THAILAND - THE ANCIENT KINGDOM OF SIAM - Science and Culture
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.36094/sc.v87.2021.Thailand_the_Ancient_Kingdom_of_Siam.Hoogewerf.51
A TRAVELLER’S JOURNAL
THAILAND – THE ANCIENT KINGDOM OF SIAM
ANTONIA HOOGEWERF*
I ntriguingly, Thailand is one country in south-east Asia
that has never been conquered or colonized by a foreign
power, considering all the various warfare and battling that
depth or history. Originally it was a string of village
settlements along the banks of the great Chao Phraya River,
dating from the 15th century when Ayutthaya was the
went on all around it, although there have been several capital, and the Waterside is easily the most interesting
coups and imposed dictatorships from inside. Re-named part of the city today, with a fine network of canals and
in 1932 from the ancient Kingdom of Siam, today Thailand the constant busy life of the River. When I have to stay
has a nominal constitutional Monarch with a Parliamentary overnight it is always here that I find a Hotel.
system of government.
The spectacular Buddhist temple of Wat Arun stands
King Maha Vajiralongkorn acceded to the throne in today on the west bank of the river. It has been restored
his sixties, after his father Bhumibol, who was much loved and altered and moved from side to side of the river over
and had been on the throne since 1946, died four years many centuries, and situated in its present location since
ago. I was in Thailand a month after his death and there 1785. Two giant demons guard the Eastern Gate, Thotsakan
was much public grieving with official mourning declared and Sahatsadecha, and the central Prang, which is a stupa-
to last for a year. His son however is less popular, known like pagoda or reliquary tower, rises up nearly 300 metres,
for being something of a womanizer and fathering many encrusted with pieces of porcelain and seashells.
children, and his consort Queen Suthida is his fourth wife.
The first time I went to Thailand I stayed with friends
Geographically the country is spread over 500,000 square
in Bangkok and did not see much of the country. The
kilometres, twice the size of Britain with around the same
second time I went to Phuket where my friend Bill was
population and many frontiers, notably Burma (Myanmar)
living. Quite honestly apart from the great natural beauty
and Laos to the north and Cambodia to the east. The
of the islands, the sparkling brilliant blue and green seas,
peninsula of Phuket hangs down to the south of the main
the miles of white sand beaches and glorious skies, I did
country with myriad small islands around it.
not appreciate it very much. It seems to attract an
I have travelled to Thailand many times. Bangkok unsavoury tourism which does not appeal, although I may
itself has never been my favourite destination so I shall be wrong, this is simply my impression.
not spend long here describing it. The present day city
So on my next visit I was determined to see the
was officially founded in 1782, a mere 250 years ago and
North, which is very different. I travel with Bill and we
maybe that explains why it is hard to get an impression of
hire a wonderful driver named Mr Chimchang to drive us
to Kanchanaburi, about 150 kilometres north-west of
* The writer is British born and bred but has spent much of her
adult life in France, the Loire Valley, the Deep South. She has Bangkok. The small town is notorious for its role in WWII,
now been living in Paris since 1999. Her passion is travelling, when this part of Thailand was occupied by the Japanese.
exploring the world and its people and experiencing their Local labourers along with captured Allied prisoners of
various and diverse cultures. Since 1999 she has spent the
winters travelling widely in India, a country she loves, always war, mostly from Australia and Britain taken from the
coming back to rest in Kolkata. These articles are random egregious siege of Singapore, were forced by the Japanese
extracts from the travel notebooks she wrote to record her to construct the Railway intended to link Burma with the
experiences around the world.
rest of south east Asia, in order to facilitate their invasion
The author may be contacted at :
antoniahoogewerf@hotmail.com
of India. This included building the infamous Bridge over
VOL. 87, NOS. 1–2 51
hotel – disaster. And mild panic. The bag
contains my passport, two telephones, all
my money in various currencies, two credit
cards, to whit everything valuable and
indispensable I have with me. We call the
minibus company, they say they will look
but find nothing. I am reasonably calm,
but at one point after several useless
phone calls I say:
“Right, this is unacceptable, I am
calling the Police.”
