The longer that you stay in Thailand, the higher the chance is that you will one day be invited to a funeral. This might be for the parent of a colleague at work or a relation of your Thai wife or husband.
All of the students at my school took part in the annual Wai Khru Ceremony today. The students presented their teachers with flowers and said “thank you” to them for giving them knowledge. In return, the teachers gave them a blessing which the students believe will give them good luck for the coming academic year. The flowers given to the teachers are symbolic
In the old days, before movies and T.V. soap operas, people were entertained with Nang Talung. This is the art of shadow puppets that first became popular in Southern Thailand two or three generations ago. It has since spread to other parts of Thailand, like the north-east, but many people still see it as an art form from the south.
At school last week, we held our regular Thai Manners competition for the students. The students wore traditional Thai clothes and had to visit a number of different bases in order to show that they knew how to perform the proper respect in the correct manner. This reminded me of one of the most common questions that we get in our mailbox. That is the “Thai Wai”
This is the final part of the Thai Manner demonstration at Sriwittayapaknam School. In the previous blogs, I told how this family went to visit their grandmother.
These pictures were taken at Sriwittayapaknam School in Samut Prakan. The students were taking part in a competition for Thai Manners. In this first set of pictures, the students are demonstrating the proper way to show repsect to a Buddha image.
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 the previous academic semester have been drinking in the past six months
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 and no party for your friends if you are a child. Birthdays are not usually marked in the same way here as we did with birthday parties when we were younger.
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 of life-jackets. There are of course laws in Thailand which limits the number of people
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. On the front page of yesterday’s newspaper was this photo of a policeman looking at 14 jars containing the pickled remains of foetuses. Yes, you heard right.
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 a little less attention to feng shui and more to the hard work of solving the problems that the country is and has been facing for the last four years or so? Here is the news according to MCOT: “The Thai government has readjusted its feng shui at Government House according to Chinese cosmological understandings to enhance luck and prosperity as well as to create peacefulness. Six potted plants of one species were placed on the lawn in front of the Thai Ku Fah Building, opposite its entrance, where Prime Minister Abhisit Vejjajiva enters the Government House compound
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 budget
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.
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 of Thai dining.
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 year ending with 0 (zero) for the purpose of international comparison, Thailand has conducted its census in 1970, 1980, 1990 and 2000.
The Most Beautiful Thai Girl. In My Eyes.
Christmas Is Not Over in Isaan Thailand.
The Residence Hua Hin
Two New Floating Markets in Hua Hin
Caroline Wozniacki Goes to Thailand
Am I Getting Too Old?
Christmas in Isaan Thailand 2011.
Celebrating Christmas in Thailand
Sport Day Parade Outfits 2011 Isaan Thailand.
