Unlikely fans for Bangkok icon

One of Bangkok’s property icons is attracting a whole new audience of Thais and foreigners – on Facebook.

A victim of the 1997 Asian Financial Crisis in 1997 the Sathorn Unique Tower, also known as the Ghost Tower, was 80 percent complete when building ceased and the money ran out. It’s now winning fans online with several Facebook pages, and a host of images of urban explorers, posting pictures of themselves within the building, as well as tips on the site and how to get to the top.

At 49-storeys high, Sathorn Unique at the Chao Phraya end of Sathorn is one of several scars on the Bangkok skyline from almost 20 years ago. The decaying structure is now verging on being dangerous, and security guards prevent most intrepid adventurers from trespassing on the private land and scaling the building.

The so-called Ghost Tower is thought to have been built on a former graveyard, while at certain times of the day the building casts its inauspicious shadow over a nearby temple. A foreigner also committed suicide in the building late last year.

Nowadays it’s also being put to use as a gigantic advertising billboard.

Yet despite its history and getting to the top involves risking injury and breaking the law, there are still hundreds of people who have ‘liked’ several social media pages devoted to the infamous building.

Images: From various Facebook sources.

Sathorn Unique Ghost Tower