Traditional Bangkok life is reflected in its waterways
Written by Writer on Monday, September 15th, 2008
Conversations on the Klong
Traditional Bangkok life is reflected in its waterways
PANYAPORN PRUKSAKIT
KLONGS: Thai Waterways and Reflections of Her People
Pamela Hamburger
Bangkok Book House, 140 pages, 2008, 995 baht
ISBN 978-974-452-756-1
Speaking at the official launch of her book Klongs: Thai Waterways and Reflections of Her People, Pamela Hamburger likens the trials and tribulations of writing her first book to the birth of a child. Indeed, she speaks with such passion and love of the recently published Klongs, which chronicles “traditional Thai klong life”, that it is clear the book has been a deeply rewarding, yet equally challenging, experience.
Inspired by a spur-of-the-moment trip on a bullet boat through Bangkok’s various waterways, or “klongs” as they are better known, the book unites Hamburger’s established photographic talent with a burgeoning faculty for writing. Indeed, Dr Sumet Jumsai, renowned national artist, architect and academic, guest speaker at the book’s launch, calls it “a beautiful artist’s book … full of imagination.”
Klongs is a journey through Bangkok, but along a less-travelled path. Away from the congested roads of Thailand’s capital lies a hidden community of those who have lived upon the klongs for generations. In Hamburger’s book, we hear the voice of the klongs, through its inhabitants.
Hamburger interviews 25 individuals living along the klongs - each location she visits pinpointed by a red dot upon a localised map. Thus the reader is able to trace her journey, with each chapter marking her travels through a different klong, beginning in “Klong Bangkok Noi”, and culminating in a look at life on the banks of “Chao Praya Santa Cruz”.
Living in Bangkok, the imposing concrete structures of expressways and skytrain tracks dominating the city’s skyline, it is perhaps easy to forget that Bangkok was once regarded as a floating city, and that at the heart of the city, even today, lies the klongs. The people who have not forgotten are those who have lived in a time before the birth of expressways and skytrains. Those who have been rigorous observers of the radical transformation Bangkok has undergone in the past half century or so. They are the older generation, who have many stories to tell; about society, about the war, about themselves. But more often than not, there is no one to listen.
One such individual Hamburger gives voice to in the book is Sri, 70, who has lived on “Klong Bangkok Noi” for 37 years. She, along with others, speaks of how society has changed rapidly, with “thieves … so brazen they come on motor-cycles [to] attack someone.” They recall a time when “at night, we could see the eyes of the shrimp” and how people washed their clothes, dishes, and themselves, in the klong. However, it is not only nature and outsiders which have changed: the tightly-knit, trusting community of the past is also gone. One inhabitant remarks how “people now live a more isolated life than in the past.” Hamburger’s narrative is written in simplistic, unadorned prose: one feels that she has tried to capture the essence of the klong people in her words. Their stories are simple word-of-mouth tales and memories, unassuming and un-self-conscious. Yet Hamburger’s book is strewn with astute, profound statements: one klong inhabitant remarks how “people brought civilisation in, but this also [sent] beautiful nature out.”
The visual component of the book is perhaps not what one expects. There are no clear-blue skies, bright vivid colours, or crisp, crystal-clear photos. The photos do not take your breath away, at least not in the traditional sense of the phrase. Instead, they seem to represent life along the klongs more accurately, more candidly. Hamburger’s photos let the reader glimpse into the well-worn lives of the klong people. For life for the inhabitants of Bangkok’s klongs is not glamorous, nor idyllic - and it would be disingenuous of Hamburger to portray it as such.
Indeed, Hamburger’s book manages to provide an insight into the various flavours and elements which come together to compose the colourful community which floats upon the surface of the klongs. The harmonious relations between Islamic, Buddhist and Christian inhabitants is refreshing and encouraging, in a time when other parts of the country are encumbered by religious strife. Hamburger does not shy away from the mysticism and spiritualism which is still central to the lives of many inhabitants of the klongs. An oft repeated phrase in Hamburger’s book is the question of whether she has seen the klong “mermaids”, which many of the klong inhabitants believe to keep watch over them. Nor is she afraid of recording the darker, more sinister sides of their lives: one story details how it is not uncommon to find the corpses of not only animals, but even humans, floating along the klongs. Hamburger does not attempt to prophesy about the future of the klongs in her book. Instead, she leaves the reader with a message of hope - her wish that these “incredible waterways … will continue to enchant visitors for many years to come.”
Hamburger’s book is an accurate and forthright account of life upon Bangkok’s klongs. She captures the poverty, but also the hope and contentedness which fills the lives of its inhabitants. The book is certainly not a fast-paced, whirlwind adventure through Bangkok, nor is it filled with stunning, striking, photos. For that, one must look elsewhere. However, what Hamburger’s book does have is a distinct charm and sincerity: the reader can certainly appreciate the extensive research which has gone into the project. As Hamburger’s own translator remarks, “Klongs: Thai Waterways and Reflections of Her People opens up the existence of klongs to even Thais themselves.” This perceptive statement encapsulates why Hamburger’s first book is ultimately a rewarding and genuinely touching read.
