted so when that cute Thai lady sitting between you and the rail cozies up to you, she might be just getting away from the spray coming over the gunwale or maybe she is using that as an excuse to get close. There is also a tarp curtain they pull up on the sides to hold out any spray, making it very hard to watch the passing landscape. Though, for 8 baht (.25 US) it's a cheap and exciting experience. Oh ya, this is kind of unnerving - somewhere along the way the boat pulls in (about 15 minutes into the trip) to a docke and every one climbs out, runs up the dock and jumps into another boat which speeds off. It happens real fast so be aware.

I'm trying to remember, think it's about the third boat taxi stop from the Bangalapoo/Wat Sakhel area is Jim Thompson's house and museum. Real interesting and talented American, born 1906 in Greenville Delaware, was a practicing architect before severed in Europe with the army during World War II. After the war he was posted to Asia, fell in love with Thailand. Up on his release decided to make Bangkok his home and became one of the major forces in the development of the Thai silk industry.

The guy knew how to live, his home was constructed of six different, traditional Thai buildings. Each was disassembled, moved and reassembled at his compound with all the Thai traditional religious rituals. So in the spring of 1959 after consulting with astrologers, he and his art collection moved in.

Sorry, had some great photos of this, not his moving in but of the compound on my camera that I erased by accident. So you will have to trust me when I say this is a real special place and a must see. Though, I bet when he lived there long before Bangkok was all built up as it is now, it was really awesome.

Less than 10 years later at the age of 61 he went missing in the Cameron Highlands of Malaysia and to date his disappearance is a mystery.. Maybe ex CIA or a freelancer, what do you think?