Originally it was called Trok Rongpasi Kao, which translates as Old Customs House Lane, but about two decades ago this narrow side road leading to the Chao Phraya was renamed Charoen Krung 36. Now the soi _ which gives access to the riverside French embassy, as well as Bangkok's first customs house, a Vietnam War-era hotel and a long-established Muslim community _ is to acquire a second official name: Rue de Brest.
Charoen Krung Soi 36 now has a second official name: Rue de Brest. Photo by Thanarak Khoonton
Today at 11am, French Ambassador Thierry Viteau accompanied by his predecessor, Gildas Le Lidec, plus Francois Cuillandre, mayor of the French city of Brest, and Sonthaya Khunpluem, head of our Ministry of Culture, will preside over a ceremony to give the soi its new name. The gesture was conceived as a way of marking the long history of diplomatic relations between Thailand and France.
Brest is a major port in the Brittany region and on June 18, 1686, a ship docked there bearing envoys dispatched by King Narai of Ayutthaya. Led by a courtier named Kosa Pan, the Siamese mission was on its way to visit the French monarch, Louis XIV.
To commemorate their arrival, a street in Brest was later renamed Rue de Siam, as attested to by a document drawn up in Brest in 1694. Today, Rue de Siam is a major thoroughfare in that city's business district.
A standard Bangkok street sign reading "Rue de Brest" (in both Roman and Thai script) has already been installed at the soi's entrance. However, the existing "Charoen Krung 36" sign will remain in place. So next time you hail a taxi to take you there, you can tell (or try telling) the driver that your destination is Rue de Brest. It'll take a while for Bangkokians to get used to the new appellation but, as it's more than 300 years since the French named a street in our honour, it's probably about time that we returned the favour _ and practised speaking some French into the bargain. D'accord?
_ Kong Rithdee
Rue de Siam in France is a busy business thoroughfare.
