Preserving The Essence of Songkhla Old Town

Songkhla is a historical port city of Thailand which used to be contained within an old city wall with several gates facing the sea. Despite the development and modernization that has come to this town, most of the original urban fabric still remains. However, due to the expansion of the town and the building of new roads, the city walls and the gates were destroyed. The photographs below show the comparison between the life in the Old Town of Songkhla before and after the wall was destroyed. The persistence of the people of Old Songkhla can also be seen through the generations of people who have adapted to modernity yet at the same time, maintained their way of life.

One of the ten original city gates of Songkhla Old Town, which was destroyed along with the city walls.

A newly built city gate stands today between Narkhon Nai Street and Narkhon Nok Street, marking the entrance to Songkhla Old Town. (2016)

Songkhla is a port city with six city gates facing the waterfront. Right: Songkhla: Reliving King Chulalongkorn's 1905 trip (Source: Bangkok Post)

Today, these gates have been destroyed but vistas toward the sea is maintained along these small streets where the old gates used to stand. The streets were once very wide with pedestrain footpaths; they have now become roads (photograph taken in 2016)