Graham Jefcoate was born in England and studied English in Library Science in Cambridge and London. He has spent much of his adult life abroad, now a retired librarian living in Chang Mai. He took an increasing interest in Thailand when he became Head of Early Printed Collections at the British Library in London in1997, even becoming a member of the committee of the Anglo Thai Society. In recent years, he has become interested in the life of the Anglo-American community in Chang Mai and the north of Thailand before the Pacific War and gave lectures and worship workshops from his research search at Payap University.

• Preface 8Introduction: Bangkok in 13the Early Twentieth CenturyBound for Bangkok 23First Impressions 43Ice 53The Sudden Death of an Engineer 56Palaces and Royalty 58Doing the Wats 66Built Upon the Waters 72The City of Magnificent Distances 76Post and Telecommunications 92Along New Road 95An Up-to-Date Building for Business 98Almost a Danish Colony? 101Germans and the Great War 105The People of Bangkok 114One of the Truly Great 136Men of the WorldDinner at the Room of the Moon 139Food Production 145Ceremonies and Festivals 148The Foreign Colony 154Legations and Consulates 163At Home 170Shopping 181Chummeries 190Beer 194X’mas 197Language 201Mias 206Servants 209Flora and Fauna 214The Snake Farm 223Night Life 227Vice 253Crime and Punishment 266Missions 275In School 283Health and Hygiene 296Sports and Games 313Wongkit’s Dream 320The Press 324Scholarly Pursuits 330The Visual Arts 339Tourists 345The Aerodrome 365What Price Progress? 369The Protestant Cemetery 373Going Home 377Sources 382Further Reading and Visits 387Index 389

Graham Jefcoate was born in England and studied English in Library Science in Cambridge and London. He has spent much of his adult life abroad, now a retired librarian living in Chang Mai. He took an increasing interest in Thailand when he became Head of Early Printed Collections at the British Library in London in1997, even becoming a member of the committee of the Anglo Thai Society. In recent years, he has become interested in the life of the Anglo-American community in Chang Mai and the north of Thailand before the Pacific War and gave lectures and worship workshops from his research search at Payap University.

• Preface 8Introduction: Bangkok in 13the Early Twentieth CenturyBound for Bangkok 23First Impressions 43Ice 53The Sudden Death of an Engineer 56Palaces and Royalty 58Doing the Wats 66Built Upon the Waters 72The City of Magnificent Distances 76Post and Telecommunications 92Along New Road 95An Up-to-Date Building for Business 98Almost a Danish Colony? 101Germans and the Great War 105The People of Bangkok 114One of the Truly Great 136Men of the WorldDinner at the Room of the Moon 139Food Production 145Ceremonies and Festivals 148The Foreign Colony 154Legations and Consulates 163At Home 170Shopping 181Chummeries 190Beer 194X’mas 197Language 201Mias 206Servants 209Flora and Fauna 214The Snake Farm 223Night Life 227Vice 253Crime and Punishment 266Missions 275In School 283Health and Hygiene 296Sports and Games 313Wongkit’s Dream 320The Press 324Scholarly Pursuits 330The Visual Arts 339Tourists 345The Aerodrome 365What Price Progress? 369The Protestant Cemetery 373Going Home 377Sources 382Further Reading and Visits 387Index 389

Graham Jefcoate was born in England and studied English in Library Science in Cambridge and London. He has spent much of his adult life abroad, now a retired librarian living in Chang Mai. He took an increasing interest in Thailand when he became Head of Early Printed Collections at the British Library in London in1997, even becoming a member of the committee of the Anglo Thai Society. In recent years, he has become interested in the life of the Anglo-American community in Chang Mai and the north of Thailand before the Pacific War and gave lectures and worship workshops from his research search at Payap University.

• Preface 8Introduction: Bangkok in 13the Early Twentieth CenturyBound for Bangkok 23First Impressions 43Ice 53The Sudden Death of an Engineer 56Palaces and Royalty 58Doing the Wats 66Built Upon the Waters 72The City of Magnificent Distances 76Post and Telecommunications 92Along New Road 95An Up-to-Date Building for Business 98Almost a Danish Colony? 101Germans and the Great War 105The People of Bangkok 114One of the Truly Great 136Men of the WorldDinner at the Room of the Moon 139Food Production 145Ceremonies and Festivals 148The Foreign Colony 154Legations and Consulates 163At Home 170Shopping 181Chummeries 190Beer 194X’mas 197Language 201Mias 206Servants 209Flora and Fauna 214The Snake Farm 223Night Life 227Vice 253Crime and Punishment 266Missions 275In School 283Health and Hygiene 296Sports and Games 313Wongkit’s Dream 320The Press 324Scholarly Pursuits 330The Visual Arts 339Tourists 345The Aerodrome 365What Price Progress? 369The Protestant Cemetery 373Going Home 377Sources 382Further Reading and Visits 387Index 389