Having grown up watching Gilligan’s Island, the idea of a three hour tour always leaves me a bit anxious. But when Noom shows an interest in something beyond shopping, I tend to set my worries aside and just be happy my wallet gets to take a break. Such was the case after a quasi-business trip to Khaosan Road, the subsequent hassle in finding an open taxi, and Noom’s sudden realization that it was close enough to feeding time to stop off at his favorite pad thai restaurant. No problemo. It’s not exactly a short hike from the backpacker ghetto to the far side of Wat Ratchanadda where our early lunch awaited, but it is a shady walk down Ratcha Damnoen Klang Road. At least it was until Noom came to an abrupt stop and uttered that fateful cry, “Oh!”

We’d driven and walked past the Rattanakosin Exhibition Hall many times in the past without incident. This time, maybe it was the lack of store windows to shop and a stomach that wasn’t quite growling yet that combined to entice him with the thought of spending our afternoon in a museum. Then again Noom is Thai. And he loves anything and everything about his culture. Even when it’s more about propaganda than tradition. But at a mere 100 baht, who was I to argue with his choice of historical record?

The Rattanakosin Exhibition Hall isn’t just a museum, it’s an interactive museum. But also being a museum run by the Thai government, your interaction is strictly controlled. Mindless wandering from exhibit to exhibit is not allowed. Because in Thailand we take guided tours. Which is where my anxiety about taking the three hour version came into play. But it coulda been worse. There’s a six hour version too. And with scheduling, the word is taking both could make you feel just like Gilligan (or Lovey Howell for you queens) stuck on an uncharted island with no apparent means of escape.

Officially the tour takes two hours. Or four. There are two ‘routes’ and you can choose to take one or both (for the same admission fee). But being a Thai museum run by the Thai government and billed as a Thai cultural experience, Rattanakosin Exhibition Hall runs on Thai time. So it all depends on how the tour schedule works out with your arrival time. First, there’s an introductory video that starts every fifteen minutes. Then your first two hour tour, which begin every 20 minutes. And then if you opt for the full experience, there’s the additional delay waiting for Part II to start. So not counting time spent at the coffee shop, checking out the views from the Observation Deck, or your boy du jour’s obligatory stop at the gift shop, plan on six hours for the full set of tours, or three hours for the single tour. But just remember that too was all that Gilligan thought he’d signed up for.

Now between almost a full day of sightseeing in one building and the fact that despite billing itself as an interactive learning center the Rattanakosin Exhibition Hall is still a museum, you might be thinking: pass. And I don’t blame you. But somewhere between my bitching about being forced to take a guided tour, the length of the tour(s), the 1,000 baht deposit for the English language audio guide, the sometimes juvenile displays, and having how wonderful the royals of Thailand are for the country shoved down my throat, I actually began to enjoy myself. And Noom loved it from the get-go. Even with all the bitching I was doing.

From strictly a time best spent view, I’d almost want to tell you to go with your first instincts and give it a pass if you are only in town for a few days. But the info and displays on the Grand Palace alone would make your subsequent visit to that attraction much more rewarding. And while some of the interactive technology displays appear to have been constructed by The Professor from what he could find on the island, others are pretty damn cool. One, while you are sitting down watching a 4D-multimedia video (replete with scent and sensory effects), is actually an elevator that raises you to the next floor. Whodathunk a museum could actually be fun?

The museum is divided into nine ‘halls’ each focusing on a different aspect of Thai history/culture. The Grandeur Rattanakosin Room is mostly Chakri dynasty hype, but that segues into the Prestige of the Kingdom Room with interactive displays and scale models of the Grand Palace. You get to see the Emerald Buddha in not one but three different costumes (and all three are of a better view than you’ll get actually visiting the green guy), and the explanation of the meanings behind all the architectural details of the place is fascinating. It also provides glimpses into parts of the palace not usually accessible to the public.

In the Remarkable Entertainments Hall, a panoramic view of the olden days of Siam with traditional Thai entertainment spectacles involves you in the country’s performing arts, such as the masked Khon dance, lakhon plays, the Thai silk industry, fruit carving, and puppet shows – and yeah, you get to play with the puppets. Then it’s back to how cool it is to be royalty in the Renowned Ceremonies Room, a cinema-like hall with comfortable couch seating where you get to watch a king’s coronation ceremony. The Royal Barge Procession and the Royal Ploughing Ceremony are covered here too. Less all about the Chakri clan, the Impressive Communities Hall brings the different trade streets to life, from the monk’s bowl village of Baan Bat to the foodie lanes than run alongside the city’s canals.

