Thailand Stories

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 …

The rainy season has already come to an end. There has been no rain the last two weeks in Samut Prakan. However, this was the view this morning in Paknam. This is not rain water. This is sea water that swamps the city during the daily high tides during November every year. The Chao Phraya River is at…

One of my favourite festivals in Thailand is undoubtedly Luang Phor Pan Worshipping Festival in Bang Bo District of Samut Prakan. I went last year for the first time and had no idea what to expect. There were so many surprises that I had a really…

I had not been to Pai since my second Thailand holiday in 2002. It doesn’t really make a convenient weekend getaway if you rely on public transport or your two wheels. However, it was the perfect thing to do in my friend’s car. Riding up and down hills smoothly, speaking my mother tongue for the first time…

(The following is a brief Thai> English translation from various local news sources) At 10 in the morning of 24 September, Mr Sanan, administrative chief of Phatthalung province was in charge of perhaps the first ever televised wedding between endangered Sakai people. The Sakai…

One of the best books about Buddhism in Thailand is undoubtedly “Phra Farang: An English Monk in Thailand” by Phra Peter Pannapadipo. Even if you are not interested in becoming a monk yourself, his vivid description of his ten years as a…

In an old guidebook to Bangkok, dating back about 150 years, the writer mentioned a “Red House” on the East bank of the Chao Phraya River exactly 2.3 miles south of Paknam. I have read quite a few contemporary accounts by travellers from the 19th Century that described their…

Transfer passengers at Suvarnabhumi Airport will now be able to choose between a range of tours if they have at least six hours to spare before they need to catch their next plane. Paknam Web was invited over to the airport this morning…

For about a year or so now, they have been constructing a bridge over Sukhumwit Road in Bang Pu District of Samut Prakan. When they first started I thought it was a bit strange. As it is a bit like a bridge …

When I first travelled through Asia I remember thinking that it was lucky that I spoke English as my first language. I noticed that English was being used as the way to communicate between backpackers of different nations. For example, a German would speak to a Frenchman in …

Title: Mor 3 Bpee 4 Rao Rak Naai Director: Haeman Chatemee Starring: Sarocha Tanjararak, Kanin Bhatia, Suppasit Chinwinijkul Official website: www.mor3pee4themovie.com Release Date in Thailand: 30 April 2009 It all started with MSN. Four teenagers making friends online, they yet haven’t met, but are bound to come across each other …

People often envy me when they find out I live in Thailand. However, once you wake up, it is not only azure waters and blooming orchids. Work is work – hard work. Nevertheless, I have settled into a comfortable routine, and day-to-day life is nice and predictable. But I need to be careful, too. The smiling faces fade…

I find it very satisfying to be able to give back to my local community. I teach English to Thai students in a private school in Samut Prakan. But, these kids mainly come from rich families and they are used to seeing foreign teachers. What I sometimes find more rewarding is to …

After waiting nearly five years, the Royal Thai Mint have finally solved a problem that people were having with the two baht coin. This coin was first introduced back in 2005. It has an image of King Rama IX on one side and the Golden Mount on the other. The problem most people had was that it was only slightly bigger than the one baht coin. When you were …

I enjoy getting lost. Taking a map, my camera, some water, and follow some deserted mountain road, looking down on valleys, looking over mountain ranges. This is how I found the beautiful little village of Baan Namkhong just a few weeks ago at the end of a winding road, in …

How come, with the age of the Internet with all that info available on places to go in Thailand, that us folk, when choosing a holiday destination, always select the same old places? And especially, when it’s a tropical beach we are after. So, if you’re bored of well-trodden tourist haunts and their endless array of banana boats and bar beers, then why not…

One of the best agro-tourism projects in Thailand is undoubtedly Farm Chokchai in Nakhon Ratchasima Province. In fact it has won many awards. Farm Chokchai is situated on the Friendship Highway in cowboy country and is only 159 km from Bangkok. You can either come here as a day trip from Bangkok or as a stopover on your…

I like looking at old photos of Bangkok. It is interesting to see how some things have changed. While others things are much the same. These are some interesting aerial photos of Bangkok from Life magazine taken by Dmitri Kessel in 1950. The first one is the Marble Temple. The next one is looking down…

An expression often used during the colonial period was “going native”. It referred to the people who forgot the ways of their home country and started to behave like the natives. It was meant as a derogatory term as if Western educated people were of a higher class and standing. To “go native” meant to behave like someone from your host country. For example, accept the…

All of the writers at www.Thai-Blogs.com would like to wish all of our regular readers a very Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year. These are pictures I took this morning of activities at the school where I teach. Although the majority of our students are Buddhists, they still wanted to have fun and a learn a little about another culture at the same …