At this Mr Pang the Hotel manager,
who is charming and helpful but not doing
much, suddenly springs into action and
contacts them again and mysteriously
fifteen minutes later the Bus company
owner’s son appears, wearing a big smile
and holding out my bag with everything
Fig. 1. Buddha inside Wat Phra Singh - Chiang Mai
intact inside. Relief all round! I am so
the River Kwai, the story being depicted in several films. annoyed with myself but all ends well. Travellers’ tales.
The book The Narrow Road to the Deep North, by Although a large part of Ayutthaya is now an
Richard Flanagan is a truly horrifying and compelling architectural ruin, it has a charm of its own and the whole
account based on true events, and the film The Railway city is far more appealing and interesting than Bangkok. It
Man, though partly fictionalized, is a moving tale that takes flourished between the 14th and 18th centuries and was
place in Kanchanaburi at the time. Almost half of those generally recognized as an extremely important and pivotal
employed to build the Bridge, over 100,000 men, died in centre for commerce and diplomacy, with a rich urban
miserable conditions, from malnutrition, starvation and ill- cosmopolitan culture.
health due to the cruelty and lack of compassion shown
Built around 1350 on an island with three rivers giving
by their captors. Our hotel, the Felix Resort, is right on
access to the Gulf of Siam, it was strategically placed for
the River Kwai, calm enough now, and we can see the
natural defence, and well-sited for receiving foreign visitors
present bridge, a meagre reminder of the original which
from both East and West. The Royal Court of Ayutthaya
was of course destroyed.
was known for its splendour and welcomed the Courts of
One morning we take a pretty drive following the France from Versailles and India from Delhi, as well as the
river south, past many “Chinese” graves (though no-one Imperial Courts of China and Japan, so it provided a central
can tell us why they can there), and we visit a beautiful point of contact for diplomatic relations as well as trade.
Wat where a welcoming monk invites us inside. Climbing
Arts and Sciences flourished during this period, with
the huge steps up to the giant Buddha, we find a demonic
paintings and art works in the Temples and Palaces
Dragon guarding the top of the stairway. Back in town I
executed to a high degree of quality workmanship, and
wander around the impressive Jeath Museum, and the
they were technologically very advanced, boasting a
Thai-Burma Railway Centre, both beautifully laid out and
complex hydraulic water system, unique for its time, which
presenting fascinating details of the war in this region,
testified to the level of sophistication the City enjoyed.
then I walk round the long green-grassed cemeteries in
the centre of town, a lasting memorial to the many men After being sacked by the Burmese in the late 18th
who lost their lives here. century though, it was never rebuilt and remains an
archaeological site to this day. The ruins of Wat Mahar
From Kanchanaburi we take a minibus about 160
and Wat Tummikaat together with the old Royal Palace
kilometres east to Ayutthaya, the ancient capital of Siam. I
are stunning and extensive, and bear witness to the size
manage to leave my little leather belt-bag in the minibus
and importance of the original city. One afternoon I take a
and as we are the first to be dropped off I do not notice
boat trip to visit Mae Nam Pa Sak, the Big Buddha, and
till an hour or so later when we are checking into our
52 SCIENCE AND CULTURE, JANUARY-FEBRUARY, 2021King Naresuan’s Burial place, also the
magnificent Wat Phutthaisuwan, Prata
Chai, and Samphao Lom then get
dropped off for shopping at the Night
Market. Many happy hours can be spent
exploring the remains of these spectacular
Temples and palaces, and there are
wonderful elephants in the Historical
Park, which I am drawn to, as ever.
