Jim Thompson House, Bangkok

It’s beautiful. The tours only around 45 minutes but it’s totally worth the 200B you pay. Guide was very well rehearsed in her oratory and knowledgeable when pressed further. Love the place, went 4 years ago then again recently and will pay a further visit when I’m back in BKK in a couple weeks. The grounds and rooms are magnificent to behold if you’ve an eye for the sort of planning that goes into that kind of thing. A solid recommend.

I adore the house, garden and various artworks around the museum. The guide tour itself feels clearly geared towards the white tourists. I guess it’s a general feel-good story about a Caucasian business man went to Asian, got fascinated by the culture, loved by the natives, and most of all, saw a great business opportunity. The tour did show how Jim and his partners embraced Thai traditions and how he was undeniably a crucial factor in the flourish of the nation’s silk industry, but the narration feels a bit monotone as it doesn’t take the Thai people into the picture and more about how tasteful Jim is. Besides, in each room there are screens that show art performance of another contemporary artist, which I feel kinda out of nowhere and don’t really fit the atmosphere.