Birds and Banksy

It was Mom's last day in Bangkok, and we were determined to make the very most of it!

We started the morning bright and very early at Queen Sirikit Park, where my wife and I were going to take Mom on our famous "bird walk".

Read more:

We lead small group tours on ornithological nature walks: The Blog of Michael Desrosiers: Bird-Walking

We discover the amazing birds of Thailand: The Blog of Michael Desrosiers: Birding in Bangkok part I

We took a taxi to the park, arriving around 7:00am. You have to get there before 8:00 if you want to see our friend, a very social and gregarious White-crested Laughingthrush who likes to hang out at the park's on-site coffee shop and greet morning visitors.

Pinky and I run a Meetup group together called the Bangkok Explorer's Club.

We are really hoping to lead our group on some great adventures in the next year, but lately, as we've both been really busy with work, we've mostly been focusing on birding walks around the beautiful parks of Bangkok.

As part of our club, we have an ongoing game that if anyone can spot one of the secretive and elusive owls or owlets which live throughout the city's parks, they will win a free t-shirt with our logo on it.

The owls are very hard to find, and even after birding intensely for over a year, Pinky and I have only spotted them out at the park 4 times.

Mom was exceptionally lucky! Within the first five minutes of our walk through Queen Sirikit Park, Pinky excitedly exclaimed that she has spotted an owl.

In fact, she had spotted two! We were able to see two Asian Barred Owlets sitting together on a brand in one of the dense trees above our heads. This was going to be a very good birding day.

We also saw (in addition to our regular sightings) a Blue-tailed Bee-eater...

... and one of my very favorite birds, an Indochinese Roller, whose wings glisten a stunning sapphire blue when it's flying.

We also saw several water monitors, which aren't birds, but are still an important part of the Thai ecosystem. These dinosaur-looking lizards lazily prowl Bangkok's parks and canals searching for fish to eat. They look a bit creepy, but they are absolutely harmless, and will run away if approached.

After a three-hour trek through the park, we were hungry and tired. Pinky and I knew just the place to go: Or Tor Kor Market (the Marketing Organization for Farmers), which is sort of the national farmers market for the kingdom. This is our favorite place to eat after a morning of birding.

Our goal on this day was to take Mom around and show her more of our daily lives. We come out to the Or Tor Kor pretty often to eat and to buy delicious produce for our weekly cooking.

In the afternoon, we decided to visit the Bangkok MOCA (Museum of Contemporary Arts) one of the several modern arts museums in this very modern and trendy city.

The Blog of Michael Desrosiers: Getting Artsy in BKK

We were immediately greeted by a Chinese porcelain tank - a very subversive piece of art considering the relatively recent military coup and current military junta which rules the kingdom.

The exhibit we were most excited to see, however, was the gallery of world-famous subversive British graffiti artist Banksy! 

Bangkok and Banksy, perfect together (bangkokpost.com)

The mysterious Banksy chose to host his very first art exhibit in Asia at the MOCA, and Bangkok turned out in droves! Despite what the travel guides may tell you, this really is a funky and hipster city.

We were incredibly lucky to be able to buy tickets at the MOCA to view Banksy's art with our own eyes!

 

I won't share every picture I took, because there's nothing more boring to look at than a photograph of a picture, but I want to share this message because it really spoke to me:

"A lot of people never use their initiative because no one told them to" - Banksy

After visiting the Banksy exhibit, we toured the rest of the MOCA. The museum exhibits modern fine art which displays contemporary issues in traditional styles. There was a whole wing dedicated to the traditional masks of the region, for example, and also paintings which chose to present Buddhist, Southeast Asian, or Thai contemporary imagery using traditional motifs. It's super interesting to visit, and I recommend spending an afternoon there if you have the chance.

Of special note were the paintings of Thawan Duchanee who designed the famous Black House in Chiang Rai, Thailand.

The Blog of Michael Desrosiers: The Black House - Baan Daam

That night to say goodbye and to wish Mom safe travels, Pinky and I treated her to dinner at Blue Sky atop the Centara Grand Hotel not too far from where I live.

Blue Sky, the rooftop bar and restaurant, offers the absolute best views across the Chatuchak District.

Mom had the duck, Pinky had the salmon, and I had a very hi-so veggie burger. Together, we shared sides of ratatouille, grilled mushrooms, steamed carrots, and dinner rolls.

Mom had a glass of Thai white wine, Pinky ordered a cocktail, and I - classy guy that I am - swigged a pint of Singha beer.

What a wonderful evening!