From ‘Ole House’ to resort: Couple’s renovation journey in Bangkok saves more than just a century-old home

Shakin’ Stevens may not have had time to ‘Fix the shingles, time to fix the floor” but one “Ole House” in Bangkok became a labour of love for one couple and maybe saved their marriage.

College sweethearts Irma Go and Kirati “Arti” Thepsoparn decided to embark on an almost impossible journey to renovate a century Ole House on stilts in Bangkok in 2016, a year after spotting the dilapidated building while on a canal boat trip a year earlier.

The couple who met as students at the University of California Los Angeles (UCLA), in the United States – took on the restoration project despite having no background in conservation or engineering, reported South China Morning Post.

Go fell in love with the antiquated dwellings in the quiet Bangkok Noi neighbourhood when she moved to Thailand in 2001.

This sparked the five-year project to build the Siri Sala resort, located downriver from the Grand Palace and spanning 170 square metres. It boasts a garden, and a swimming pool and can accommodate up to six bedrooms.

Go acknowledged that in Thailand, land cannot be owned by foreigners, so she had to initiate the sale.

Arti said…

“She thought [the property was] really charming. I only saw floods, mosquitoes, and a lot of headaches. “I had been indoctrinated to admire only ‘beautiful’ palaces, temples, and Italianate colonial houses. I thought this was just a common house, and not worth preserving and treasuring.”

One of Siri Sala’s bedrooms. Photo: Siri Sala

The house was in such bad shape that many engineers and designers advised tearing the Ole House down. Arti added…

“Many Thai architects had the view that I had. It’s just a commoner house. They didn’t see the possibilities. Also, the house was too damaged to just renovate. It was unsafe. It was on stilts on a shared platform, so we had to lift the whole thing up, not just fix bits and parts. We had to make some serious decisions. We wanted to preserve and stay as close as possible to the original, but there wasn’t a way forward. It took us a few years to figure it out.”

The couple wanted to upcycle the original 100-year-old structure, and the Thai-American firm 4b Architects and designer Nicoletta Romei were able to convert the original Thai house into a contemporary villa with modern amenities.

Even though it added to the cost of the project, they reclaimed discarded doors and cabinets and repurposed three leftover 6 metre wooden planks to make a dining table.

The living room at Siri Sala. The 1,880 square-foot lot had enough space for a garden, a swimming pool, and a villa with up to six bedrooms. Photo: Siri Sala

Siri Sala finally opened as the coronavirus pandemic was winding down in early 2022. The villa is intended for rental in its entirety rather than room by room like a hotel, providing a different Bangkok travel experience for families and groups.

Go revealed that when they built the house they had my family in mind.

“Filipinos love to travel in large, multi-generational groups. When we had our children, what we looked for in accommodation changed too. Instead of beautiful art and stylish rooms, I thought ‘Oh, we don’t want those because my kids will destroy them.’ Life changes.

“We also want travel to be a learning experience, not just staying at nice places and eating good food. We organize canal tours, dining events and tell the story of where and why we’re there. It’s giving a different perspective to this great city.

“I envision our guests will have been to Bangkok before and are looking for something new and a more meaningful connection to the city.”

Now the Ole House villa is up and running, the couple admits that the Herculean task of renovating tested their marriage. Arti said…

“Both of us have very strong opinions. We are contradictory but complementary. Irma thinks beyond the practical, to see people’s experiences and how they use things. I’m more visual, thinking from ideals and how things should be transcending. The big debate for us is where the middle is – to have a place that inspires and transcends yet is a home to get comfortable in.

“In the end, this is a thoughtful house with both points of view.”

Go added jokingly…

“They say the test of every marriage is when you have a child or buy a house. Siri Sala was like combining purchasing a house with birthing a child at the same time. I told our interior designer Nicoletta she didn’t just decorate Siri Sala, she saved our marriage.”

The dilapidated villa before it became the Siri Sala. Photo: Siri Sala