Thailand Stories

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 . Friday 30th July 2010: At about 3am @ js100radio reported an …

If you have ever arrived at Suvarnabhumi Airport in Thailand then you will surely know about the problem with the taxis and illegal tour guides. As you walk out of customs people would always come up to you asking if you wanted a…

My Bangkok Day Trip for this week is two locations in Samut Prakan Province. Although you can still see the skyscrapers in Bangkok from these places, it is very unlikely that you will meet any other foreigner on this trip. However, be prepared to go off the beaten track a…

I have said it before, but no-one believed me. This year will see the start of a significant number of people using e-guidebooks instead of hefting around large bricks that the Lonely Planet books are starting to resemble. Lonely Planet actually started to go …

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 …

Sales of Red Shirt Merchandise doesn’t seemed to have been affected much by the leaders recent decision to ask their members to go “multi-colour”. Vendors just switched their stock from shirts to accessories and other souvenirs. And it is not just the Red Shirt protesters buying. When I was there I spotted quite a few “Demonstration …

The Mon people, in the communities surrounding Wat Bang Ya Phraek in Phra Pradaeng District of Samut Prakan, took part in a parade and merit making activities this afternoon. In Thai, this parade is called “ngan hae yot phra chedi sai”. Which is basically a parade to carry the pinnacle or slender …

One of the main events organized during Songkran celebrations around Thailand is the Miss Songkran Beauty Contest. The one that I went to on Friday night was held at the municipal offices in Phra Pradaeng, Samut Prakan. It takes place every year and it is always fun to go and watch. Both male and …

One of the traditions for Songkran is to release fish and birds. The idea is that you are making merit by doing a good deed for caged animals. Of course, someone had to cage them in the first place so that you could release them! This is a …

In my opinion, the best Songkran parade in Central Thailand  is in Phra Pradaeng. It took place this afternoon and I was there live with my iPhone uploading some of these pictures and a few videos too! It is a very colourful …

This afternoon I am here in Phra Pradaeng in Samut Prakan Province. Just when you thought that it was safe to put away the wet-weather gear and then Songkran comes back! The people of Phra Pradaeng are Thai-Raman and they celebrate Songkran later than…

Taking a break from the hectic Songkran celebrations the other day, I went to Wat Chai Mongkol in Samut Prakan. It was like an oasis in the middle of a war zone. In the surrounding area, roaming pickup trucks, packed with people armed to the teeth, were patrolling the streets looking for…

One of the more traditional events that took place during Songkran recently was “song nam phra”. This is the practice of bathing Buddha images with rose scented water. Most tourists, and even some Thai teenagers, seem to think that Songkran is only about throwing water at each other. However, it…

I have spent most of this afternoon at Wat Chai Mongkol in Samut Prakan taking pictures of their Songkran activities. The second event was making merit by building sand pagodas. In Thai this is called “chedi sai”. According to legend, people make merit by bringing sand back to the temple that they might have inadvertently taken out on …

This afternoon I went to The Erawan Museum in Samut Prakan to take pictures of their Songkran activities. If you didn’t know already, this is a giant three-headed elephant. Probably the largest in the world. There were quite a few people here making merit and touring the inside of the giant elephant. If you…

As you probably all know now, Thailand is celebrating Songkran this week, which is the traditional Thai new year. It is basically a week of waterfights, but there are also some other traditional aspects to the festival which I will tell you about later. …

I just spent the afternoon at Ancient Siam in Samut Prakan. They have quite a few activities going on this week for Songkran.I will post full story over at www.paknam.com as well as more pictures. The highlight for me was the…

This week sees the celebration for the start of the traditional Thai new year. From the 13th-15th April, Thai people will be dressing up in new clothes and visiting the local temple to make merit and to their grandparents in order to receive blessings. Afterwards, the youngsters will be out on the street taking part in the …

These are some of the pictures of the Songkran activities that I will be joining in Samut Prakan this week. As you can see there is a lot going on during the traditional Thai new year and not all of them are to do with water throwing! Though, of course…

An elephant sprays water on tourists during the Songkran festival on Khao San road in Bangkok April 12, 2010. The Songkran festival marks the start of the new year in the traditional Thai calendar. (Reuters) Tourists spray water on each other during the Songkran festival on…