Stories from the streets of Bangkok—one footnote at a time.
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A City Guide Bound in Cloth and Gold Written by One of Thailand’s Most Remarkable ExPats Serves as a Paper Time Machine to 1920s Siam
In 2011, I fell under the spell of a Woody Allen film called “Midnight in Paris”, a gorgeously shot cinematic love letter to past and present day Paris, as well as the city of the director’s imagination. In the movie, the protagonist Gil is transported back in time one evening at the stroke of midnight… Read more
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As It Was: The Bangkok House Where One Tenacious Woman’s Gift of Nostalgia Lives On
Bangkok’s collective memory can seem shortsighted — increasingly blurred the further removed it is from its past. For many of us who live here today, it can be hard to imagine a time when the cityscape was not dominated by concrete, condominiums and highways, but rather, dotted throughout with wooden houses, low rise buildings and… Read more
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![[SINGAPORE EDITION] The Last of Us: Golden Mile Complex and the Final Days of Singapore’s Little Thailand](https://thefootpathfiles.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/02/img_3050.jpeg?w=1024)
[SINGAPORE EDITION] The Last of Us: Golden Mile Complex and the Final Days of Singapore’s Little Thailand
This story began as a quest that has likely been embarked upon by countless Thais who live in Singapore, searching for Holy Basil — that aromatic, mildly peppery cousin of mint known in Thai as Kra Pao, the sine qua non of herbs that tugs at the heart strings of every Thai. Without it, you… Read more
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![[SINGAPORE EDITION] Hiding in Plain Sight: Emerald Hill, the Last Village on Orchard Road](https://thefootpathfiles.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/01/img_2810.jpeg?w=1024)
[SINGAPORE EDITION] Hiding in Plain Sight: Emerald Hill, the Last Village on Orchard Road
Sense of place is elusive in Singapore. Concepts like community, heritage and authenticity have often all too often taken a back seat to progress, growth and efficiency — in some instances being obliterated all together. While this prosperous city-state has made great strides in recent decades in restoring and preserving historic facades, rarely have the… Read more
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Bangkok’s Original TCDC, Where Creativity Once Unfolded, Finally Folds Up
This is a story about a space. Eighteen years ago on the top floor of a shopping complex, a remarkable series of rooms opened its doors to an un-expecting public, the physical embodiment of the nation’s ‘Creative Economy’. Since then, the Thailand Creative & Design Center (TCDC) has served as the de facto base camp… Read more
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Where Spirits Reside and Wishes Flourish
As the new year begins the world over, social media feeds abound with resolutions and reflections. In Thailand, the commencement of life’s annual chapter refresh does not generally take the form of personal resolves — which are a fairly western construct. Interestingly, in this deeply Buddhist kingdom, we do not make promises to ourselves, we… Read more
The Footpath Files
Stories from the streets of Bangkok—one footnote at a time.
All photography is by The Footpath Files unless otherwise credited.
Based
Bangkok, Thailand
The Footpath Files 