Thapae Gate Closed

[Ulysses G.]

There is a sign on the gate that says that they will be doing construction from July of 2007 until October of 2008.

Do they really intend to keep the gate closed for over one year? What could they be doing that would take that long?

[cmsally]

According to a lot of the residents around there, they just want to avoid protests - as it's the normal gathering point.

I hadn't read the signs but crikey it can't take them until end of 2008 to repave, surely.

Also I don't think the "alternative" bamboo bridge opposite Darets will hold until then. I can see us losing a few tourists into the moat before then! Another mystery, as we don't actually have an active Tesabahn at the moment , so who is giving directions?

In my opinion if they have extra money to throw around they should be restoring what's important first. You still have a section of Chiang Mai Gate being held together by wood to keep it from collapsing, I am not sure if the section of Chang Puak Gate that collapsed was ever repaired. The underlying problem is the drainage inside the gate "towers". If they did some basic maintenance it wouldn't be such a mess in the first place.

[girlx]

i almost fell through that bamboo bridge yesterday... the next time i crossed there were 2 thai guys trying halfheartedly to fix it!

[Sanpatong]

[ Made mental note to not be near you during a thunderstorm. ]

And yes, I also think it's an attempt to make any protests harder. (Though the Three Kings Monument area would also work well for that, and be less disruptive to traffic)

[cmsally]

i almost fell through that bamboo bridge yesterday... the next time i crossed there were 2 thai guys trying halfheartedly to fix it!

Personally , I would like to set up a web cam there. It could provide us with many hours of entertainment!!

I only noticed this bridge yesterday when I had to get across Tapae gate. I saw 2 asian tourists stop on purpose to let another person go before (see if she falls in - and for some reason she decided it best to take off her shoes). Then the 2 tourists decided it was OK but got about 10ft and stopped and looked and looked. Ended up taking pictures of each another - I didn't stay around to find out if they crossed or just came the 10ft back and chickened out.

[Pantip]

Yes – I think it's all part of the fun in living here, no-one is ever quite sure what is going to happen next. A big change from the boring predictability of our home countries.

[britmaveric]

Closed? Where did the Ladyboys go???

[Crow Boy]

Closed? Where did the Ladyboys go???

Don't panic mate - they are still on location on the outer moat side and waiting for your return to CM.

CB

[britmaveric]

Closed? Where did the Ladyboys go???

Don't panic mate - they are still on location on the outer moat side and waiting for your return to CM.

CB

:D

Uh no just wanted to know where not to go.....

[Ulysses G.]

Don't worry about the Gate.

The best looking ones hang out in the middle of Loi Kroh Road near the Number One Bar where Crowboy hangs out.

[britmaveric]

Don't worry about the Gate.

The best looking ones hang out in the middle of Loi Kroh Road near the Number One Bar where Crowboy hangs out.

Ahhh so thats how I will recognize Crowboy? (a gaggle of ladyboys by his side)

[Austhaied]

Don't worry about the Gate.

The best looking ones hang out in the middle of Loi Kroh Road near the Number One Bar where Crowboy hangs out.

Ahhh so thats how I will recognize Crowboy? (a gaggle of ladyboys by his side)

Err no, he's actually one of them.

[Sanpatong]

Ok I just crossed the Bamboo Bridge. I think some of you are less familiar with the properties of bamboo; it flexes, it's supposed to. I weigh a whole lot more than girlx, AND was carrying my daughter. We made it to the other side dry and alive. Heck, most tourists in that area go trekking anyway and won't have a lot of issues with another bamboo megastructure..

[Finnish]

I heard from a reliable source that the reason that the area will be closed for so long is that they are waiting for a specific contractor to do the job .

The Company in question is responsible for the laying of those beautiful red and grey crazy paving cement tiles all along Sukhumvit Road in Bangkok and also in some places here in CM.

Rumour has it that by just laying the tiles on sand and by not using any form of cement it can benifit the local economy enormously.

Dry cleaners / launderies in that area saw a dramatic increase in the amount of trousers they took in with squidgy mud marks on the legs from where the water under the tiles squirted up the legs of the person who walked on the tile and at least 3 passers by.

Local hospitals also reported a noticable increase in ankle injuries also associated with these wobbley tiles .

[Sanpatong]

Well, I also peeked inside, and guess what: They're CONCRETING the whole square. Very same concrete they use for major roads, i.e. rebar goes in, then a slab is poored.

I'm hoping this could just be a base, which they then finish off with a layer of stamped concrete. (Stamped concrete is concrete but with a color & patter in it so it looks like pavers of some kind of another. Or 'sort of' looks like it, anyway.

[Sanpatong]

Un an unrelared note: Where did the Chang Phuak fountain go? It went awol AGAIN?!

[el jefe]

Un an unrelared note: Where did the Chang Phuak fountain go? It went awol AGAIN?!

I heard from a source that may not be all that reliable that the fountain area will be paved over to make for motorbike parking for the nearby morning and night market. I hope that's not true.

[Ulysses G.]

The Thai who read the sign for me about the closing of Thapae Gate got the last month wrong. The construction will end in April. I sent someone over to talk to the foreman and they said that a lot of the work will be in other areas and that Thapae Gate will be opened again before high season.

[VitalGirl]

There is a sign on the gate that says that they will be doing construction from July of 2007 until October of 2008.

Do they really intend to keep the gate closed for over one year? What could they be doing that would take that long?

My Thai husband has a shop in Tapae Sqare every Sunday - we've been told by the co-ordinator of the group of traders who has been liaising with the Tessabaan, that the square will be be re-opened October 2007. And why do it now? Same reason as things happen in any bureaucracy.... funds were allocated last year and have to be spent before new financial year... which starts October/November.

[Ulysses G.]

As I said above, the Thai woman who told me about the sign, later admitted that she had read it wrong. I think that Thapae Gate will be open in October and the whole moat project - all around the old city - will be finished by April.

[Sanpatong]

I wonder if that will be on the same schedule as the ring road underpasses, or whatever it was they did to Thapae Road for a couple of years.