Bangkok Rocks: Spreading Kindness One Rock At A Time

Rock painting and hiding is the perfect activity to do with your kids in Bangkok this rainy season - the possibilities are endless and your piece of art could end up anywhere in the world! Chree Platt, who started Bangkok Rocks shares everything you need to know to get your family started with this fun activity. By Chree PlattBangkok Rocks is a kindness rocks group that I started in July 2018. We paint rocks and leave them in public places for other people to find. We upload photos of our rocks with hints of where to find them. A message on the back of the rock indicates to upload a photo on to the Bangkok Rocks Facebook page if you do find one. The message also invites the finder to re-hide the rock for others to find and to include a photo of the new hiding place or to keep it if they want to. The rocks are painted for other people to find. Each rock that is painted and hidden is an act of kindness to brighten someone’s day unexpectedly. It’s about doing something good for someone else. Finding a painted rock makes people smile. By painting a rock and leaving it with the intention of making another person smile, without expecting anything in return can make the giver and receiver feel good. It is an activity for all ages and abilities. 

How it all began

I first heard about the kindness rocks when a friend posted up a picture of a rock she had found while on holiday in Derbyshire, UK. I was staying with my brother in Fleet, UK at the time and when I spoke to him about it, he mentioned that there were parks near his home where people hid rocks. I loved finding these beautiful, unexpected surprises hidden around the park; they warmed my heart and made me smile. When I started painting them, I was hooked. My brother suggested that I should start up a page in Bangkok, and with his help, I started the Bangkok Rocks page.

Get involved

You can get involved simply by painting and hiding rocks in the park closest to your home and posting photo hints of them on Bangkok Rocks for other people to find. It is a great activity to do with your child. If you would like to go on a rock hunt, join the Bangkok Rocks group and whenever you hide a rock,  share a photo hint of where it can be found. 

 

 "Finding a painted rock makes people smile. By painting a rock and leaving it with the intention of making another person smile."

Where to hide and find rocks

The best place to find rocks is Benjasiri Park. Other members have left rocks in Lumpini, Chatuchak and Benjakitti parks, and along Thonglor. I have also left them on sky train walkways, in resorts while on holiday, at airports and any park that I visited. You can leave rocks anywhere, but please be mindful of leaving them in grass in areas where park gardeners are working, as hidden rocks can damage gardening equipment. Try to leave rocks on a tree branch, on a bench, a raised platform, statue or playground equipment where people can see them but animals cannot interfere with them. Please do not add any additional parts like googly eyes, glitter or sequins as these items tend to fall off and can be ingested by animals.

Tips for painting rocks

Wash the rocks first to get the excess dust off them before painting. You can add a white acrylic base coat before decorating or just paint a picture straight on to the rock if you prefer. Before fixing the paint, write a message on the back “POST ON FACEBOOK, BANGKOK ROCKS, KEEP OR HIDE.” When the rocks are completed, I usually set the paint by using an all-purpose paint fixer on them. There are several varieties on sale either in B2S, Central or Emporium. I use Winsor & Newton General Purpose High Gloss Varnish. You can find ideas of what to paint on Pinterest or Google. I started with easy pictures of bees and ladybugs.

Where to buy rocks

I buy my rocks from the aquarium shops opposite the Children’s Discovery Museum in Chatuchak. There are different types of rocks and you can use whatever you prefer. I usually get the smaller sized rocks. These aquarium shops sell them by the kilogram and you can pick out the shape and size that you want. You can also get the rocks in the flower shops next to Or Tor Gor, the farmers' market. You can get a 5kg bag of rocks for less than 100 Baht. The bags are quite heavy and it would be advisable to have a car or to get straight into a taxi when you have purchased your bag of rocks.

The best paint

I use Sakura acrylic paint as a base coat for the rocks, I paint them white first, applying a couple of layers on both sides before I decorate them. Posca Paint marker pens are great for drawing on the rocks. You can buy Posca Pens online. Sharpies, acrylic paints or any permanent markers or paint markers can also be used. They can be bought from B2S or any shopping mall with a stationery department. 

What to write on the rocks

You can draw anything you like. With small children paint with different colors. With older children, you could think of inspirational or motivational quotes or alternately just draw a picture. There are lots of ideas on Pinterest and Google. 

How far the rocks travel

We have been trying to see how far we can get our rocks to go. So far people have posted from Palau Island, UK, and Indonesia. Take them on holiday and leave them wherever you stay. Post a picture on Bangkok Rocks and we can see how far the rocks have traveled. The kindness rocks project is happening all over the world. You never know where you might find one.

About the Author

Chree Platt is a teacher from Bangkok Patana School. She started up the Bangkok Rocks group to help spread kindness one rock at a time. You can contact her through the Bangkok Rocks Facebook page or email her at chpl@patana.ac.th.

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