City of Fairy Tales

If you think about it, Bangkok is truly a city of fairy tales.

She is the heart of a far, faraway kingdom. She is almost overpopulated w/ different types of angels (as elaborated in my post dated Sept. 7, 08.) And, as if that was not enough, a central part of hers also houses a vigorous fleet of dragons.

No no, it’s not some filthy sexual innuendo here (even though the filthier the better.) We’re on our way to “play” w/ real dragons. Ready?

Rain has just stopped and the sun just re-emerged. This would be an excellent time to stroll in the park, wouldn’t it? Also, this would provide a perfect condition for somebody to sunbath on a sun dappled bank.


That’s right! It’s one of our friends right there.

Colleen Jolly from Washington DC, a BangkokSong guest, is the very first person in the whole world to introduce me to the famed reptiles at Lumpini Park. The irony is that the park (think NYC’s Central Park) is only a 10- minute walk from my building. It really took somebody from the other side of the globe to tell me about something a stone’s throw from my door step, huh?

Their official name is Monitor Lizard. Maybe they have not been properly monitored, as they continue to breed and multiply. Be prepared to be greeted by any of them anytime. Be at any pond in the park and you’ll find them a tourist attraction in their own right.


Eating habit: they are meat eaters. Anything defenseless makes the best dish. Birds, turtles, fish, and possibly babies. That’s right, human babies! If you have one, never leave him or her unattended. There’s no reason to take even the slightest chance.

Personally, I think they’re long and cute, but we wouldn’t be able to hang out together. Forget about inviting them for dinner anytime. I mean, what do we have in common? They eat meat!

Anyway, the closest stations to the Lumpini Park are MRT Silom, MRT Lumpini, and BTS Saladaeng. Respectively.

Or, you can walk there in 10 minutes from BangkokSong.

Joe

All photos were taken by William Duffy from Seattle, USA. He and his wife, Piper, used to live in the residential building that I work for (also a 10-minuite walk to the park.) He sent me these photos after his wife had reintroduced me to “the famed neighbors.” Again, it took three Americans to educate me on this matter.

Why 28 Barbary Lane?

A few years ago I was introduced to Armistead Maupin’s ‘Tales of the City’ series. I happened to be visiting a friend in Seattle when the PBS series was broadcast. Shortly after that I was in Chiang Mai, Thailand and discovered the entire collection in a second hand bookstore. I became hooked on 28 Barbary Lane, that fictitious address in San Francisco that boasted such a sense of community. There was Anna Madrigal, Mary Ann Singleton, and Michael Tolliver, along with a host of other characters popping in and out of 28 Barbary Lane. I reflected on my own sense of community in Vancouver and had to admit that I found it lacking. Was it me? Was it Vancouver? Probably a bit of both. But I do remember that upon moving to Bangkok I made the conscious decision to do my part to have community. We are fortunate to live in one of the safest cities in the world (yes, even with the current protests). It’s also very quiet and green where we are so I have adopted an open door policy. First thing in the morning, I open the front door onto the planted terrace. It stays that way until bedtime unless I pop out to the market or to run an errand. Unannounced, everyday, neighbors and friends drop in to say hi, have a coffee, inquire about cooking dinner together, ask for a hammer, drop off some cookies, share their successes and their disappointments with me. I can honestly boast of having more sense of community now than I have ever had in the countless cities I have lived in.

And how appropriate this is. One of the things that will impress you about Bangkok is how connected the people are. They know their neighbors, they chat with them, eat noodles with them, work side by side with them on the street. You only have to walk down our soi, Suanplu Soi 8 to know that this is so.

So very often you’ll see Joe promoting BangkokSong as Bangkok’s own 28 Barbary Lane. A real destination peopled with characters that rival anything Maupin invented. My character? Need you ask? It has to be Anna Madrigal. But the secret I hide is nowhere as sensational as Anna’s was.

Looking for a vacation with community. Come to BangkokSong, Bangkok’s own 28 Barbary Lane.

Randall