TALK OF THE TOWN

A QUIET REVOLUTION IS HAPPENING IN HISTORICAL PHUKET TOWN. KERRIE HALL REVEALS HOW THE OLD AND NEW ARE COMBINING with STUNNING RESULTS

AS PHUKET CONTINUES to shine on the world tourism stage, the Pearl of the Andaman is reaching for new levels of sophistication. Renowned for its multi-ethnic influences, with a long history of global trade and intercultural marriage, Phuket Town is a perfect reflection of the island’s spicy history.

Today, the fascinating Sino-European architecture and local cultural landscape of the island are enjoying a revival, as loving hands restore the area to its former glory and combine exciting new elements of modern style.

TRADE TO TOURISM

Several centuries ago, it wasn’t the sun, sea and sand that attracted foreigners to Phuket, but the island’s rich tin deposits. The original central tin-mining settlement was devastated by a Burmese invasion in 1809, so from the 1820s, European companies and Chinese adventurers from settlements in the southern British Straits moved all mining activity to the Bay of Tongkah, later establishing what was then known as Tongkah town.

By the early 1900s, new town infrastructure attracted Penang traders and families to the island. Most trade was exploited by sea between the two ports and, in those days, Phuket was more culturally linked to Penang than Bangkok.

The area’s local character was influenced by the European architecture and Chinese influences of the British settlements like Penang, Singapore and Malacca. By the 1970s, the tin-mining industry had collapsed but direct flights from Europe to Bangkok infused new life into the local economy with a flourishing tourism to Phuket’s coastal beaches. The Old Town fell into neglect.

REVITALISING HISTORICAL ARCHITECTURE

Phuket Town’s early shophouses and historic mansions are referred to as Sino-Portuguese and Sino-European in design. Modernised with the rest of the island, a movement is underfoot to reclaim and restore the pre-World War II streets.

Recognition of the town centre’s historic importance occurred sometime in the mid-1980s, but the Association of Siamese Architects fuelled progress with a 1993 conservation award – given collectively to the ancient shophouses of Thalang, Krabi, Dibuk, Phangnga, Rasada, Ranong, Yaowarat and Phuket Roads; including two famous lanes – Soi Rommanee and Soi Sun Uthit. Igniting a resurgence of pride among local residents, the Old Phuket Foundation was formed and expensive restorations began.

Supat “Noy” Promchan lived in the old town as a young girl and remembers a beautiful house on Thalang Road, oft en peeking through shutters to admire the daughters of the well-to-do family who owned it, and daydreaming of one day being the owner herself of a house such as this.

Years later, the house was for rent and Khun Noy decided to sign a lease, despite the now-decayed state of the building. Two and a half years of restoration and three million baht later, Khun Noy opened the China Inn Café and Restaurant. “It was my dream come true,” she says, in a shady back courtyard of the exquisite premises.

Phuket City Municipality will also renovate two Sino-Portuguese buildings, with the aim of preserving the town’s cultural past. A 100-year-old bank building on the corner of Phang Nga and Phuket Roads will be converted into an Old Phuket cultural museum while the Treasury building opposite, with its well-known historic clock tower, is to be restored and re-opened as a tourist information centre. Plans are expected to be finalised by year’s end.

Phuket City Mayor Somjai Suwannasuppana is keen to protect the history, explaining: “The town’s architecture must be preserved for the next generation.”

INTERNATIONAL INTEREST

Film-makers gravitate to Phuket Town with an impressive list of movie scenes shot in the old quarter: On On Hotel on Phang Nga Road is seen in The Beach, the Governors Residence off Dibuk Road appears in The Killing Fields as Phnom Penh’s American Embassy while the nearby government buildings made a cameo in the same film as Cambodia’s French Embassy. Documentary crews are often in the area.

Recently, Bangkok-based Australian production company Capital TV visited Soi Rommanee to film an episode of the travel programme Destination Thailand. They happened upon a street party celebrating the new offices of Art and Culture Asia, publisher of Phuket Town Treasure Map – Phuket’s first easy-reference guide to discovering the culture, dining and shopping in the Old Town.

Set mid-lane in a fabulous row of renovated neo-classic and art nouveau-style terraces, Art and Culture Asia director Lori Ashton shows off the offices’ new look – a duo of modern media art and sleek décor in spacious, original two-storey architecture, complete with an old water well as a central feature.

“We have always liked this area of Phuket Town and said if we ever moved offices, it would have to be on Soi Rommanee. So when the buildings became available, we did,” said Lori. “Our products suit perfectly with the historical area. We feel at home here”.

with a copy of Phuket Town Treasure Map in hand, I set off to explore the old streets myself and stumbled across some fascinating finds in five very different areas.

SOI ROMMANEE

Originally Phuket’s Red Light district, Soi Rommanee (offThalang Road) is a beautifully restored step back in time. Adjacent to the newly renovated offices of Art and Culture Asia – copies of Phuket Town Treasure Map are available here – Tam Eng, a delightful boutique of hand-crafted bric-a-brac, fashion and jewellery is adjacent to Glasnost, a cosy café bar and the newly opened Tea House.

