Off the main Thalong road at Phuket Town in Phuket is a restored street known in the past as the street of happiness for the many Chinese labourers working in the tin mines.
By happiness, i think we must qualify a bit on the definition as the notion of being happy a few decades ago was vastly different from contemporary times. Back then, gambling / opium dens and brothels were considered the entertainment.
Kind of reminded me of the concubine lane in Ipoh (Malaysia), which was undergoing restoration when i visited in 2013. Maybe it's time for me to revisit the place in the near future as i didn't spend much time in the city then.
Maybe due to the rain, Soi Rommanee didn't appear "happening"; maybe i should spend a night in Phuket Town next time as it definitely wasn't your usual Phuket fare that consisted mainly of beaches and booze.
One of the few commercial entities along the short street.
A tee-shirt with a kitschy, touristy message that's like everywhere; from I Love NY to I Love SG. The Chinese notice mentioned it's a souvenir you die-die must buy. No, i don't think so.
The most famous place along the street would be the crowded Torry's Ice Cream Boutique Shop with a respectable rating of 4.6 on google reviews with over 300 reviewers! Click here for more pictures!
Like other historical towns in Southeast Asia, street murals proved to be one good way to bring in tourists and i specifically showed the above two as hide and seek is a common childhood game when we were young!
Soi Rommanee connects to the weekend night market on Sundays (known simply as Phuket Walking Street) and i would suggest you drop by on Sunday to kill two birds with one stone; as we did. More on the walking street in the next few days!
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Location
Talat Yai, Mueang Phuket District,
Phuket 83000, Thailand
Map
As above.
What else did i do in Phuket?
Check out my 5-day Phuket itinerary here!