Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
ber marks the Feast of the Triumph of the Cross, the church was named Santa Cruz, or
Holy Cross. Taksin was also encouraging Chinese immigrants to settle in the adjacent area
of land, which was quickly becoming heavily populated, and when in 1835 a new church
was built to replace the wooden structure it was designed in a Chinese style. The church
became known to residents as Kudi Cheen, or Chinese Church, the term
kudi
meaning
“an abode for priests or monks”, and the name became attached to the entire neighbour-
hood, and even to the foreign residents, who were known as “
farang
Kudi Cheen”. The
Chinese Church lasted for less than a century, and in 1916 the third and present version of
Santa Cruz was built. This time the design was by two Italian architects, Annibale Rigotti
and Mario Tamagno, and with its characteristic octagonal dome and classical proportions
is resolutely Italianate in style. The name Kudi Cheen, however, remains firmly in usage,
for both the church and for the neighbourhood.
Santa Cruz is only a few minutes' walk from the Memorial Bridge via the attractive
walkway that has been built along the riverbank in recent years. An equally picturesque
entry can be made by ferry from Pak Klong Talat, the flower market on the other side of
the river, for the church has its own pier. The neighbourhood is quiet and neat, and the
church precincts are almost silent. Unless your visit is at a time of worship the only other
visitors are likely to be local residents passing through on their way to and from the river.
During school hours the voices of children can be heard from the Santa Cruz Suksa School
and Santa Cruz Convent, and nuns can sometimes be seen flitting through the precinct,
but otherwise the visitor is alone. A number of statues stand in the grounds, including
one of Mary set in a garden grotto near the river, and there is a large crucifix next to the
pier. Santa Cruz Church is painted in delicate pastels of cream and red ochre, with stained
glass fanlights above the windows. The roof is a barrel vault structure, and there is a classic
pediment and Italian frescoes over the altar. A handsome two-storey presbytery stands on
one side of the precinct, and to the rear of the church, away from the river, there is a tiny
cemetery with the graves of former pastors.
Thonburi, of course, was short-lived. In 1786, four years after Bangkok was established
as the capital, King Rama
I
granted the Portuguese land on the riverbank at Chinatown,
and here they built Holy Rosary Church. Their influence was nonetheless dwindling, espe-
cially in religious work where French missionaries largely eclipsed them during the nine-
teenth century. Santa Cruz Convent, for example, was founded by the Sisters of Saint Paul
of Chartres, a French order, in 1906.
The Portuguese have, however, left behind a very tangible legacy. The Thais had not
known the art of baking until the Portuguese settled in Ayutthaya, and indeed the Thai
