Crumbling Beauty | Old Customs House | Bangkok
The bOld Customs House/b was once the gateway to Thailand, levying taxes on traders moving in and out of the kingdom. Designed by an Italian architect and built in the 1880s, the front door opened onto its source of income (the river) and the grand façade was ceremoniously decorated in columns and transom windows. Today it's a crumbling yet hauntingly beautiful home to the fire brigade, with sagging shutters, peeling colonial yellow paint and laundry flapping on the unpainted balconies. Plans to resurrect this building as a super-luxurious Aman Resort seem to have stalled (10 years ago, would have been great), so anyone with a large wad of spare cash and ambitions as a hotelier should contact the government. It's not open to the public, but it is OK to wander around…as long as you the whole structure doesn’t collapse on you first. Chinese cinema fans might recognize it from Wong Kar Wai's In the Mood for Love (a great film).
Size: 5071px × 3381px
Photo credit: © Igor Prahin / Alamy / Afripics
License: Royalty Free
Model Released: No
Keywords: 1880, aman, bangkok, bankok, blue, brigade, chao, colonial, customs, derelict, fire, heritage, historical, house, italian, kar, love, mood, praya, river, riverside, sky, thailand, wai, wong
