Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
WALK 2
BANGKOK YAI
The Old Harbour
This quiet stretch of riverbank contains remnants of Thonburi's original communities along
with temples, shrines, mosques and churches, and even a pagoda that affords a magnificent
view.
Duration: 3 hours
The reason why the Wong Wian Yai terminus of the Mahachai-Mae Klong railway is
such a modest little affair is that it was never actually built as a terminus. It was ori-
ginally the penultimate station, with the line tootling on towards the river and terminating
at Klong San ferry pier. From here, the produce was loaded onto boats and floated straight
over to the piers that served the commercial heart of the city, which in those days was Char-
oen Krung Road and Chinatown. The railway had been built and operated under a forty-
year concession by the Tha Cheen Railway Company, headed by Celestino Xavier, one of
the most influential members of the Portuguese community in Bangkok, who served at the
Siamese ministry of foreign affairs and was awarded the title Phraya Phiphat Kosa. When
the concession expired in the early 1940s, the line was bought by the government and even-
tually became part of the State Railway of Thailand. In 1961, the traffic around the Klong
San-Wong Wian Yai area having become congested, military dictator Field Marshal Sarit
Thanarat decided to axe the section of line that ran through the increasingly busy streets.
He had wanted to cut the line a few stops down, at Wat Singh, but the residents and traders
persuaded him that Wong Wian Yai would be more appropriate.
Today, crossing over Somdet Phra Chao Taksin Road from the Wong Wian Yai ter-
minus, it can immediately be seen where the railway line used to run, for concrete slabs
have simply been laid over the course of the track. On the corner of Charoen Rat Road,
along which the line had passed, is one of Bangkok's leading leather markets. Further along
