Jim Thompson House, Bangkok

Excellent museum with a very informative tour included in the ticket price. You will learn about its namesake, a man who loved Thailand so much that he moved there and established a bustling silk business which put this beautiful product on the international market. So worth it. Do take a look at the beautiful pond fish and the restaurant. Also, if you stick around after your tour, be sure to see a short traditional Thai dance feature and witness silk weaving with your own eyes.

We arrived just in time for the last tour (18:00). This was the perfect time because the teak wood glows magnificently in the evening light. The garden and the house are a marvel of interior and garden design. The tour guide was speaking very mechanically and it sounded as if she doesn't even know the words she speaks. But don't let this distract you they have many interesting details to share.

Nice house and gardens with some locals displaying silk gathering and spinning techniques. I'm not sure how come he obtained all these ancient statues, from Thailand and Myanmar, seems to me they are national treasures and should never have been in the hands of one person. Unsure of the ethical implications of this. Shouldn't they be in the Thai or Myanmar national collections? What is the foundation and where does all the money go? Is this just an example of rich foreigner exploiting locals. Ok he "saved" the Thai silk industry, but seems to have made truck loads of money in the process. Did the local workers benefit as much, I doubt it. Am I the only person who has thought of this? Left a slight sour taste in my mouth, but suspect I'm the only one...

The overall experience is something I would recommend to fellow tourists. They have a very organized system. What you would love about it is they offer a tour included with the fee you pay. Available in different languages.

I was so glad that I made time during my Bangkok trip to visit the Jim Thompson House. This was Mr Thompson's house for 7 years prior to his disappearance. They have kept the house up beautifully and displayed so many fine works of art. I wanted to walk around and just take pics of the beautiful flowers and landscaping. When you walk in, there is a silk store on the left. It is nice to go in and peruse the items. My kids fell in love with silk elephants that came with their own sack. Outside the store, there was a man demonstrating how silk is collected from cocoons. It was a fantastic learning piece for my kids. There were woman next wrapping and spinning the silk. You have to sign up for a guided tour of the house. There are many guides speaking a multitude of languages. The guide does a great job describing the pieces and architecture of each room. There are paintings on the wall (with horizontal cracks from being rolled in storage). One of the women on the tour complained that she wasn't given enough time to inspect the paintings. The tour guide did allow more time in each room after that. Jim Thompson collected a lot of Burmese art as well as damaged sculptures (with broken arms/ heads) because he realized the value of these pieces. There is also an adjacent cafe, but we did not eat there. I am glad I took a couple hours to visit the house, learn about silk and a little Thai history.