I was hoping the Colorful Thai Way of Living Hall might include some interactive experience with Soi Twilight, but no such luck. Which may have had something to do with it being Noom’s favorite room. Not quite The Pirates of the Caribbean, after a brief look into to life at riverside you take a trip down the river (animated on a 3D multimedia screen) in your own boat (okay, it’s more of a cart, but go with the flow) whose movements stimulate a wild ride on the river. Then, before you get wet, the screen changes into a view of the old city and your boat becomes a tram while you ride down the first paved road in Thailand.

This was the most interactive room. You got to bop your heart out on a dance floor from the ’60s, try out some vintage costumes, and even have your photo superimposed on the cover of a magazine. It ends with a ride on the BTS, which is a good segue into the Sight – Seeing Highlights exhibit which features all the stuff you could have done in town instead of having visited the Rattanakosin Exhibition Hall.

That too was a popular exhibit for Noom. It’s mostly done in cartoons. And they take photos of you when you enter the room so that during the presentation your face shows up in parts of the display. Thankfully, unlike in many museums photography is allowed. So Noom has lots of shots of himself enjoying his day at the Rattanakosin Exhibition Hall.

(The Rattanakosin Exhibition Hall.is open Tuesday through Friday from 11am to 8pm, and on Saturday and Sunday from 10am to 8pm. The last tour begins at 6pm, but consider going later in the day ‘cuz the views of the surrounding area – including the Loha Prasat, Wat Ratchanadda, and the Golden Mount are even more spectacular when lit at night.)

Like many things, the Thais make floral arts uniquely their own.

I’ll probably regret sharing this with you, but I started my working life as a florist. Okay, so I started my working life manning the front counter at McDonalds but since I got fired after two days I don’t think that counts. No matter how proud I am of that achievement. And I have an excuse for the florist thingy. At that time I had a girlfriend – yes, a real vagina – who attended a different high school than I did. Several of the area’s school districts joined together to offer vocational classes for seniors during the last three hours of the school day. She wanted to take the floral training block, and by my signing up too we got to spend part of our school day together. Awwww. Young love. The class was a success, our relationship not so much. She went on to become a mortician. And I went on to become gay.

Those classes were only a semester long. BUT, if you landed a job in that field you got credit for your employment and could go to work rather than school. So I did. I could simply say the rest is history and get on with the point of this post, but instead will tell you the florist business is one of feast or famine. On major flower giving holidays biz is blooming and demand is so great you could wrap up the weeds growing in the vacant lot across the street and desperate men would still buy them. Which I also did. You may be getting a small idea of why I lost that job at McDonalds. Outside of the holy flower giving days, bidness is dead. I don’t mean there is no business; there is. But you spend your days creating lovely works of floral art for dead people. ‘Cuz people feel obligated to send floral tributes to the dearly departed almost as much as guys do on Mother’s Day.

You wouldn’t think morticians have much of a sense of humor, but ya gotta find your laughs where you can. The first delivery I made to a funeral we were handling was one of those times. Everything was running smoothly until I got to the corsage the corpse’s family had ordered for the body and the funeral director told me it was my job to put it on the stiff. Yuk. I don’t like getting that close to old people even when they are still breathing. But I took a deep breath and then spent several minutes trying to pin the corsage to her blouse without getting dead tit. Much mirth among the funeral staff ensued. Finally one of the staff came over, lined up the corsage in perfect position, and then jabbed the corsage pin directly into her body to hold the flowers in place. Yup, that’s how they do it. So you may want to skip the corsage when your mom passes on. Or if you are not real fond of her, reserve the right of pinning on her corsage for yourself.

Bangkok’s Museum of Floral Culture is one of the city’s newer attractions.

As much as I enjoy checking out wats in Thailand, and as often as those wats feature dead people and/or bits and pieces of the dead Buddha, even I acknowledge there are other attractions worthy of a visitor’s time. I have a long list of places I’ve heard or read about that, some day, I want to take in. That list just keeps getting longer. At the rate new shopping malls are being built in Bangkok, those alone could keep me going for decades. So I rarely get around to checking out the places that have been waiting at the bottom of my list for years. On my most recent visit I decided to force myself to take in a few of those perennial must-dos. One of which – and I’m not sure why it ever made it to my list – was Bangkok’s Museum of Floral Culture. Maybe it was my years of toiling in the industry. Maybe it was because I’m a gay man. Maybe it was because it sounded better than The Sea Shell Museum. If you are a first-time visitor to Bangkok, I wouldn’t suggest the Museum of Floral Culture as part of your itinerary. But if you are a frequent visitor and are looking for something different to do, the museum makes for a tranquil outing for an afternoon.

