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 there have been more…

Over the recent long holiday weekend in Thailand, we celebrated two important Buddhist holidays: Asarnha Bucha and Khao Phansa. The first takes place on the full moon day of the eighth lunar month. It commemorates the Buddha’s first sermon to his first five disciples. On this day …

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 . Weekend 16th-18th July 2010 US names new Thailand envoy http://j.mp/bWKMFJ Democrats, …

One of the first books that I read about Thailand was called “Pirates of Tarutao” by Paul Adirex. It is loosely based on a true story of prisoners on a penal colony that were forced to become pirates due to food shortages during the Second …

This afternoon I went to visit the Silom Walking Street which will run for three days from 28-30 May 2010 from 10 a.m. to 7 p.m. The one-kilometer long walking street was set up to help retail operators who have been hard hit by the red shirt protests over the last two months…

This week I am back to school after the long summer holidays. So, I thought I would share with you some of the highlights of life in a Thai school. This first picture shows the “wai khru” ceremony which always takes places towards the …

Last night I was invited to visit Ancient Siam in Samut Prakan for their night tour and dinner theatre. This is not a regular feature but a special event for this weekend and next weekend on 14-16th May 2010. I have…

What do smartphones, Twitter and the Red Shirt rallies in Bangkok have in common? The answer is simple. It has at times meant the difference between life and death for foreign tourists and expats in Bangkok. Maybe a little melodramatic, but it has a grain…

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…

Many people believe that the practice of releasing fish and birds at the temple in order to make merit is an old Thai tradition. But, in fact it was the Mon people of what is now Southern Burma that brought this practice …

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 …

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 …

[moblog] Twitter Updates for 2010-04-15: [moblog] Twitter Updates for 2010-04-15: 1,427 road accidents, killing 11… http://bit.ly/dkZD38 # Why are more people dying during Songkran this year? Is it because we have no-one in charge in the government? # An excellent website on Thailand’s present political situation by @ newley http://topicthailand.com #…

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 …

1,427 road accidents, killing 114, injuring 1,536 over the first 2 days of the week-long Songkran holiday /BkkPost # I have posted some video of the Swan and Centipede Parade yesterday http://paknam.com/2/19425 # [blog] Swan and Centipede Parade in Phra Pradaeng: Thailand has quite a few ethnic minorities. One of these grou… http://…

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 …

You can trust the Thais to carry on with their festivals despite the troubles in Bangkok. The evening of Saturday 10th April 2010 was a dark day in the history of Thailand with at least 21 people killed in running street battles between the Thai army …

I recently visited Ancient Siam in Samut Prakan for their Guan Yin Festival. The Bodhisattva Avalokitesvara represents the spirit of compassion and is highly revered among the Chinese and other nations such as India, Tibet, Korea and Japan. The events at…

The Khon masked play is a kind of classical dance drama in Thailand. It depicts episodes from the Ramakien, which is the Thai version of the Ramayana. Originally it was only for royal audience, but these days anyone catch watch…

These are some of the pictures that I took at the red shirt rally today in Bangkok. It was another of those historic days in Thailand and although I was very busy taking pictures at other events in Samut Prakan, I decided I should make the time to travel into Bangkok to see what…