Interestingly, the entire right side of Soi Rommanee has been renovated while the left side of the lane remains lined with original Chinese shophouses, making for fascinating wanderings.

At the end of the lane, cross Dibuk Road to Wat Puttamongkon – a traditional Thai temple and school central to old town community life. Next door is the Phuket Governor’s Residence.

THALANG AND KRABI ROADS

The Old Town’s original trading area, Thalang Road is still full of merchants selling their wares, from wax-dyed batik cloThto herbs and natural remedies. New additions to the historic street include Phuket Art Gallery – an impressive collection of local modern and traditional artists’ works – and China Inn Café and Restaurant, a beautifully restored antique gallery, lounge restaurant and garden café ideal for lunch or aft ernoon tea.

Connecting with Thalang, Krabi Road features lovingly restored facades amid pokey, quaint “mom and pop” shops. An example of a grand Sino-European mansion can be found on Satun Road; you can’t miss it as the front lawn is about the size of a cricket pitch. Phra Phitak Chyn Pracha Mansion, uninhabited for many years and not open to the public, is owned by a Chinese tin-mining family. Further down at 98 Krabi Road resides Phuket’s only old mansion which is open to the public.

SATUN AND DIBUK ROAD

On a pleasant stroll along Satun Road, I pass a busy noodle shop adjacent to a family home, where a toddler is being bathed in a dish on the cobbled pavement.

Another world appears on Dibuk Road around the corner. Oriental Origins, an old two-level wooden structure, has been transformed into a boutique warehouse of collectibles. Silk cheongsams rub shoulders with funky tribal bags, ceramics, antique furniture, sequined accessories, chiffon tunics, and more, from Indochina.

A few doors away – past wonderful mosaic entranceways – Chez Papa’s French and Thai Dibuk Bar and Grill beckons. The cool interior is a mix of olden days meets 1960s-style exotica.

YAOWARAT ROAD

Yaowarat Road is a popular thoroughfare from the town circle and fresh market amassed with funky stores and cafés. Don’t miss Rinda Magical Art – a refreshingly upbeat art and collectibles gallery with works by bubbly couple Jay-da and Watcharin Rodnit, including bits and bobs created by their arty friends.

The back studio also hosts weekly art lessons. Jay-da loves their new Old Town space and is thankful the residents have grown used to their eccentric presence.

Another unusual store on Yaowarat is Sharms, a charming house of bijoux and Morroccan imports of stained-glass lamps, leather furniture, maillechort footstools, mosaic-tiled alfresco furniture, fountains and unique gemstone jewellery.

MONTREE AND PHANG NGA ROAD

Before hitting Phang Nga Road, head over a few blocks to indulge in some afternoon pampering at Raintree Spa on Montree Road. Set under a giant jamjuree tree, the shady spa offers natural Thai therapies to relax boThbody and mind.

Phang Nga Road, on the other hand, is a great shopping street. Stop in at Sarasil Gallery to admire the wacky style of resident artist Somkiat Kaewnok who so admires the northern long-necked Karen tribe that these images have become his trademark. The infamous On On Hotel, where actor Leonardo DiCaprio slept in the movie The Beach, is just a few shops away.

At the end of a long day, be sure to pop into Siam Indigo for evening cocktails and tapas. The restaurant and garden courtyard is a fabulously renovated affair, designed by French and Thai partners and decorated with artworks by local expat and Bangkok artists.

The theme is eclectic, as partner Celine Masson explains: “We used the elements of different cultures and the old architecture, but at the same time used modern styles to create more life”.

That’s Old Phuket in a nutshell!

ADDRESS BOOK

Art and Culture Asia, 16 Soi Rommanee, tel +66 (0)76 222856; China Inn Café and Restaurant, 20 Thalang Road, tel +66 (0)76 236239; Dibuk Bar and Grill, 93 Dibuk Road, tel +66 (0)76 218425; Glasnost, 14 Soi Rommanee, tel +66 (0)76 258332; On On Hotel, 19 Phang Nga Road, tel +66 (0)76 211154; Oriental Origins, 99 Dibuk Road, tel +66 (0)76 258059; Phra Phitak Chyn Pracha House, 98 Krabi Road, tel +66 (0)76 211161; Phuket Art Gallery, 74 Thalang Road, tel +66 (0)2 58388; Raintree Spa, 1 Montree Road, tel +66 (0)76 232054; Rinda Magical Art, 27 Yaowarat Road, tel +66 (0)8 9289-8852; Sarasil Gallery, 121 Phang Nga Road, tel +66 (0)76 224532; Sharms, 83 Yaowarat Road, tel +66 (0)76 218515; Siam Indigo, 8 Phang Nga Road, tel +66 (0)76 256697; Tam Eng, 12 Soi Rommanee, tel +66 (0)76 214207/214537; Tea House – Siam Celadon, 6 Soi Rommanee, tel +66 (0)76 212154