Another time I go up north to
Chiang Mai, a delightful historic city
founded in 1296, nearly 700 kilometres
north of Bangkok. A central square
surrounded on all four sides by wide
water channels makes up the main part
of the city which is about a square
kilometre. The waterways are lined with
drooping Willow trees wafting down to
the water’s edge and many bridges Fig. 2. Wall Pattern inside Wat Phra Singh - Chiang Mai
connect the inner to the outer city.
lonely existence. I invite him to dine with me but he refuses
I explore the area around my hotel and find the and afterwards tells me how he regretted that refusal!
superb Wat Phra Singh, the only Royal Temple within the
My latest sortie into Thailand takes me to Koh Samui,
confines of the old city, with beautiful murals depicting
a beautiful island where Bill is now living. I stay in Lamai
the lives of the ordinary people. In the thriving Sunday
at a charming hotel with its own beach and a lovely pool,
Market I buy lovely inexpensive Christmas presents for
the room wonderfully spacious with a large terrace and
my ever-increasing family. One of the best restaurants I
bathroom, all decorated in warm local wood.
find is the Huen Phen, serving delicious traditional dishes
in a labyrinth of beautifully decorated rooms. Bill has been given the job of reviewing some of the
top restaurants on Koh Samui and I am lucky enough to
I have been given a mission to find an American
be invited along with him. Thailand has a wonderful
recluse called Yanny, who is known to be living in Chiang
cuisine, fresh and delicately spiced, so dining in a Thai
Mai, supposedly “under a tree in a Park”, that is all the
restaurant is always a treat wherever you are in the world.
information I have. After accosting several likely-looking
But here on Koh Samui it excels itself. We go to three
men to no avail, (although it does lead to some interesting
restaurants, The Height, the Full Moon and the Ritz Carlton
conversations – I talk to one British man who lives here
Hotel, whizzing round the island on Bill’s motorbike.
to play Cricket which seems odd but he tells me there are
34 teams in Chiang Mai alone!) I finally run Yanny to The Height restaurant at Lamai Beach in Maret has a
ground in a corner of the Shan Buak Hat Park in the south fabulous location with tables set on a deck high above
west corner of the city. the sea shore giving wonderful views day or night.
Offering mainly Thai cuisine, the Chef was charming and
Yanny is an intriguing character. I come across him
came out to explain some of the dishes, they certainly
sitting on a mat, indeed under a large tree, with a flute
made a special effort for us. I remember the amazing “Gin
and book laid beside him and we sit and talk for over two
Trolley” too, offering a large variety of different gins from
hours. A real hippy nomad, he used to live in Ibiza and
around the world, the Thai one called “Iron Balls” was
Greece and now divides his time between India, Thailand
delicious.
and Nepal, in fact he has just come from Pokhara in Nepal
where he was for five months. By trade a wood sculptor, The Full Moon Char Grill at Anantara is set at the
he is now learning to play the flute. He cooks in his meagre west end of the Fisherman’s village in old town Bophut,
room, growing bean sprouts and tomatoes on the window and serves delightful International cuisine from a gorgeous
sill which is probably why he regularly gets kicked out of setting near the beach overlooking Bophut Bay. We are
the budget hostels he stays in. But he is an intelligent served exotic cocktails by the sea shore before indulging
man and simply a serial drop-out, although it seems a in a wonderful dinner using local and sustainable fresh
VOL. 87, NOS. 1–2 53seafood prepared with an Asian twist. I try the salmon Apart from eating I spend most of the time swimming
sashimi flambé, which is made up of long strips of and reading and taking in the local culture with an
marinaded salmon hanging from a small pole which is then occasional massage. The evenings when we are not out
set alight. Quite delicious. and about sampling the fine fare the island has to offer,
The setting of the Ritz Carlton hotel up at the top of after a sunset dip in the sea Bill and I eat in small cafés
the island is spectacular and spread over many acres so on the beach under the full moon, within sight and sound
we are ferried around in a golf cart to see several of the of the ever-changing ocean.
beautiful high-end rooms before settling down to a I leave this little island paradise reluctantly, taking
magnificent dinner. The hotel boasts several restaurants one of the old wooden carriage buses at the airport. This
and we opt for the European, “Ranch at Shook!” where I place I will happily come back to, although there is more
have my favourite Tornedos Rossini, rare fillet steak topped up north that I should like to explore one day, the Mekong
with pan-fried foie gras, a real treat followed by a wonderful River and into Cambodia, but that will be another voyage,
soufflé. another moment in time. S
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