KHAO SAN ROAD | BKK S01.E10
Khao San Road Captured
Bangkok's famous Khaosan Road or Khao Sahn Road or Thanon Khao San is a lively and dynamic street in central Bangkok, Thailand constructed in 1892 during the reign of Rama V. "Khaosan" means "milled rice", and this is is because in former times the street was a major Bangkok rice market. Move the clock to the 1980-2020 and Khaosan Road has developed into the world-famous backpacker central.
Bangkok's famous Khaosan Road
In this video LUKE WALKS explore KHASAN ROAD and examines the history of this area, relives some memories and captures the scenes in 2020s. These are the areas Lᴜᴋᴇ Wᴀʟᴋs explores in this fun BANGKOK video:
Chaophraya River
Khaosan Road
Ram Buttri Road
กระต่าย Kratai Records
New World Mall
Adhere The 13th Blue Bar
Democracy Monument
14th October 1973
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Khao San - In this small area one can observe the interactions and groupings of disparate characters such as un-educated young Westerners on extended leave from affluent society, high school graduates on gap year travels, Israelis fresh out of military service, university students on holiday or sabbatical leave, young Japanese in rite-of-passage attire, ordinary holidaymakers, (ex-) volunteers from various organizations, and the like. Khao San is a great place to meet fellow travellers, enjoy a festive environment (and a great Songkran celebration), but moreover, it’s in a stunning part of town near the Grand Palace, Phra Artit Road and Chao Phraya River with a great rich history.
Khao San Renovations :
The Bangkok Metropolitan Administration (BMA) BMA spent 50 million baht to transform Khaosan Road into an "international walking street", the first makeover of the road since its creation in 1892, and the renovation were completed in 2021.
Khaosan Road History:
By the end of the 19th century, Banglamphu district was by far the largest rice market not only in Bangkok, but anywhere in Siam, the world's largest rice growing nation.
Smaller vendors opened shops south of the canal, where a dirt-track alley became so thick with the rice trade that King Chulalongkorn ordered a proper road built in 1892. Running only 410 meters, the cobbled strip wasn't grand enough to be named after a historic Thai figure, unlike other city thoroughfares, so it was simply called Soi Khao San (Milled Rice Lane).
As Banglamphu flourished on rice profits, the district expanded into clothing (including Thailand's first ready-made school uniforms), buffalo-leather shoes, jewelry, gold leaf and costumes and regalia for Thai classical dance theater. Local demand for entertainment gave birth to two musical comedy houses, Thailand's first national record label (Kratai), and one of the kingdom's first silent-movie cinemas.
Khaosan Road Backpacker:
Then, what started as a trickle in the late 1970s, when travelers and traders began renting rooms from the local shops and residents this grew in the 1980’s when Bangkok became a key terminus for the Asian hippie trail, the influx became a tidal wave in the 1990s. Then after the release of Leonardo DiCapria’s Beach in the year 2000, that surge became a full blow invasion of international backpackers almost completely eclipsed local market culture.
There was a significant change in 1982, which was the 200th anniversary of Bangkok. In 1982, most tourists would stay on the other side of town, close to Lumphini Park and Patpong areas. However, due to the anniversary, hotels were overflowing and some houses in Khao San opened their doors to guests due to their proximity to the festivities and main attractions like the Grand Palace and Wat Arun.
By the mid 1990s, Khao San had become a backpacker institution, with a flourishing black market for CD and DVDs, fake IDs and everything else the backpacker heart may desire. e. The 2000 film version, featuring Leonardo diCaprio did the rest. Despite the opening scene, which takes place at Khao San. not even being filmed there, but rather on an artificially built film set on Koh Phi Phi .It was around this time that Khaosan Road has developed into a world-famous "backpacker ghetto". In an essay on the backpacker culture of Khaosan Road, Susan Orlean called it "the place to disappear.” This was because the area offered cheap accommodation, ranging from "mattress in a box"-style hotels to reasonably priced three-star hotels and it was also a base of travel: coaches leave daily for all major tourist destinations in Thailand, from Chiang Mai in the north to Ko Pha-ngan in the south, and there are many relatively inexpensive travel agents who can arrange visas and transportation to the neighbouring countries of Myanmar, Cambodia, Laos, Malaysia, and Vietnam.
The Banana Pancake Trail - Both adored and lamented for how "touristy" it has become, Khao San Road in Bangkok is considered the unofficial epicenter for the Banana Pancake Trail, the loosely defined circuit of backpacker hotspots scattered throughout Asia. With cheap flights and a solid infrastructure for travelers, Bangkok often serves as an easy starting point for first-timers on around-the-world trips, gap years, and extended jaunts in Asia.Unfortunately, with everything a traveler needs on hand, many backpackers staying in Bangkok never venture far away from the sticky web of Khao San Road. Although the area is a great place to meet—and party with—other budget travelers, only hanging around Khao San Road is hardly a good way to discover what Bangkok and Thailand have to offer!
Khaosan Road at night - Khaosan shops sell handicrafts, paintings, clothes, local fruits, unlicensed CDs, DVDs, a wide range of fake IDs, used books, and other useful backpacker items. After dark, bars open, music is played, food hawkers sell barbecued insects and other exotic snacks for tourists, and touts promote ping pong shows.
Khaosan Road Conflict - In 2018, the Bangkok Metropolitan Administration (BMA), in an attempt to clean up Khaosan Road, announced that street vendors would be removed from the thoroughfare. The BMA intended to move them to a nearby area and restrict their trading hours to 18:00 to midnight. The Khaosan Street Vendors Association, representing some 300 vendors, rejected the move, citing financial ruin for vendors. Last-minute negotiations between the BMA and vendors proved fruitless as neither side has been willing to compromise.[15] Khaosan vendors announced that, in defiance of BMA order, they will open as usual on 1 August. On the first day of the ban on stalls, roughly 70 percent of the vendors opened as usual in defiance of the police.
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Title: Khao San Road Captured | BKK S01.E10
Created by: Luke Walks
Source: https://youtu.be/8Wm3DHtCdUc
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