Stepping through the entrance of Mini Siam Pattaya, you will get a bird’s eye view of the world’s Eastern and Western hemispheres. The Eiffel Tower’s industrial spire and L’arc de Triomphe’s carved ‘monolith’ stand in contrast with the round blue tiles of Beijing’s Altar of Heaven (Tian Tan) and the candy-coloured domes of St. Petersburg’s Church of the Resurrection of Jesus Christ. Equally as diverse, the ‘waterfront’ spans the Indian and Atlantic Oceans, from the Sydney Opera House and Singapore’s Merlion to London’s Tower Bridge and the Statue of Liberty in New York.
Cross the narrow stream dividing the two zones and you enter Thailand. Journey from the pre-civilisation to the Kingdoms of Lanna, Sukhothai, Ayutthaya to Rattanakosin (Bangkok). Highlights include the Temple of the Emerald Buddha, Anantasamakhom Throne Hall, the Bridge over the River Kwai, Sukhothai’s Wat Mahathat to modern infrastructures, such as the Rama IX cable-suspended bridge and Hualamphong Train Station.
