On bustling Phuket, there is a quiet place without beaches, noisy shopping malls, nightclubs, and bars. This is the Old Town – a district hidden in the island's capital, Phuket Town. Tourists rarely come here, since they usually come to Thailand for a somewhat different kind of vacation.
The atmosphere of the beginning of the XX century hangs in the Old Town, because almost all the architecture here dates from that era, when well-to-do immigrants and local residents began building mansions for themselves, while migrant workers spent their time here gambling and drinking. In fact, this was the whole town in those days.
Walking through the Old Town, you will be able to see many sights; they are everywhere here – almost every building has its own history. There is nothing here that resembles the modern style of Phuket's capital. Cute cafes and little shops at every turn, a Chinese temple, a hotel, workshops. For the most part, descendants of the Chinese who settled Phuket during the development of the region's industry live here.
Most of the houses in the Old Town have preserved their original appearance, and the owners try to maintain it, avoiding excessive modernization. Sino-colonial architecture is a unique phenomenon in Southeast Asia, in which local ethnic motifs have blended with European style.
The most authentic places in the Old Town can be considered spots such as a spice and herb shop opened more than a hundred years ago by a visiting Chinese immigrant, the old post office building, and the Phuket Museum.
