As a landscape designer and architect — not to mention an artist in his own right — Bill Bensley has carved a niche as one of Southeast Asia’s premier creative talents.

Bangkok

"Hands down I would stay at The Siam Hotel. It's on the river. It's a very small hotel, with 30 rooms. It’s chock-a-block full of memorabilia from the turn of the century in Thailand. It's near the Grand Palace and all the wonderful things that are surrounding the Grand Palace."

The Siam Hotel

"I still take a long-tail boat down thekhlongs [canals] on the west side of Bangkok and have it stop at every single one of thewats[temples]. These temples are overgrown and have been there since the 1700s. To get there by way of a long-tail boat, private hire is like $20 an hour. Head to Jack's Bar in Charoenkrung, and you can get one from there. Otherwise most hotels can help arrange — there is no one company that is best known."

Jack’s Bar

"I just went to the National Museum Bangkok, and it has redone its decorative arts wing. They have the most amazing Thai puppet display now, it's mind-boggling. Even if you're not a fan of puppets and whatnot, just the attention to detail and artistry is great."

National Museum Bangkok

"During the cold weather over Christmas, we go down to a place called Wat Arun, which means the Temple of the Dawn. I find that place very inspirational."

Wat Arun

"Just outside of Chatuchak, there's a place called the Red Building. Everybody knows it, it's just a really ugly building, but inside is probably 300 vendors of all different things, from antique Swedish chess to Thai railroad maps to memorabilia to photographs of the King of Thailand. I highly recommend it, it’s a great place to go."

Chatuchak Market

"Definitely go to River City, that's a huge complex of art galleries. River City changes constantly, so every month there's a new artist. At any one time, you could probably see 100 Thai artists there, including myself as a fine artist (laughs)."

River City