Hidden gems on lower Suk

[MrWorldwide]

Hi All,

Most of us have admired the gardens created by Jim Thompson and lovingly maintained by his trust, but that remains a slightly out of the way location compared to a house (!) that fronts on to Sukhumvit Rd between Sois 8 and 10. I must have walked straight past this place several hundred times and never even glanced at it - no small irony that I 'discovered' it on my last full day in BKK for the foreseeable future.

I stood outside Chuvit Garden pondering just how few hours the garden is actually open each day and as I was turning to leave my eye caught some foliage that was in stark contrast to the fastidiously neat edges of pretty much everything in Khun Chuvit's accidental endowment. One of the structures to the left (my right, facing the gates) appears to be the quintessential 'jungle in the city' and even more surprisingly it may be a private residence rather than a business, although the small Thai signage at the front gates may well have indicated otherwise. The rest of that block from there to Soi 8 is nothing to write home about but it's remarkable that a small dwelling like that has remained intact in the wake of so much development on Sukhumvit over the last 20 or so years. You can see the roof in the bottom right of this photo taken from the Sofitel:

https://c1.staticflickr.com/9/8024/7694675674_4357746773_b.jpg

I'm sure there are more impressive walled compounds further down the side sois - even Soi 4 has some amazing compounds - but I doubt that there are too many where access is restricted to Sukhumvit Rd : hardly an ideal situation but all the motivation I would need to surround the house with a jungle. Soi 8 has some greenery as do many of the more upmarket areas of Bangkok, but this appeared to be a lot more spontaneous than many of the professionally designed and maintained gardens I've seen in various resorts. The Thais do some amazing things with potted palms and other foliage in very tight spaces - not quite Tokyo's vertical gardens but clever nonetheless particularly when it's used to frame a traditional Thai restaurant or similar structure. Those efforts have their merits but the flowering bougainvillea sprawling across massive trees on the Chuvit plot pointed to something much closer to my 'jungle in the city' ideal. Thailand may be in the grip of a drought atm, but in a climate where you can potentially grow almost any tropical species, why surrender the inner city to concrete and combustion engines ? Happy to hear about more tropical oases in the city - pics would be even better if you've got them.

Happy Trails,

MrWW

[alfalfa19]

Thanks, that is one thing I love about Thailand, the lushness of its vegetation, even in a place like Bkk.

[Deserted]

Well, as you may know, Pra pradaeng is right in the centre of Bangkok, can't get much greener than that.

[MrWorldwide]

Well, as you may know, Pra pradaeng is right in the centre of Bangkok, can't get much greener than that.

Stickman has done a couple of pieces on it, but I got the distinct impression that its more a curiosity than an integral part of BKK - I think what grabs me about the 'jungle in the city' homes is that its such a marked contrast with the surrounding landscape. This end of Suk is such an unrelentingly grey, depressing landscape that any greenery is welcome - I loved Benjasiri Park when I lived on Soi 22 for 3 months but inner Bangkok could really do with 4 or 5 more of that size.

[maisodni]

The building you are talking about is one of Chuvit's private residences, and was built in the 2004-2005 timeframe - at the same time that Chuvit Park was built. I haven't looked since about 2006 - but there used to be multi-lingual signs posted on the park side of the residence, explaining that the home was built using traditional materials and techniques, to replicate a tradtional Lanna house.

In case you are not aware, this is what "Chuvit Park" looked like on the morning of 28 January 2003: http://www.bangkokeyes.com/soi10destruction.jpg - the story at: http://www.bangkokeyes.com/2005feb01.html

Cheers,

MS

[SoiBiker]

Hemingways on Soi 14 is a nice oasis of calm amongst the hustle and bustle of Asok - an old Ambassador's residence surrounded by a nice garden.

[MrWorldwide]

Thanks for the feedback guys.

[HidyHo]

I was living in BKK around 2003 when this area was full of beer bars and was destroyed overnight, reported by Chuvit.

I think because of negative publicity backlash, the area was not really developed like he wanted and then this park came into place.

[fey]

Well, as you may know, Pra pradaeng is right in the centre of Bangkok, can't get much greener than that.

Stickman has done a couple of pieces on it, but I got the distinct impression that its more a curiosity than an integral part of BKK - I think what grabs me about the 'jungle in the city' homes is that its such a marked contrast with the surrounding landscape. This end of Suk is such an unrelentingly grey, depressing landscape that any greenery is welcome - I loved Benjasiri Park when I lived on Soi 22 for 3 months but inner Bangkok could really do with 4 or 5 more of that size.

What months were you on suck 22?

I have reason to believe we were residing in the same building.

[TheAppletons]

Hemingways on Soi 14 is a nice oasis of calm amongst the hustle and bustle of Asok - an old Ambassador's residence surrounded by a nice garden.

Thanks for this, it looks interesting.

[MrWorldwide]

Well, as you may know, Pra pradaeng is right in the centre of Bangkok, can't get much greener than that.

Stickman has done a couple of pieces on it, but I got the distinct impression that its more a curiosity than an integral part of BKK - I think what grabs me about the 'jungle in the city' homes is that its such a marked contrast with the surrounding landscape. This end of Suk is such an unrelentingly grey, depressing landscape that any greenery is welcome - I loved Benjasiri Park when I lived on Soi 22 for 3 months but inner Bangkok could really do with 4 or 5 more of that size.

What months were you on suck 22?

I have reason to believe we were residing in the same building.

A frightening prospect, fey, as its not a building I'd care to revisit. Let's keep this one on topic, shall we ?

Edited May 8, 2015 by MrWorldwide

[maisodni]

What is now Hemmingway's was previously Los Cabos. I attended the grand opening of Los Cabos, and the guest speaker was a diplomat from the Mexican Embassy in Thailand (I'm not sure whether it was the Ambassador, or a consular official). During his remarks, he spoke about the history of the building - saying that it was, for many years, the residence of the French Ambassador to Thailand.

I have no way of knowing whether this is correct - but that is the story that was celebrated at the time.

MS

[MrWorldwide]

What is now Hemmingway's was previously Los Cabos. I attended the grand opening of Los Cabos, and the guest speaker was a diplomat from the Mexican Embassy in Thailand (I'm not sure whether it was the Ambassador, or a consular official). During his remarks, he spoke about the history of the building - saying that it was, for many years, the residence of the French Ambassador to Thailand.

I have no way of knowing whether this is correct - but that is the story that was celebrated at the time.

MS

Interesting, and Hemmingways certainly looks gorgeous in the Google images. To add to the Mexican intrigue outlined above, it would appear that the restaurant has their own interpretation of a Spanish garden, albeit with tropical plants. Lush and very inviting.

http://i.ytimg.com/vi/-ZRDzgxca7k/maxresdefault.jpg

Apologies for not embedding most of the images, but they're freaking huge - not fun for those on phones and tablets.

[MrWorldwide]

If I can be allowed one small indulgence, its that I would love to see more bromeliads in public spaces in SEA, but I fear they might disappear given their retail pricetags in many nurseries. A fantastic choice for those who arent big on caring for their plants - as long as they get some decaying plant life and moisture in their cups they will produce the pups that form the next generation : plants literally for free with no human intervention required.

http://www.rosstours.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/11/Bromeliad-garden.jpg

[TheAppletons]

Hemingways on Soi 14 is a nice oasis of calm amongst the hustle and bustle of Asok - an old Ambassador's residence surrounded by a nice garden.

Thanks for this tip....was there today and it's very nice. Great atmosphere, very good service, tasty food. A hidden gem, indeed.