The brainchild of internationally known floral artist Sakul Intakul – who is also the florist to the Thai royal court – the museum is set in a 100+ year old colonial-style two-story teak house built in 1920 by one of the officers of the palace guards, who was granted the land by the king. If you go on a weekend, Sakul is available to answer questions (and autograph his book), and just in case you were thinking that all floral designers are gay, after meeting the man you’ll quickly realize that is probably not just a stereotype. Opened in 2012, the museum is dedicated to the floral arts with an emphasis on their use in Thai art and culture. So it’s a bit of surprise that the one thing the museum is lacking in is flowers. Fresh blooms are few and far between. Your hotel lobby probably has a more massive display. The museum is more a tribute to the art of floral displays than a display of floral art. But then museums are (I’m told) supposed to educate, and in that task Sakul’s creation excels. And it still beats visiting Jim Thompson’s House of Silk for Sale hands down.

Located in a quiet residential area of Dusit district, the museum sits in a beautifully landscaped Thai-meets-Zen-style garden featuring shrubbery and trees planted in auspicious locations in accordance with ancient Thai beliefs; kind of a Thai geomancy version of feng shui for the garden At one time locals paid strict attention to what vegetation was planted in their gardens and where each type of tree or plant was located, all of which (when done properly) brought good fortune and luck to the residence. Nowadays, not so much. But the museum’s guides takes great care to explain the concept and it’s not a part of Thai culture you are likely to learn about elsewhere.

Who said all floral designers are gay?

Inside the house, each room serves as a different exhibition space. The first, the Dusit Gallery, displays photos of key members of the Thai court who helped to cultivate the Thai art of flower arranging during the reign of King Rama V. The World of Floral Culture is in the next room and features photos and plastic arrangements of floral displays used in festivals and ceremonies of Bali, India, Japan, Cambodia, Laos, and Tibet. There are two Heritage of Thai Flower Culture rooms, the first deals with the history of flower arranging in Thailand with a focus on how flowers, petals, leaves or other part of plant materials are sewn, pinned, weaved, tied, and folded to fabricate different forms of Thai floral art. Part II is all about banana leaves and how they are manipulated to create special offerings for the gods as well as Krathong floats. These two rooms were probably the most interesting of the tour as they dealt with the traditional styles of Thai floral arts.

There is another room or two on the tour (tours are mandatory, you can’t stroll through the museum on your own) and upstairs is an exhibit where Sakul shows you the drawings he makes in preparation for his creations, including his work that graced the state banquet tables at the Grand Palace for the 2006 celebration of King Bhumibol’s 60th anniversary on the throne.

None of which probably has you chomping at the bit to make the trek out to the Museum of Floral Culture. But wait! There’s more! As dull as the museum may sound, I would strongly recommend a visit for several reasons, all of which have to do with the experience rather than the attraction. And with a gay man in charge of things, you know parts of that experience are gonna be fabulous. First is getting there. It really is off the beaten path. You can take a taxi and hope for the best. But I’d instead recommend taking an orange flag river boat all the way up the Chao Phraya to Pier 18 (Payap) which will cost you a whopping 15 baht. That’s about a 45 minute ride from Central Pier and is an excursion in itself. From the pier it’s about a 15 minute hike to the museum through a mostly quaint residential section of old Bangkok, or you can catch a taxi (50 baht, 5 minutes).

How do they do that? The Museum of Floral Culture will show you.

One of the things that made me fall in love with Thailand when I first visited decades ago was the warmth and friendliness of the Thai people; there was a reason the country was known as the Land of Smiles. Nowadays, not so much. If you want a touch of that graciousness, a visit to the museum alone is worth the experience. The staff is wonderfully warm, welcoming, and interested in you. It’s as though along with the 100-year-old residence they’ve decided to put on a display of ancient Thai hospitality. Or maybe it’s just that several staff members are gay and recognize that quality in others. In any case, their friendliness is a major part of the experience.

The tour itself, which takes about 45 minutes – of which you’ll spend 40 minutes trying to decipher your guide’s attempt at English – is nothing to write home about. And you are not allowed to take photos inside of the house. But at the end of your tour it is suggested you stop to have tea and desserts on the open-air veranda: it will be the highlight of your visit. Whiling away another hour kicked back in colonial splendor is the perfect way to spend an afternoon at the museum; the Dok Mai Salon du Thé (finally) has fresh, beautiful flower arrangements adding to its ambiance and the salon is a perfect fit for the romantic atmosphere of this classic teak house.

