EP4: What if history was honest?
I can’t recall the last time I visited Museum Siam. I remember vaguely there were lots of Thais and foreigners walking around the building. It was ridiculously crowded - which is good. My son was in awe while running from room to room asking a bunch of stuff. Amazing day.
So when Aj.Joon announced the first class after the lockdown would be held at Museum Siam, I instantly asked my son to come meet me after class.
Museum Siam, Bangkok 2021
This time was different though. I doubted whether I was older (hopefully wiser) or each exhibition was more interesting and seemed to be more introspective. There were more fun interactive exhibitions and innovative displays such as light-mapping tables using projectors and sensors to play with objects.
The ticket price was not that cheap but also not that high. I personally think the pricing is reasonable and worthwhile. Remind ourselves that museums play a crucial role in preserving, interpreting and displaying our culture. With attentive documentation and mindful artifact preservation, Siamese culture can be recorded and remembered regardless of its future. It can also be shared and understood by those from different cultural backgrounds.
I wish we have more budget to fund more local museums. Today museums are an important part of many people’s travel experiences. They have become some of the most popular and most visited places in the world’s leading cities - Bangkok could be included if more diverse genres of museum emerge. Or else we will have to learn an honest version of our history from other places.