Thailand Stories

This weekend there is a Thai Culture Fair for ten regions of Thailand at Ancient Siam. I was planning on going this afternoon to take some pictures but we had a heavy downpour. So, by the time I got there it was already starting to get dark. A nice picture of a …

Spoken by almost 100 percent of the Thai population, Thai is the only national and official language of the country. A survey shows that the people of Thailand take pride in their language, which reflects distinctive culture and traditions passed on from generation to generation…

This is a review of what happened in Thailand during the last week based on topics that I tweeted. You can follow me live for latest news about Thailand @RichardBarrow . I have also started a new version of my Bangkok Dangerous Map as…

This evening I was invited to the Ancient Siam in Samut Prakan for a press conference for their Thai Culture event coming soon in August. On 7-9 August 2010, there will be a Thai Culture Exhibition and activities at Ancient Siam. At the…

A recent survey of 23,088 Thai students from Pathom 5 up to doctorate level in all provinces across Thailand show that more students are turning to alcohol. According to the survey, the average age of drinking students is 19 years. The youngest drinker is only 10 years old. Up to 56.7 per cent of Thai students with a grade lower than 2.00 in …

One of the questions that we sometimes receive in our mailbox and over at the ThailandQA.com forums is this one: “How do Thai people celebrate their birthdays?” Well, they don’t often celebrate in the way that we do in the West. This often means no cake, no presents …

The tragic news over the weekend of the two speedboats that collided near Koh Samui brings back bad memories of my own boat trips. I think just about every time I have been on a boat in Thailand I have always worried about overcrowding and the seemingly lack…

If you want any proof that superstition and black magic is alive and well in Thailand then you don’t need to go further than the front page of the Thai Rath. This is the most popular newspaper for Thai people and its front pages are often filled with colour pictures of road accidents and murder victims. …

After a string of bad luck, the Thai government has decided that the best way to bring about national reconciliation in Thailand is to move around some furniture and potted plants at Government House. I don’t want to belittle the beliefs of the people in government, but wouldn’t it be better if they paid …

According to an article in the Bangkok Post, the Fine Arts Department plans to register 25 sites as areas of historical interest in Thailand this year. Most of the sites are in Bangkok and many are Buddhist temples, although there are also palaces and residences. Registration will entitle them to allocations from the conservation…

On Saturday, I joined a Thai Cultural trip, sponsored by the Tourism Authority of Thailand (TAT), to the island of Ko Kret. The purpose of the trip was to teach Thai culture and traditions to foreign teachers who live in the Bangkok area. Ko Kret is …

The most important event to be held at Sriwittayapaknam School is the annual Wai Kru Ceremony. Like other schools around the country this always takes place towards the start of the new academic year and always on a Thursday. The students pay respect to their teachers by presenting them with flowers and going down onto the floor …

For the past two months we have received many inquires from people asking if Thailand is really safe for them to come on a holiday. For the most part, I was telling people that “yes” Thailand is a safe country…

One of the latest museums to open in Thailand is the Siamese Fighting Fish Gallery in Bangkachao in Samut Prakan. It is in an area which is commonly called the “lungs of Bangkok” as it is covered in lush green foliage and is only a…

The Novotel Suvarnabhumi Airport Hotel is hosting a month long art and culture exhibition called “Life along the River”. We went to the opening ceremony at the weekend which was attended by the Governor of Samut Prakan. You can see more pictures at…

I think one of the first phrases I learned when I arrived in Thailand was “gin khao reu yung?” This is a phrase that asks if you have eaten yet but is really more of a greeting than an inquiry. They are not really interested in when you had your last meal. If you dissect …

Thai cuisine involves the balancing of contrasting flavors, spicy and subtle, sweet and sharp. It is also concerned with aesthetic value, for the Thais believe that food should please the eye as well as the palate. One particularly delightful aspect…

Whenever we have new foreign teachers at the school, I always take them out to a restaurant as part of their orientation. This is partly to introduce them to my favourite Thai food on a menu. But, I also want to point out to them some of the finer points …

Thailand’s first population census was conducted in 1909 by the Ministry of Interior. Four subsequent censuses followed in 1919, 1929, 1937 and 1947. Since 1960, the National Statistical Office (NSO) has been responsible for undertaking population censuses every ten years under the 1952 Statistical Act (revised in 1965). In accordance with the United recommendation that countries should undertake national censuses every the…

It would seem that the longer I stay in Thailand, the higher the frequency that I attend funerals. In fact, I have two sets of funeral clothes now. I thought today I would give a brief overview of a cremation in order to …