The tea selections are all floral-infused and selected by Sakul. Try the Kathmandu Cinnamon Apple, a lively, fresh blend dominated by a delightfully aromatic burst of sweet and spicy cinnamon with a hint of juicy apples. A pot of tea runs 120 baht, or you could – and should – order the 240 baht set which comes with a selection of six exquisite Thai confectionary sweets. Not only do they look sumptuous, but they taste just as good, which may be a bit surprising at first if you are not familiar with Thai desserts.

It doesn’t get much better than an afternoon of sipping tea at the Dok Mai Salon du Thé.

As an added bonus, this year on the second Saturday of each month a special flower workshop is being held. Each session is limited to 12 participants (so book in advance) and each month the session covers a different subject such as the art of lotus petal folding, making a traditional pointed dome arrangement from jasmine blossoms, and stringing traditional flower garlands. Each course runs from 10am to noon and includes tea and sweets at a cost of 1,700 baht. Which may sound a but pricey, but at least you won’t have to do a vagina to gain some flower arranging skills like I did.

The Museum of Floral Culture is open from Tuesday to Sunday, 10.00am to 6.00pm. Guided tours are conducted in English at 11am and in Thai at 2pm and 4pm (although you may be the only people in your tour and then the language will be fit to your preference). Tours last for 45 minutes, but can easily stretch into an hour or more if you have lots of questions or just want to enjoy the house and grounds at a leisurely pace. Admission is 150 baht.

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Is it live or is it Memorex?

Stray thoughts that enter Noom’s mind often take on the intensity of a pit bull whose jaws have just clamped down on some unsuspecting fool’s leg. And yeah, I usually get to play the part of said unsuspecting fool. Throw in his national pride, a trait that seems to be genetically implanted in every Thai, and it makes for interesting developments when we are mapping out travel plans. Way back, his family came across the border from Laos. So seeing his native land was always one of his desires. Or at least it became one once we’d hooked up and he started getting to travel. It took a few years for that desire to plant itself in my soul too, but we eventually made the trip and Noom was a happy camper. Suggestions that he accompany me on trips to Burma and Cambodia have not gone over as well.

Noom can not forgive the Burmese for what they did to Thailand back in the 1500s. I think. Or it could be their more recent transgressions. From the 1700s. Mention the Burmese today and his face gets serious and grim. His mutterings, “I keel them!” kinda sum up his basic opinion of his neighbors to the north. So Burma is off our travel plans. Not that he wouldn’t go. I’m just not sure whether or not he’d be free to get back on the plane to return home. He’s not quite as militant about Cambodia. There’s some resentment there, but it tends to come and go with the same frequency as the not infrequent skirmishes along the two countries’ shared border. And while I know there is a part of him that would love to see the temples of the Angkor Wat complex just outside of Siem Reap, there’s a much bigger part of him that needs to find disapproval with those architectural feats of wonder. That’d be the Thai part of him.

We spent several hours at an Asia Books branch one afternoon, when I’d stopped in to check out the latest best sellers and Noom became engrossed in their offerings of guidebooks. Of Thailand. When I tracked him down, he was flustered and a little bit pissed. I’d just returned from a short trip to Siem Reap and he wanted to show me in a guidebook that Thailand too had ancient Khmer temples. He just couldn’t find what he was looking for in the pile of books growing at his feet. That crisis was averted once I agreed the publishers hadn’t a clue about his country since they’d stuck the section he was looking for in the wrong part of their books. And I agreed, at some unspecified point in the future, we’d make the trek out to see Thailand’s version of Angkor Wat. Without mentioning those structures were smaller, less impressive, more run-down, and more difficult to get to. Having shown me there was no good reason to leave his country to see Khmer wats, Noom, once again, was a happy camper.

But he knows me well enough that he sensed I wasn’t really thrilled with the idea of that trip. So the pit bull within him went to work. Which manifested itself early one morning a few months later when just after breakfast he announced, “Come! We go!” and pushed my camera bag into my hands to signify his plans for the day did not include shopping. Or at least shopping wasn’t the primary focus. ‘Cuz with Noom any excursion involves shopping at some point.

