Introduction to the BMA City Hall

After the Saochingcha Market was demolished in 1941, Bangkok’s first city hall was built here. The original city hall was a plain 2-storey wooden building that was far too small to accommodate the rapid growth of Bangkok. It was later replaced in 1962 by the huge white building you see here now which serves as the main office of the Bangkok Metropolitan Administration, or BMA for short. This building was initially planned to be 72 meters tall, but in Thai tradition, regular buildings should not be taller than the local temple. So a less imposing design combining Thai and western architecture was chosen.

On the front of the BMA building, just below the ugly digital clock, is the Bangkok city seal which is also found on all city vehicles, park benches, and lightposts. The seal is based on a painting by Prince Naris of the god Indra riding through the clouds on the mythological three-headed elephant named Erawan. Indra holds a lightning bolt in his hand, which he uses to drive away famine and drought. Just as the green god protects and provides for the celestial city of Amarvati, so the BMA governor maintains Bangkok. You can decide who has the more impossible task.
beep… Continue walking down Dinsor Road.

There used to be a small village here. The residents of the village made and sold a white chalk called dinsor, a Cambodian word literally meaning “white earth.”

This chalk was made from a mixture of soil, white clay, and tumeric powder which was pounded flat, dried, and then cut into small cakes or pellets. The dried clay had many functions. It was often mixed with water or cologne and rubbed on the skin to treat heat rashes. It was also eaten by pregnant women as a remedy for morning sickness.

Surprisingly, dinsor was also used by schoolchildren as chalk to mark on small wooden boards. Later, when lead pencils were imported from Europe, the old chalk pencils became obsolete. However, the Thai people continued to call the lead pencils ‘dinsor,’ and to this day dinsor means pencil in the Thai language.

During the reign of King Rama 4, a road was cut through Dinsor Village. After making a few improvements Rama 5 opened Thanon Dinsor to the public on November 15, 1899.

Since its opening, Dinsor Road has served as one of the main arteries linking Rajadamnoen Avenue to the city center. The road is also well-known for its restaurants which are normally packed full at in mid-afternoon when employees from the nearby BMA building flood the street in search of lunch. Many restaurants in this area are vegetarian due to the influence of former Bangkok governor Chamlong, a member of a strict vegetarian Buddhist group named Santi Asoke.