Touring the elaborate and historical French embassy

Touring the elaborate and historical French embassy

SOCIAL & LIFESTYLE
Touring the elaborate and historical French embassy
French Embassy Open Door Day. Photos: Harrison Brooks

On Sunday, the French embassy in Bangkok will open its doors to the public and provide guided tours of the grounds as part of European Heritage Days.

This is the 35th year that the French embassy will be hosting this event. According to the embassy the idea is to "share European heritage landmarks with people from all countries, in order to emphasise the common historic and aesthetic values".

"The idea is very simple. It's to show this historical building and to show the common heritage," said Arnaud Dubus of the French embassy. "We have the architecture and old artefacts, and we also want to show that there is a common heritage but there is also diversity. So, it's unity and diversity."

Last year, almost 1,000 people came for a tour of the grounds, and employees of the embassy expect a similar number to come again this year.

Among the highlights is the 152-year-old ambassador's residence designed with a combination of Colonial and Neapolitan-style architecture, which was originally the French consulate. In 1892 it became a legation before finally becoming the French embassy in 1949.

French Embassy Open Door Day. Photos: Harrison Brooks

When looking at the front of the residence, there is an arched glass door on the main floor, with stairs on both sides that go up to the 2nd-floor veranda. Directly above the veranda, the residence bears a French military emblem given to the embassy by Napoleon.

Despite many renovations over the years, the inside still has an old-time, classic feel to it with its old wooden decor, and high ceilings that not only fit the aesthetic but were designed to help regulate the house's temperature in Thailand's tropical climate by circulating air throughout the house better than a lower ceiling could.

The tour presents a touch of the modern when you enter the 1st-floor gallery space. Hanging on the walls are photos taken by French photographers that seem ordinary at first. But if you download the free French eMotion app on your phone and point your camera at the pictures, they become interactive, each with its own unique display.

The pool at the back of the embassy was built by the neighbouring Chinese Oriental Hotel, as an apology for all the construction noise made during the hotel's renovations.

The tour is open to the public on Sunday, 10am-4pm, with public tours provided in English, French and Thai. Personal identification is required. The French embassy is located on Charoen Krung 36.

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