I’ve learned when Noom has a plan to not ask questions. If I do, and if I get an answer at all, it’s that it’s a surprise. I’d like to argue that surprise or not, he will get lost, he will get antsy at not being able to find whatever his surprise is, and that a few minutes spent on the internet could instead easily lead us directly to wherever it is we are going. Instead I suck it up, let him take the lead, and remind myself I’m on holiday and even being lost has value. This time around things when smoother than normal. Retracing steps we’d made countless times before we eventually ended up at the Grand Palace. And then got lost.

Being Thai, Noom sucks at directions. And asking other Thais for further directions only makes matters worse. Finding Wat Phra Kaew where the famous Emerald Buddha rests, for example, is not a difficult feat. Unless you are Thai. So after an hour of wandering aimlessly with much purpose, Noom finally let loose with that much of the surprise. Five minutes later the farang led him to our intended destination.

As many times at I’ve visited the Grand Palace, I’ve only bothered with Wat Phra Kaew once, on the first visit. The Emerald Buddha is kinda tiny. Which would still be cool if it was actually made of emerald. But it is chiseled out of a dark green jasper, which as stones go doesn’t rate as precious and rates so far down on the semi-precious ranking that unscrupulous dealers, rather than mess with it as jasper, try to pass it off as jade instead. And not the expensive kind of jade at that. But the Emerald Buddha was not the reason we were at Wat Phra Kaew. The miniature replica of Angkor Wat was. Yup, you can visit Cambodia without ever leaving Bangkok. Which was the whole purpose behind Noom’s need to show me the mini Angkor Wat.

I’m not sure why King Rama IV decided his mock-up of Angkor Wat needed to be displayed in what is considered one of Thailand’s holiest holy spots. I do know that in the mid-1800s he sent a team of surveyors to Cambodia to map out the complex with plans on disassembling the temple, moving it to Thailand, and then reassembling it again. The move turned out to be logistically impossible. So he ordered his mini version constructed instead. Maybe he housed it at Wat Phra Kaew so it would be easy for his subjects to find. If so, he obviously didn’t know the Thai people very well.

Considering what the model makers in Hollywood do these days just so Godzilla has a town to destroy, Bangkok’s mini-Angkor Wat is a bit of a let down. Personally, I’d have been more impressed if it was of the Bayon instead, but then I prefer that temple’s ginormous leering heads to the scope and grandeur of the Angkor Wat compound anyway. It is quite detailed, and reported to be built exactly to scale. And you have to give its creators of the day props for the intricate work they did in sculpturing the sandstone to look like the real thing both in color and scope. I know Noom was quite taken with it. Or was quite taken with himself for having discovered its existence.

If you are interested in seeing Thailand’s model of Angkor Wat, it’s located just outside of the Temple of the Emerald Buddha, and within the Grand Palace grounds. So it’s a better deal if you are going to see the Grand Palace and spend a few minutes checking out the mini Angkor Wat too as the admission cost is the same. For not that much more, you can fly to Siem Reap and see the real thing. I probably should also mention there is a much smaller and even less impressive version at the Royal Palace in Phnom Penh, though to be that close and not go see the real thing probably has a negative effect on your karma. As I’m sure would visiting the even smaller and even less impressive version at Mini Siam and Mini Europe in Pattaya. But then if you hit Pattaya your karma has already been bloodied, no doubt.

Outside of wanting to please your bar boy friend and current love of your life, I don’t know that I’d recommend making a special trip to the Grand Palace just to see a scaled-down version of Angkor Wat. But then I wouldn’t suggest that excursion just to see the Emerald Buddha either. If Noom hadn’t been so pleased with himself, I would have parroted back one of his favorite phrases, “Not real.” But if you are at the Grand Palace, it is worth a few minutes of your time. And if you are headed out to Siem Reap and the real deal, it’s a great introduction and gives you an even better idea of the layout, magnitude, and sheer size of Cambodia’s version of Angkor Wat.

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Mention a grand ole dame and extravagantly flamboyant costumes full of sequins in Pattaya and you’re probably talking about yet another insufferably campy aging drag queen from Bristol taking to a too tiny stage when all the audience really want to see is the naked boys. And while among gay visitors said naked boys are still the perennial favorite production value on Bangkok’s stages, throw in a few soaring golden headdresses and some bare-footed dancers richly clothed in silk and brocade and then you are probably talking about the khon dance performances at the Sala Chalermkrung Theater. Or the ladyboy show at Calypso Cabaret. But let’s act like you have some sense of culture for a minute.

When your wallet says nyet to hitting yet another shopping mall, your spiritual being is watted out, and the idea of watching another Big Cock Show! leaves you limp, not far away and yet worlds away from the Silom gay ghetto, Sala Chalermkrung is one of the few remaining places khon – the traditional Thai classical masked dance – can be seen in Bangkok. This art deco Bangkok landmark, a former cinema dating to 1933, features the traditional Thai dance-drama (enhanced by laser graphics and hi-tech audio) every Thursday and Friday night at 7:30 p.m. And considering the dearth of touri in the audience it counts as being off the beaten path too.

If you are not familiar with khon, you are with the performers and the masks they wear as they’re an iconic image of Thailand and are featured in ads and on billboards almost as much as his royal you-know-who is. Khon, originally limited to performances for the royal court – and originally only performed by men, even the female roles (so you ladyboy aficionados are covered) – is a distinct art form that brings together movement, dialogue, narration, costumes, and music to tells the story of the Thai version of the Hindu epic Ramayana (known in Thailand as the Ramakien) although Sala Chalermkrung’s is an abbreviated version since original performances lasted 6 hour or more – but still, as a remake, stays closer to the original storyline than Russell Crowe’s recent attempt at retelling the story of Noah. Though come to think of it, these days Russell could play the hero in Sala Chalermkrung’s version – Hanuman, a white immortal monkey – without having to don one of the traditional khon masks.

The performance is a colorful display of dance, acrobatics, movement, and mime with a cast of 60 whose mesmerizing control and balance is a lesson in absolute body control. The dance is a highly physical and symbolic art form requiring performers to adhere to certain movements which express various emotions, choreographed right down to the fingertips. At Sala Chalermkrung you can view all eight acts of the Thai Ramayana and its authentic movements exacted with amazing skill in a little more than an hour. Which is probably all the culture you can handle.

Your evening at Sala Chalermkrung begins with a short documentary that explains what khon is and how the performers train and prepare for the show. It also covers the significance of the performers’ stylized movements and introduces you to the main characters and the masks each wears, to help visitors from the West to better follow the tale as it is an unfamiliar one since Disney has not introduced the Ramayana to American and European audiences yet.

During the actual performance there’s also a LED display hung high above the curtain that provides an English translation of the narration – since the actors faces are masked, narrators sing the storyline along with the live music to express the dialogue and plot. Surprisingly, you’ll soon quit bothering to read those subtitles – the actors’ movements and the masks alone quite capably tell the story. So well in fact that your senses will also quickly disregard the accompanying traditional Thai music, which can be, and usually is, quite grating to the western ear. The hot guys on stage – even if they are wearing more clothing than you are used to – ain’t bad either.

Part of the show is the theater itself. Sala Chalermkrung was built by King Rama VII in the 1930’s and was at that time considered to be the most modern building in Asia. A blend of western and Thai architecture, it was a far step above the theaters of the day, which were usually small, cramped buildings that looked like wooden houses with zinc sheets used as a roof. Opened as a royal project, the luxurious 2,000 seat Sala Chalermkrung introduced new technologies to Bangkok’s cinema world, such as sound, light, and an automatic curtain system. Undoubtedly even more importantly to moviegoers, this theater was the first in Thailand to install air-conditioners, a novelty Thais are still enthralled with today as evidenced by the near-freezing temps the SFX chain keeps their theaters at.

Sala Chalermkrung today is a charming theatre, immaculately maintained with period fittings that whisk you back in time 80 years with its mass of brass fittings, red velvet cushions, and sepia photographs. Everything looks as fresh as it did when the theater opened its doors in 1933. The theater itself offers lots of photo ops, and although you are not allowed to take photos during the performance, afterwards the main characters assemble in the lobby to pose with you. And they are not as greedy about being tipped as the ladyboys in Phuket are.

Located at 66 Charoen Krung Road (next to Old Siam Plaza) Sala Chalermkrung is easy to find though your best bet for transpo is by taxi. Tickets for the khon performances run 800, 1,000, and 1,200 baht – dependant upon how close to the stage you want to be – and are available on-line through Thai Ticket Major, or at the door.

You can also purchase tickets at the Grand Palace if you want to make it a full day of culture, but then the Grand Palace will probably be closed the day you plan on going and your cultural outing instead will involve discount tailor shops and special one-day only government sponsored gem and jewelry sales. But hey, then you’ll have some new duds and bling to wear and you can pretend you are a Hollywood starlet walking the red carpet when you arrive at Sala Chalermkrung that evening.

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